Mont Blanc ascent, Mont Blanc region, Chamonix

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Mont Blanc Ascent: Day-to-Day Itinerary:
2 days of mountaineering

For our scheduled Mont Blanc ascents we offer two options:

The Traverse Route via Cosmique Hut tends to be a bit more strenuous on the summit day (4000m = 1000ft more altitude difference from the hut to the summit compared to the Gouter Route), requires 3 passages of front pointing on your crampons but the first day is relatively short and easy and the route doesn't involve any rock scrambling.

The Normal Route via the Gouter Hut is more exposed to rock fall hazard and the main technical difficulties are in the rock scramble below the Gouter Hut and a short exposed section on the summit ridge.

The decision which route will be taken depends on mountain conditions (the Gouter Route was closed due to extraordinary rock fall hazard for a good part of the 2003 season for example), weather, client fitness and availability of spots in the huts. For fit clients, we can also maintain the option of traversing the mountain, which means using both routes either ascending or descending, which certainly gives you the best adventure!

Ascent via Normal Route (Gouter Hut):
Day 1:
The approach to the Gouter Hut on the first day is technically more challenging than the following day, thus you should only carry the bare minimum.
Unless otherwise arranged, you should meet your guide at the Bellevue Cable Car in Les Houches, about 10km down valley (west) from Chamonix at 7:30am. You might be able to arrange to drive together with your guide. The guide will purchase all the necessary tickets for the cable car and train. After the cable car to Bellevue comes a short train ride to Nid D'Aigle.
The first three hours of hiking are on an easy trail to the Tete Rousse Hut (3167m = 10400ft). There you will rope on for the ascent to the Gouter Hut. A short glacier is followed by the traverse of the "Grand Couloir", the most notorious and objectively dangerous part of the ascent (45 min).
From there it will take about two hours of scrambling, sometimes with support from fixed cables, to reach the Gouter Hut (3800m = 12500ft)..
Day 2:
The normal ascent time from the hut to the summit is about five hours, which gets you to the top between 7.30 and 8.00 AM. There is one shelter on the way, the Vallot Hut (4300 meters = 14100ft), which can be used for a quick stop to find shelter from the wind - mostly we do not stop there, though. The descent route follows the same way all the way back to the mountain train, which puts us back into the valley around 3.30PM.

Ascent via the 'Traverse Route' aka 'The three M's' (Cosmique Hut):
Day 1:
Unless otherwise arranged, you should meet your guide at 1PM at the bottom station of the Aiguille du Midi funicular downtown Chamonix - only 5 minutes walk from the train station. You might be able to arrange to drive together with your guide from our Hotel in Argentière. The guide will purchase all the necessary tickets for the cable car to the Aiguille du Midi. You will have the option to take the elevator to the summit terrace to enjoy the views of your ascent route to the Mont Blanc the following day. A short descent down the east ridge of the Aiguille du Midi takes you in about one hour to the modern and relatively spacious Cosmique Hut (3600m = 11800ft).
In the afternoon, we often do a short training session in the neighborhood of the hut or just hang out on the terrace to recover from the quick change in altitude (Chamonix is located at 1000m = 3280 ft).

Day 2:
The normal ascent time from the hut to the summit is about 6 hours, which gets you to the top between 7.30 and 8.00 AM. (Start from the hut is approx. at 02:00AM).
There is no shelter on the way! The route follows a steep glacier trail to the Mont Blanc du Tacul, depending on conditions, there might be some steeper steps to climb. the crux is a 60 meter 55 degree pitch into the Col Maudit, which requires front pointing technique on your crampons. From there relatively easy to the summit. The descent will either be via the Normal Route or back the same way, which gets you back to Chamonix usually around 4pm.