Alpine Climbing course itinerary
The course itinerary presented here is purely an example of what might happen in a week and could be changed due to circumstances beyond the control of the guides, including adverse weather conditions.
Day 1. Arrival Day
The group will rendez-vous at the hotel or chalet. Before dinner we will have an informal chat about the week ahead with your Chamonix Experience guide. There will also be a chance for the guide to check out your clothing and gear and to decide if you will need to pick up any further items of equipment before setting out in the morning.
Day 2. Rock skills, rope-work & abseiling
Rock climbing is the base of all mountaineering, as a famous climber once said. After breakfast, we will head out to a suitable rock climbing site in the Chamonix valley. We will practise rock climbing techniques, belay techniques, rope-handling, abseiling and gear placement. If you already have some experience this is a good opportunity to brush up on existing skills and improve your confidence when leading.
Day 3. Glacier, crampons & ice axe skills
We will use the lifts to take us up to a glacier in the morning. If you have not used crampons or ice axe before, this will be your introduction. We will practise crampon and ice axe techniques, placing ice screws, setting up belays on ice and ice climbing techniques. We will also learn how to cross glaciers safely and crevasse rescue techniques.
Day 4. Planning & navigation with overnight in a refuge
Before we head out in the morning we will have a chat about map reading, weather forecasting, how to prepare your alpine ascent and the effects high altitude has on the human body. After that we will take a lift up the mountain to bring to practise the navigation and glacier travel skills we have previously learnt. The night will be spent in a mountain refuge.
Day 5. Moving together on Alpine mixed terrain
We will have an early “alpine start” from the refuge. The aim is to climb on varied and more or less exposed alpine terrain where we can practise how to move together safely and gear placement. We will most likely have to cross a bergschrund at the bottom of the climb, which is often an obstacle for mountaineers. This is an opportunity to learn how to deal with that. At the end of the day we will return to the chalet for afternoon tea, dinner and a comfortable night’s sleep.
Day 6. Ice climbing on the Triangle du Tacul
In order to do some more technical climbing one more guide will join us, so there will be one guide per two climbers. We will take the lift up to the Aiguille du Midi in the morning and head for the Chere Couloir or one of the other famous routes on the Triangle du Tacul. At the end of most routes you can continue to the summit of Mont Blanc du Tacul, 4,248m. This might be your first Alpine 4,000m peak. We will spend the night in the Cosmiques refuge, 3,613m.
Day 7. Midi-Plan Traverse
We will have an early start again to climb the classic traverse of Midi-Plan. This route is following the ridge line between the Vallee Blanche area on one side and Chamonix a couple of thousand metres down on the other side. This spectacular traverse will test your skills on exposed snowy ridges, rock and ice as well as your stamina. A great achievement! We will take the lift back down for a well deserved dinner at the chalet.
Day 8. Departure Day
The trip package ends after breakfast.
