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Add mountains posts

Joseph Weston authored on 28/03/2021 23:05:29
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+---
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+title: ArĂȘtes du Gerbier
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+date: 2014-10-31
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - alpinism
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+featuredImage: gallery/rappel.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+Recently there seems to be a theme of re-doing old classics with
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+new people; this time Rob, JB and I took a crack at the
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+[arĂȘtes du Gerbier][c2c]. I had previously done this route with
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+Rob and Greg about two years ago, although at that time everything
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+was in dense cloud and still partially covered in snow. It was good
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+to re-do the ridge as it's meant to be done, on a lovely sunny day
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+when you can really get a sense of the space to either side.
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+
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+As before Rob has an [entry on his blog][blog_story] with a more detailed
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+account of the day's events (and he has copyright on the images in the
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+gallery). All in all a great day out.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+
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+
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+[c2c]: http://www.camptocamp.org/routes/54152/fr/gerbier-traversee-des-aretes
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+[blog_story]: https://robestivill.wordpress.com/2014/10/31/aretes-du-gerbier-the-razor-and-other-stories/
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+---
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+title: Traversée de Belledonne
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+date: 2017-09-18
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - hiking
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+featuredImage: gallery/down-from-the-col.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+A few weeks ago I took a trip back to Grenoble for a review meeting
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+of the project that I'm working on. It seemed too good an opportunity
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+to miss out on, so I decided that I would fly out the weekend before
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+in order to get in some time in the mountains.
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+While I think the Netherlands offers a really great quality of life,
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+it doesn't really offer the epic landscapes and mountain activities
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+that I fell in love with in Grenoble.
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+
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+Bas was also going to be present at the meeting, so we decided
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+that we would go together and do a 2/3 day hike; now it was up
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+to me to find something suitably epic to give him a taste of what the
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+last few years of my life had been like! I settled on the
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+[traversée de Belledonne][c2c], as it was possible to increase or
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+decrease the difficulty by making only minor modifications to the route.
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+We could also adjust the length of the route as a function of our motivation,
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+as there are a few points where it is possible to bail out into the
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+Grésivaudan valley and hitch hike out.
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+I called up a few people in Grenoble who I thought would be motivated, and
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+in the end Bas, Emanuel, Adam and I set out on a Friday
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+evening for a weekend in the mountains.
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+
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+The whole thing nearly ended before it had begun, however, when it turned out
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+that the bus we needed to get up to Chamrousse was not leaving from the
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+central bus station after all; cue a mad dash across the city to catch
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+the next and final bus that day! Luckily we managed to make it with a few
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+minutes to spare, and by the time dusk was setting in we were well on our way
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+towards the first camping spot at the back of the ski station. We had decided
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+that we would camp at the Lacs Robert, as we would hopefully be shielded from
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+most of the light pollution from Grenoble and would be able to see the stars.
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+We were not dissapointed.
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+
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+{{<figure src="gallery/starry-night2.jpeg">}}
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+
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+We arrived at the the spot well after dark, picking
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+our way down the treacherous path by the light of our headlamps to arrive
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+next to the lakes under a blanket of stars. As we had set out in complete
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+"tourist mode" we had brought a kilo and a half of cheese with us, and a
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+candle-powered raclette grill, as well as a passable bottle of red wine.
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+After trying unsuccessfully to remove the cork for half an hour we resigned
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+ourselves to pushing it into the bottle, reasoning
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+that any wine was better than no wine (with apologies to my French friends).
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+
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+We were up and away at a reasonable time the next day, stopping for a brief pause
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+at the refuge de la Pra to get some information from the warden there about
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+whether the col de Freydane was passable on foot (given the recent snowfall).
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+We carried on towards the Croix de Belledonne, asking people coming from that
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+direction about the conditions. We got a lot of very mixed responses, with some
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+people telling us that conditions were great, while others were practically
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+warding us off and telling us that to go over the col de Freydane would
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+be insane. By the time we got to the lacs du DomĂšnon just below the Croix
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+the weather had closed in somewhat and the temperature had rapidly dropped.
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+We saw some people up towards the col, so decided to go and have a look.
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+In the worst case we would have to backtrack, losing a thousand metres of
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+altitude, only to have to climb back up on the other side to join
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+the path on the other side of the col. The broody atmosphere as we
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+arrived at the col made us consider our decision a few minutes more, but
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+the light dusting of snow did not render the way any more dangerous so
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+we decided to plough on.
