Categories
Climbing Ski Travel

Chamonix in May

Panoramic from the bridge at the Midi station.
Panoramic from the bridge at the Midi station.

May 6-25, 2017

What a trip is all I have to say to start.  

In November 2016 I headed to Chamonix, France to feel out a seemingly unbelievable opportunity.  That trip was my first to Chamonix and I didn’t get a peek at the riches that the area has for mountain scenery and fun.  The clouds hung low for the duration of that trip and snow fell frequently.  Since that date things have accelerated significantly and at the beginning of May it was time to return for a longer and more productive trip to solidify the gel that has started setting.  In short the opportunity was to work with Blue Ice, a small Chamonix based climbing company.  I would go along with Bill Belcourt to discuss opening an additional office in Salt Lake City.  We would head the hardgoods design effort here in SLC and softgoods would continue out of Chamonix.  Six months after the project kicked off we are six strong in Salt Lake and augmenting the team of 13 in Chamonix.  Stay tuned to see what we’re working on…

As for the trip.  Adam and I headed out at the beginning of May just as one of the team from France was leaving a visit to the US.  The itinerary was to visit a number of suppliers, climb, ski, and live in France for the bulk of May.  Check, check, check, and check.

Looking up the cable for the telepherique.
Looking up the cable for the telepherique.

In Nov. ’16 I didn’t get to witness the scale since the place was socked in and we didn’t get out for any climbing.  This time however, our ride in from Geneva left us with a clear view of the magnitude of topography that is Chamonix.  The elevation at the cable car, téléphérique as it’s called, in town is 3,379′ (1030 m).  The top of the Aiguille du Midi which the téléphérique brings you to is 12,604′ (3,842 m).  Mont Blanc, the highest point in Europe, is 15,774′ (4,808 m) and only 3.4 mi (5.4km) away.  I thought that Salt Lake City had some of the best relief in the world and it is only half of that of Chamonix.  The scale is mind blowing.  Looking up at the peaks from the center of town almost hurts your neck in how high you have to look.

While there was quite a bit of working on the trip we were able to get out and do some fun in the hills and mountains.

Travel

Skiing the Grand Envers variation of the Vallee Blanche

Ablon Sport Climbing

Cosmique Arete

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