We set out from Breuil for a 4,000-metre peak. After a night at the Teodulo hut, we link the west and central summits of the Breithorn along its ridge.
Anaïs, Quentin, Raphi and Victor arrive in Breuil in a mad rush after the Mont Blanc Tunnel closes! It’s 3:20 p.m. when they leap out of the car, and the last lift is at 3:15! While I keep the Italian lift crew talking, the gang gets ready in two minutes flat. We all catch the last lift by the skin of our teeth. But we make it!
J1 — Last lift and a night at the Teodulo hut
I already know most of the gang from a trip in the Écrins last year. And Anaïs is a regular by now. We saw each other again this winter for a cracking powder session in the Queyras…
This time the idea is to climb a 4,000-metre peak. Most huts are rammed this weekend. There’s no chance of getting a bed at Gran Paradiso or around Monte Rosa and, anyway, we’re hardly itching to join the crowds. In the end I suggest the Breithorn, with a night at the Teodulo hut so we can get going before the climbers who come up on the lift. Good call!
J2 — West Breithorn and the traverse to the central summit
The big blunder of the day is the rope I’ve left behind. Or has someone pinched it? I realise an hour into the walk. I run back to the hut while my friends wait at the Klein Matterhorn. No rope at the hut. A mystery. But the hut warden lends me one. Honour is saved!
We leave the Klein Matterhorn ahead of all the rope teams arriving on the first lift. The climb up the west summit of the Breithorn goes smoothly in very good conditions, and the three centimetres of powder that fell overnight make it look beautiful.
We’re still hungry for a little more, so we traverse to the central summit simply because it’s too good to pass up! The ridge between the two summits is properly sharp, but there’s a good track and we’re able to move comfortably. Brilliant!
Practical Info / Route Topo
J1 — Last lift from Breuil and a night at the Teodulo hut
- The Mont Blanc Tunnel closure delays the gang on the way to Breuil. We just catch the last lift and spend the night at the Teodulo hut so we can start ahead of the morning lifts.
J2 — West and central Breithorn along the ridge
- After a return trip to the hut for a rope, we regroup at the Klein Matterhorn. We climb the west summit of the Breithorn, then follow the sharp ridge to the central summit.
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