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+
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+The descent from the col went with barely a hitch (although Bas briefly
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+dislocated his shoulder when his wrist got stuck in the strap of
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+his poles!). Before long we found ourselves approaching the refuge Jean Collet.
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+We were all pretty tired by this point, but luckily we only had to walk fifteen
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+minutes further until we found a suitable place to set up our tents. A light
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+rain began to fall as we started preparing our supper of soup, couscous,
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+and the remains of the cheese. The raclette was certainly less pleasant
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+this time around!
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+
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+{{<figure src="gallery/group-photo2.jpeg">}}
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+
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+On Sunday we only had a few hours walking before reaching the road,
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+and we all managed to hitch hike back in time for celebratory beers.
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+
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+All the photos are copyright Bas Nijholt 2017.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+
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+
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+[c2c]: https://www.camptocamp.org/routes/179348/fr/traversee-de-belledonne-haute-route-ete
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+---
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+title: Cornes de Pié Bérarde
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+date: 2014-12-01
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - climbing
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+featuredImage: gallery/22.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+I actually did this tour in summer 2013, but didn't get around to putting the
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+pictures up on the blog until now!
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+
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+Christoph and I had been saying for a while that we should do some multipitch together,
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+and finally we managed to find a weekend where we were both free. We decided to do
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+the [Cornes de Pié Bérarde](https://www.camptocamp.org/routes/56718/fr/cornes-de-pie-berarde-eperon-ne),
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+as it seemed like a fun route in a pretty wild setting, and the topo claimed it was no harder than French 5a.
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+
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+We arrived at La BĂ©rarde on a Friday evening, after having taking the TransisĂšre bus from Grenoble.
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+Once we arrived at the refuge we realized that I had forgotten the entire set of cams, meaning that we
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+would have to climb the entire route with just a set of ten nuts; oh dear! We set off the next morning
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+anyway, eager to attack the three hour approach and see whether the route would be climbable with our
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+deminished set of gear. Christoph took the first lead, and it quickly became obvious that everything
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+was going to be ok.
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+
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+The rock was of really good quality, and the granite gave ample opportunities for bomber nut placements.
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+After a few hours of top-notch climbing we topped out at about 2PM into the blistering July sun.
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+The three-to-four hour walk off mentioned in the topo was not looking particularly appetizing at this
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+point but, with no better alternative, we shouldered our backpacks and got to it. We arrived back in
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+La BĂ©rarde with about half an hour to spare before the last bus of the day; just enough time to get
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+an ice cream and take in the epic surroundings before coming back to civilization.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+---
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+title: Aiguille Dibona
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+date: 2015-07-15
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - climbing
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+featuredImage: gallery/panorama.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+As you round the last corner and climb up out of the ravine into the Soreiller
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+cirque, the sharpened point of the *Aiguille Dibona* comes into view. At its
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+summit it is only a few metres wide; it truly is the only mountain that I have
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+ever seen that truly deserves the title of *aiguille* (needle).
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+
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+I had been talking to JB for a while about going to the Dibona and we finally
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+both had a weekend free with a clear weather window. We hiked in with two days
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+of food planning to bivouac near the refuge, I'd already been before and knew
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+that there were some places close by. After leaving most of our gear at a
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+likely bivouac spot we tackled the *Voie du Nain*, a simple 5 pitch affair with
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+a single pitch of 5a max. As people usually do, we finished up the normal
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+route, topping out at around 3pm. As usual the views were stunning; the perfect
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+end to the first day! On returning to the bivouac we prepared dinner and
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+decided which routes to do the day after as we munched our couscous and
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+mushroom soup (a classic culinary combination).
