Gab and I take on Pic Gaspard’s long SSE ridge in the Écrins: sustained climbing, a brief moment on the summit and hail on the way back to the car.
A proper outing today on this long, wild Écrins ridge, first climbed by Devies and Gervasutti. They came here as a consolation after conditions kept them off the line they would later climb on the north-west face of Ailefroide…
We set off at 4 a.m. Snow lets us join the ridge fairly high up. Right from the start, we know what we’re in for: grade IV climbing in the cold morning air. Gab is wondering what his guide has in store for him today.
One thing’s certain: there’ll be no dawdling or sweet talk like yesterday. The weather looks uncertain and we have a long way to go before the key sections. Nothing extreme, but the climbing keeps coming.
I can feel Gab getting tired, but he hangs in there! The crux puts up a little fight, and then there’s still more ridge to climb. That’s a big mountain route for you.
The weather has deteriorated by the time we reach the notch where the descent starts. I hesitate over whether to go to the summit. Come on, let’s take five minutes and go for it. It would be a shame to miss it!
After Gab’s doubts and moments of discouragement, what a joy to be up there together! We’d love to linger, stretch out the moment and enjoy being here. But thunder is rumbling in the distance, so we make a sharp exit for somewhere a bit more suitable to get caught in a storm!
A few long lowers for Gab and some downclimbing for me bring us onto the Glacier Claire, which we race down. The car park is still a long way off, though. Hail catches us first, then rain, making the passage by the Grotte des Pichettes, which we used the day before, decidedly slippery.
Soon our boots are going squelch-squelch. We waterproof ourselves as best we can and switch to autopilot all the way to the car…
We reach the car park at 7 p.m. Gab is absolutely knackered, but happy and proud to have had a proper big day out in the Écrins!
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