Mont Blanc

Mont Blanc

Mont Blanc is the highest European mountain west of the Urals. It stands 4,810 metres above sea level, on the Franco-Italian border, its summit always snow-capped and its flanks and sister peaks snaked in giant frozen rivers known as glaciers. This is an account of climbing Mont Blanc with my three friends on 21-22 August 2008. I’m writing it because there were not many good English accounts on the web that I managed to find before I went. (Of course since I started writing this I found loads). If you have any comments or queries please let me know via the comment box at the bottom.

IMPORTANT NOTE: I am not a mountaineer and this does not in any way constitute a comprehensive guide. Even though this route is not very technical you should hire a qualified guide and be fully prepared and trained. Many fatalities occur here every year. More lives have been claimed on Mont Blanc than on any other mountain. A woman watched her husband and three children fall to their deaths three weeks ago. The week before our ascent about seven people died in the Alps and a serious avalanche claimed at least eight climbers in the massif two days after we got down.

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