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+
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+{{<figure src="gallery/cirque.jpeg">}}
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+
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+One thing which is so great about climbing around the Dibona in the height of
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+summer is that all the climbing is so close that you don't need to get up
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+particularly early in order to be able to get a decent amount of climbing in in
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+the day. We were able to roll out of our sleeping bags and be at the foot of
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+the first route of the day at the leisurely hour of 9am, safe in the knowledge
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+that we had about 12 hours of sunlight ahead of us. That day we would tackle
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+two routes, each of about 4 pitches. We weren't exactly pushing the envelope
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+in terms of technical difficulty (these routes were of grade 4+ maximum), but
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+it gave us a good opportunity to climb in our mountain boots, which was good
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+training. After some brief trouble with a stuck rope on the final rappel we
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+headed for the refuge for a pint of some locally brewed beer before starting
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+the (long) descent back to the car in the late afternoon sunshine.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+---
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+title: Ascension of Mont Aiguille
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+date: 2014-10-22
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - alpinism
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+featuredImage: gallery/montaiguille-3.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+I recently took a trip down memory lane with another (third?) ascension of the
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+classic [Mont Aiguille normal route][c2c], this time with Rob and JB. A nice
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+easy climb with just enough of a walk-in to get warmed up and some rockfall for
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+that spicy edge.
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+
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+Rob maintains a [pretty blog][blog] with plenty of pictures and a nice
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+narrative of [this outing][blog_story]. The pictures in the gallery are
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+from Rob's blog and he maintains the copyright for them.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+
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+[c2c]: http://www.camptocamp.org/routes/53925/fr/mont-aiguille-voie-normale
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+[blog]: https://robestivill.wordpress.com/
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+[blog_story]: https://robestivill.wordpress.com/2014/10/22/conquistadors-of-the-useless/
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+---
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+title: Grand Pic de la LauziĂšre
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+date: 2015-03-28
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - ski-touring
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+featuredImage: gallery/into_the_hills.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+It's getting warmer and the snow is already disappearing from lower altitudes,
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+this may well be the last ski tour of the season! This morning JB, Emanuel,
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+Sebastjan, Mark and I met up with the aim of skiing the Grand Pic de la
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+LauziĂšre, an impressive peak standing at 2829m of altitude, 1500m of which we
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+would have to climb to attain the summit.
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+
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+The day started well with Mark falling over while doing a conversion on one of
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+the inital slopes, sending him tumbling down a few metres and severely injuring
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+his pride. Once he was back on his feet we continued up into the valley,
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+overtaking another group of *randonneurs* headed for the same summit. I was
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+already flagging as we reached the first col which would take us across into
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+the next valley before we started the last 500m before the summital slope.
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+JB was already forging ahead at a punishing pace and I had no choice but to
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+suck it up and press forward.
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+
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+As we reached the col some 60m or so beneath the summit there were already
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+others coming down off the top, giving us confidence that conditions were good
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+to tackle this final challenge. The final 60m consisted of a steep slope (about
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+45 degrees) interrupted by a few rimed up rocks. The sheer drop to one side and
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+the small cliff on the other, combined with the rocks, rendered this section
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+impracticable on skis; luckily the topo had forewarned us of this and we were well
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+equipped with crampons and ice axes.  Starting up the slope I was already
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+getting the impression that the climb down would be a more significant challenge
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+than climbing up, as the snow was soft from the spring sunshine and would
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+occasionally give way under your feet. I arrived at the top to find Emanuel
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+already tucking into his celebratory summit cheese, which we all enjoyed.
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+Mark and Emanuel both were somewhat aprehensive about the climb down, so
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+I went first, kicking deep steps into the snow. We all arrived back at the col
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+in one piece, and all that remained was to set our bindings to downhill mode
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+ and head for home.
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+
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+A good day out was had by all. I hope that we will be able to get another
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+tour in before the season is over, even with the rapidly melting snow.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+---
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+title: Tour of the DĂŽme de Polset
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+date: 2014-12-18
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - ski-touring
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+featuredImage: gallery/dome.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+The first skitour of the year, and what an epic one it was.  Not being one for
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+doing things by half measures Rob proposed [this tour][skitour]. As neither
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+Rob, JB nor I really fancied taking the Monday or the Friday off we opted to
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+compress the three days into two; given that we had to cover nearly 40km and
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+more than 3000m of ascent, this was our first mistake.  In the end we did not
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+end up making it to the summit, mainly due to my insistance that I would most
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+likely collapse in a heap at some point on the return journey. Despite this it
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+was still an epic trip and was physically very challenging for me, and it was
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+good to see my limits as well.
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+
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+As before, Rob has written a [very good account][blog_story] with a more
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+compelling narrative and some well-composed images (some of which are included
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+in the gallery below).
