Climbing the Innominata Ridge on Mont Blanc with Frank: a wild alpine adventure from Eccles, through mixed terrain, cornices and thin air to the summit.
Without even stopping for a quick beer, I leave my team from Tours in Courmayeur, where Frank is waiting for me…
After the tranquility of Gran Paradiso, we head for the solitude of the Envers du Mont-Blanc and its Himalayan-sized peaks. Frank isn’t the vengeful type, but this slope—which has turned him away twice—is starting to get on his nerves! As for me, it’s a complete discovery of the area… A place filled with ambitious routes, alpine landmarks, and legendary stories… For us, it’ll be the Innominata.
The difficulties began much sooner than expected, when we tried to cross the Doire. It wasn’t that there was no bridge, but an overly conscientious—and just a tad inflexible—worker refused to let us cross, claiming that if we got hurt, he’d lose his job… Yet the bridge is clearly there, and the barrier we have to step over seems like a rather meager obstacle compared to the 3,500-meter slope rising above our heads! Finally, after a little persuasion, we’re spared the 2-kilometer detour…
First night in Monzino, in the cozy winter shelter, all to ourselves… We arrived about half an hour before the storm hit. Perfect!
At this point, we’re feeling confident about what lies ahead, even though questions are swirling through our minds: acclimatization? Freezing conditions? Snow cornices? Thunderstorms? Enough to fuel some sweet dreams!!
The next day, to climb up to the Eccles bivouac, we decided to set out early, thinking we’d have to break trail a bit. Our butts were in for a world of trouble! The first part of the glacier was deep and soft, but a recent track saved us a lot of trouble! Starting at 3,400 m, the refrozen snow was rock-hard, and we made our way easily, with grace and elegance, accompanied by the soft crunch of our crampons on this perfect snow… We really weren’t expecting that!
The Red Pillars of the Fog… So alluring! We ran into a rope team of Italians (a guide and his son) who, after getting caught in a storm while rappelling down the Red Pillar, decided to go dry off their boots in the valley rather than head out to Mont Blanc the next day.
So, complete solitude for us!
Across from Punta Innominata, on the slopes leading up to Eccles.
For us, this will be our new campsite—more comfortable than the old one—even if it means we'll have to head back down the next morning.
A quick scouting trip for the next day.
And we’ve settled into our little nest. It’s 9 a.m.—we’re going to make the most of it!! The day will be devoted to rest, drinking water, contemplation, and a few lighthearted metaphysical and mystical discussions! Closer to the heavens, deprived of oxygen, our minds wander!
Our plan for tomorrow is to leave early. Thunderstorms are forecast, so we want to give ourselves some leeway—especially since we don’t know if we’ll be rowing or not! The alarm is set for midnight. Just looking at the time makes me cringe!
Midnight: We both jolted awake! It took a few seconds to figure out where we were and what we were doing there! The night—already very short—had been restless… We could tell we were missing a few blood cells to feel completely at ease! Three weeks ago, Frank was roaming around at 5,000 m in Nepal, but the benefits of acclimatization fade over time. Will he still have any left? As for me, I’d only acclimatized over the previous three days. Not ideal.
1 a.m.: I secure the 50-meter rope that allows Frank to reach the old bivouac in a single rappel, and I join him by alternating between rappelling and downclimbing. The snow didn’t refreeze last night; the thunderstorms lingered a bit into the evening. Still, it’s early, and we haven’t given up hope of finding refrozen snow! So, a bit of a mixed bag as we make our way to Eccles Pass. Some perfect sections (snow with ice underneath for protection) and some awful ones. I like the crust on polenta, but only when it’s on my plate—not under my feet!
Throughout the day, we'll regularly have some fairly short but very challenging sections of the route!
From Eccles Pass, an easy mixed section leads us to the base of the crux—a 40-meter pitch featuring a short, athletic V+ section. Not technically difficult, but it’s a challenging move! A bit more IV+ in the next two pitches, then we head out on a tight rope toward the Grand Couloir, not without a few “polenta” moves and other corniche-style maneuvers.
At daybreak, we're in the Grand Couloir, where conditions are excellent. It's still a real leg-burner, though!
We head toward a ramp that turns out to be 100 meters lower than the right one. A minor misstep that costs us a little time, but it’s a nice detour with one or two IV+ sections. Every now and then, we still look up to take in the scenery...
To reach the Brouillard Ridge, you'd expect an easy ridge, but the terrain isn't quite as gentle as that!!
And then there's always that polenta that pops up every now and then...
The final slope (150 meters at a 45–50° angle) will really put our calves to the test and give us a very clear picture of how well we’ve acclimated: not quite there yet—we’re struggling a bit.
But once you reach the Brouillard Ridge, the view of Mont Blanc is incredibly inspiring!
It’s still a bit of a struggle to the summit, but no stress—the weather’s nice, and the tough parts are behind us. The thunderstorms spared us, and we survived the sheer ledges and the polenta… So yeah, an extra lung wouldn’t be amiss, but we’ll manage with the ones we have!
In any case, it's nothing that would spoil the joy of reaching the top via such a beautiful route!
It's 11 a.m., and we're living the dream—and it's coming true in the best possible way! Way to go, Frank!
We'll enjoy all of that a little further down. It's a bit too cold here to sit down, and our bodies are craving some fresh air!
We’re making good time toward the Goûter refuge. Even though the descent doesn’t take away the fatigue, we gradually feel ourselves coming back to life, like a fish returning to its bowl after a short stay outside! We take a nice break at the Goûter, where we’d love to indulge in a long nap… But we decide to keep going to Tête Rousse instead. The cumulus clouds overhead are still looking friendly, so we make our way down at a leisurely pace. Once we reach Tête Rousse, we have to make a decision. There are no trains running right now, and the options are either to walk all the way down, take an expensive taxi to Bellevue, or spend the night in Tête Rousse.
Over a delicious tart, we decide to split up with Frank. He’ll stay in Tête Rousse and head down tomorrow, while I’ll tackle the 2,000-meter elevation gain that separates me from the valley. I arrived in Les Houches and got a ride just minutes before a spectacular thunderstorm hit! A little later, on the way back to Les Ecrins, I’m forced to stop to let a thunderstorm pass. I’d intended to take a short nap, but I wake up only 9 hours later after a sleep that was almost comatose!
All in all, a great south-to-north traverse of Mont Blanc without any mechanical aid! The weather window was practically perfect. Snow conditions were generally good despite the “polenta”... The climbers were somewhat acclimated, but not too much!
And a companion I really enjoy going hiking with! Thanks for your trust, Frank.
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