Les and Jolene Lovett
European Alps - August 14-20, 2006
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| Longtime NCMG clients, Les and Jolene Lovett
of Bowling Green, Kentucky joined Larry this summer for a week
of climbing in the Alps. Based out of the alpine mecca of Chamonix,
they rented an apartment for a week and did daytrips each day
in the birthplace of alpine climbing. |
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| We spent day one working on rock climbing
skills at a local crag a short walk from downtown Chamonix.
This served to hone the skills we would use for the remainder
of the week as well as having an easy first day to overcome
jetlag. Here Les gets some mileage. |
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| We also covered the skills involved in
a multipitch climb. Here Jolene follows the pitch first,
while Les, belayed on a second rope can be seen below. |
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| Much of the climbing area at "Les
Gaillands" was closed for the day to prepare for
the annual Chamonix Guides Festival. The guides had an
elaborate ropes course set up for kids to play on that
evening. |
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| The next day we had hoped to do a climb
in the Auigilles Rouges, on the South facing side of the
valley. Unfortunately, there had been considerable new
snow from a recent storm. While this side of the valley
has very little snow in the summer and typically offers
some easily accessible alpine rock climbing, it was currently
in full winter conditions. Our climb over here would have
to wait a few days. |
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| We opted instead to ride the bus to a
little village at the head of the valley to attempt a
glacier climb. The town of Le Tour is a charming little
village characteristic of hamlets in the Alps. |
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| Our climb would be on the Tete Blanche,
which is the highest snowy point in the photo. A long,
yet moderate glacier climb, this route would serve well
to help us acclimatize. |
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| Here, Jolene approaches the Albert 1er
hut situated right next to the spectacular Tour glacier.
Note the typical Alps size pack that she is wearing. |
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| Running a bit short on time, we turned
back just short of the summit so we wouldn't risk missing
the last cable car down to the valley and having to descend
an additional 3500'. We enjoyed a very leisurely lunch
and a great hike back to the chairlift on a glorious day
in the mountains. |
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| The following day we decided to stay
on the snowy side of the valley and do another acclimatization
trip. We rode up the famous Auigille du Midi cablecar
(a 9000' ascent), and downclimbed into the Vallee Blanche.
Here we crossed the upper glacier and walked to the Cosmiques
hut for a bit of lunch. |
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| The weather was in and out during the
day, and finally we got some views of the amazing peaks
around us. Here Jolene poses in front of Mt Blanc. |
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| After taking many photos and walking
around at over 12,000' for a while, we reascended the
extremely exposed, knife edge snow ridge back to the telepherique
(cablecar). Here Les and Jolene stop for a quick shot.
If it was a touch less cloudy, Chamonix could be seen
over Les' shoulder 9000' below! |
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| The following day we decided to venture
over to the Auigilles Rouges as much of the new snow had
melted away. There was still much more than normal making
our ascent of the "Traverse de les Crochues"
seem a bit more alpine. |
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| This traverse is a moderate, yet exposed
ridge traverse with incredible views across at the Mt
Blanc range. |
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| We took a short break on the summit of
the Crochues, before continuing the traverse to the snowy
slopes above Lac Blanc. |
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| We unroped to descend the easy snow slopes
that lead down to Lac Blanc and a small hut that serves
incredible pastries. In the background behind Les is a
view across of the Tour glacier and the Tete Blanche where
we had climbed a few days earlier. |
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| From Lac Blanc, we enjoyed a beautiful
hike down to the mid station of the cablecar, through
open meadows and rocky cliffs. |
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| For our final climb, we opted for the
Augille de L'Index. This small, but striking peak is a
mere 20 minutes from the top of the chairlift. The Arete
Sud-est, or Southeast ridge, is the classic route on the
peak. Here Les and Jolene climb on the second pitch of
the route. |
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| The clouds rolled in and out all day,
though we got some views across the valley and small glimpses
of the dramatic exposure below our feet. Here Jolene traverses
the ridge at about mid height on the climb. |
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| The exposure really increases toward
the top and the clouds parted to allow us a view of Le
Praz, far below. Here Les follows the 6th pitch just below
the top. |
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| The clouds burned off and we enjoyed
a pleasant lunch near the top and a short walk back to
the lift. L'Index proved to be a perfect climb to finish
a great week of climbing in the Alps. |
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