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+
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+[skitour]: http://www.skitour.fr/topos/dome-de-polset,4670.html
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+[blog_story]: https://robestivill.wordpress.com/2014/12/18/476/
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+---
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+title: Tour Ronde face nord
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+date: 2015-01-13
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+tags:
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+  - mountains
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+  - alpinism
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+featuredImage: gallery/03.jpeg
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+---
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+
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+I did this tour over two years ago, and it was probably the best experience I've had in
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+the mountains to date. I had got back to Grenoble in the autumn of 2012, and had been
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+eager to try some more challenging mountaineering, so when Mehdi proposed [the north
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+face of La Tour Ronde](https://www.camptocamp.org/routes/54157/fr/tour-ronde-face-n)
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+in January 2013, I was all for it.
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+
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+
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+The route to La Tour Ronde starts from the Aiguille du Midi cable car station
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+and, due to the incredibly short winter days, we had to sleep in the car on Friday
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+evening to be sure to get the first lift up in the morning. We did manage to get
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+the first lift, but as it was at 8:30 in the morning (i.e. super late) we knew we would
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+still be hard pressed to complete the route before darkness fell. Given the length
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+of the route and the approach, we planned to leave our gear on the glacier so
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+that we could camp and ski down the mer de glace on the Sunday.
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+
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+{{<figure src="gallery/05.jpeg">}}
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+
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+The sun was already high in the sky as we approached the imposing north face. I was
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+already starting to get nervous as Mehdi took the first pitch up the steep snow slope,
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+and we started moving together. As we reached the first rocks to the side of the route
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+Mehdi dug into the snow and I moved past him towards the central constriction. I led
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+up until the snow gave way to bullet ice just below the central constriction, and built
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+a solid belay. I really wanted to avoid running out of rope half way through a difficult
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+section.
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+
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+
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+Mehdi handled the hardest section of the route with aplomb. Despite the sun, this
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+was still January at nearly 4000 metres of altitude, and the northern orientation of the face
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+meant that the sun did not hit the ice in the middle of the route, leaving it brittle.
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+After I seconded up to Mehdi's belay it was my turn to take the lead again. Looking above me
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+I saw an uninterrupted wall of ice to the top; there was clearly nowhere reasonable to put
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+a bomber belay, so it looked like I would have to run it out on my own. The ice offered
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+pretty good placements, and I was confident as I slowly but surely picked my way up the ice.
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+Given the time it took to clean the ice and place each screw, I only put one in every 20 metres or so,
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+trying my best to keep at least 2 screws between Mehdi and myself. Despite my confidence, seeing the
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+rope snaking away from me down the ice, joining me to the tiny speck below was one of the most
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+gripping experiences I have ever had.
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+
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+{{<figure src="gallery/06.jpeg">}}
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+
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+Finally I reached a shoulder of snow just below the final piece of rock climbing under the summit.
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+Despite the fact that the previous pitch was probably only about 120 metres it still took me nearly
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+2 hours to lead it, and the sun was already sinking below the horizon by the time Mehdi arrived.
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+He started making his way round the tower until we reached an easy ramp to the summit, topping
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+out into the pitch blackness and howling wind. A quick photo and we were ready to get ourselves
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+down.
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+
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+
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+We knew that we had to follow the southeastern arret until we reached a col, followed by
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+some easy downclimbing to reach the glacier, and our gear. Mehdi had already climbed the Tour Ronde
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+by this route, and so knew approximately the way to go. Despite this, the conditions made the going
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+pretty tough; the strong wind was contantly threatening to throw us off balance, and was sending
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+flurries of snow into our faces (my glasses had been destroyed a few hours previously by the adze
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+of my ice axe).
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+
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+As we finally passed onto the snow-covered glacier I was very much ready to lie down and sleep forever,
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+but we still had to find our gear and erect the tent! After all was said and done we were in bed
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+by 22:30. We woke late the following day, taking advantage of the continuing good weather to
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+profit from our surroundings, before packing up our gear and preparing for the ski down. After
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+the effort of the previous day, skiing down a crevasse-ridden glacier with a 12kg backpack was
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+certainly tough, but a great way to end a great weekend.
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+
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+
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+All photos are Copyright Medhi Cherfaoui.
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+
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+{{<gallery>}}
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+<script src="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/lightbox2/2.11.1/js/lightbox.min.js"></script>
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+
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+<h1> Gallery </h1>
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