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Normal Route Aiguille de la République

The satellite of Grands Charmoz catches the eye of every climber. The esthetic shape is a serious temptation for those who like to stand on top of a sharp rock needle with 1000m of air between them and the glacier. The Normal Route to La République offers a relatively easy way to the summit needle. Still the route is 600m long, mainly grade 4 alpine rock climbing, that requires efficacy in rope maneuvers, route finding and progress on traditional gear - it's a complete alpine adventure! Read More

What Can Climbers Do For The Alpine Environment?

Mountaineering itself is a celebration of nature, but when practiced by tens of thousands climbers every summer it inevitably causes progressive damage to the alpine environment. It is very much in the self-interest of alpinists to save our eco systmes and ensure that regulation of mountaineering stays minimal in the Alps. Read More

How To Dress For Summer Alpine Mountaineering

The right clothing significantly increases your comfort and also your chances for success when alpine climbing. Weather conditions and temperatures changes quickly in the Alps. You need to be able to stay dry and maintain the right degree of warmth from morning till the afternoon. Dress code of summer mountaineering with examples of items and brands. Read More

Rock Climbing Paklenica Croatia

Driving south from Austria, through Slovenia, following the scenic road along the Croatian coast to reach Paklenica National park. Here a deep gorge extends from the sea to the mountains, lined with grey limestone walls up to 350m high. For technical climbing on the compact, grey limestone, and a sunny holiday by the sea, the place it perfect! Read More

Skiing Dômes de Miage North Face

For months now we have been keeping a close eye on the impressive north face of Dômes de Miage. Until now the 1100m high face has had patches of ice on it, but after all this snow in May it looks well filled in. This big face, that seldom is in such good conditions, seamed like a great way to end the amazing ski season of 2010. Read More

End Of Season Ski Touring In Chamonix

After the Easter holidays Chamonix gets quiet. The town is now all green and flowery, snow is settling on the high mountain faces, and barbecues are held everywhere (even on Mer de Glace!). We have been busy ski touring and ski mountaineering around Chamonix, escaping the pollen invasion by staying in the mountains, but occasionally coming down to attend a barbecue or two. Read More

How To Learn Alpine Climbing

What is alpine climbing and how do you attack and proceed in this activity? Climbing in the high mountains demands careful preparation and a certain amount of experience. Only by stepping up slowly, choosing the right objectives and acquiring the adequate skills before, this adventurous sport becomes safe and highly enjoyable. Read More

Easter Powder Skiing – Steep & Deep!

Waking up on the 1st of April the spring-green Chamonix town had turned into a proper winter-white ski town, and it kept dumping all day long. 50cm on 3000m, rain-snow limit on 800m. The best April fool's joke ever! From that point onwards there is only deep powder skiing and an abundance of fresh snow to be reported. However the weather has been very changable with strong winds at times. Read More

A Touch of Spring – Chamonix March

Chamonix got a spring feeling during week 11. The snow on mountain south faces started its transformation into corn/slushy snow. North facing slopes up high remained powdery though, and the ski touring in Chamonix has offered many excellent descents. The end of March is now bringing some heavy snowfalls and the return of powder skiing conditions off the lifts. Read More

How Hard Is It To Climb Mont Blanc?

We often get the following question before people book a guided Mont Blanc ascent with us: How hard is it? How much preparation and acclimatization do I need? How do I train for climbing Mt Blanc? This is what you can expect from a week of mountaineering in Chamonix including the ascent of Mt Blanc: Read More

Topo of Aiguilles Rouges Ski Tours

Featuring some popular ski tours in Les Aiguilles Rouges in Chamonix. Starting from the Index chair lift in Flegère, over various mountain passes, and skiing down Vallon de Bérarde to the train station in Le Buet. We like the Aiguille Rouges ski tours because you hike up on south faces and ski north faces. This often means enjoying the sun on the way up and skiing cold powder on the way down until late spring. Read More

Biggest Storm of The Winter – Chamonix Feb

After a long time of cold temperatures and light snow we got warm and unstable weather during week 8. Just when the winter fleeces were about to be stached away we got hit by the biggest storm of the year on the 26 Feb - it just would not stop snowing! Warm and variable weather with regular snow falls and strong winds seams to follow in the footsteps of the big dump... keeping powder skiing on its peak and avalanche danger high. Read More