Monte Bianco / Mont Blanc
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 22.14 mi
- Elevation gain
- 11,089 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Experts only
- Elevation loss
- 12,648 ft
- Max elevation
- 15,803 ft
- TrailRank
- 73
- Min elevation
- 3,647 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Time
- one day 35 minutes
- Coordinates
- 5757
- Uploaded
- August 27, 2021
- Recorded
- August 2021
near Pra Neiron, Valle d’Aosta (Italia)
Viewed 1941 times, downloaded 44 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
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Crossing of the Mont Blanc of the pull.
Up the Via del Papa, from the Italian side, and down the normal French route (3,400 m ascent and 3,800 m descent).
They are two very different routes. The French side has a train, it is well trodden, shelters, facilities and sweet snow areas without crevasses, with the appearance of a ski slope, while on the Italian side the mountain presents itself with its wild side, terrifying glaciers, deep rhymes, cut , sharp edges. The tame mountain versus the untamed mountain.
SECURITY WARNING
As the Pope route is known to be the so-called *normal* route on the Italian side, there is a misconception that it is similar to the normal French route, only a bit more difficult. This is not helped by its PD+ rating either, as this classification covers very different routes. So a quick comparison is convenient to see that it has very little of normal. The French route has a train and the Italian route does not. The French route has three shelters: Nido de Águilas, Tete Rousse and Gouter and the Italian only the Gonella Shelter, that is to say, in France you are always 500 m from a shelter at most and in Italy you can be 1,500 approx. The French route is equipped with cables at practically all climbing sites, the Italian route is not. The French route does not have glaciers with large crevasses, the Italian route does. The French route has many mountaineers in procession who can help you, on the Italian route you are alone. On the French route you only have to follow the track in the snow, on the Italian route, no, the glacier moves and between the night and morning ropes, there may be changes that need to be checked. The beginning of the French route has a well-marked path, the moraine at the beginning of the Italian route is a chaos of stones where there are no milestones. On the French route you hardly have to decide the route, on the Italian route, as we are seeing, you have to decide all the way. The French route does not have extreme aerial edges, the Italian has one that takes your breath away. The French route has far fewer areas prone to landslides than the Italian side. Enough. It is clear that they are absolutely different. Whoever wants to try this route should do so at least studying well where he is going and not just because he believes that it will be similar to the neighboring route.
The Italian side is truly fascinating. We have live the glacial operation, of which we have appreciated its results in innumerable mountains. Here we even hear it roar. It looks like a quarry at full capacity that crushes all the rocky mass in plain sight. Giant landslides, thunderous noises of falling rocks, the dirty and chaotic glacier revealing its slow movements. The mountain is like a sleeping mineral monster that wakes up from time to time.
Its different nature is the reason that there are hardly any people on the Italian side, compared to the populous French side.
You climb mountains with your mind and the way of the Pope is undermining you. Right from the start there is a glacial moraine like a knife. The Miage glacier is chaotic and I have had to deal with the icy rocks, then the cracks come, a dark rimaya, dirty rock to climb. The mountain gives no respite and the serenity is wearing thin. Luckily, the shelter will soon arrive to load good feelings in a place conquered by nature, civilized. The shelter, closed. Howler. You have to follow another glacier with devouring cracks whose exit is a difficult climb, because the fall takes you to a giant crack. You keep climbing because you can't even sit down. It is a mixed section where you have to support crampons on the rock. When it ends, a snowy ridge with two precipices on each side arrives after passing the Piton of the Italians. And yes, the Dome in sight and we take the highway that comes from the French side. Respite. Immediately Vallot arrives, who also recovers you: in case of problems there is a shelter 500 m from the summit. The final ascent has been more problematic than expected due to the wind, with enough force to take you off the track, so you had to wait with the ice ax nailed. At the summit, no one, there were roped up and down, but it coincided with no one. Unusual in a summit always populated. A sign that it was not the right day to go up, although it was to take photos from afar. In fact, I couldn't eat because of the gust of wind and I caught a bit of a bird from which I recovered immediately by replenishing my strength on the descent, on sheltered slopes.
WATER. I usually find anywhere, but since it was very cold, it was hard to find. In the Gonella refuge, behind, there was a drum. In the bowling alley, although it is not the best place to stop, I have found a watercourse that frees us from paying €7 for a bottle! at Tete Rousse. And then swim to a visit to the river but already very far down, reaching Les Houches.
I put it for experts because from the Gonella refuge there is a long way to the summit due to compromised glacial terrain and, as I have already said, decisions must be made continuously. So whoever goes there must have enough resources to withstand what the mountain wants to offer that day. Objective difficulties: Very dirty Grade III, 50º ramps, Glacier with cracks, dangerous rimaya, 40 cm sharp edges, 3,400 m difference in level+, 1,800 m from Gonella, and 3,800 difference in level-. Very changeable conditions and on top of that, if you do it in a traverse, you have to carry the backpack to the summit, of course.
I put a very illustrative video of some colleagues here, from wikiloc. They fell into a crevasse and...! Better see it.
https://en.wikiloc.com/climbing-routes/mont-blanc-monte-bianco-via-italiana-italian-route-77755451
And a more extra-sports note. The return is on a bus, which goes to Courmayer through the Montblanc tunnel, but they require a passport! I didn't have it and I've had an *administrative adventure.
Up the Via del Papa, from the Italian side, and down the normal French route (3,400 m ascent and 3,800 m descent).
They are two very different routes. The French side has a train, it is well trodden, shelters, facilities and sweet snow areas without crevasses, with the appearance of a ski slope, while on the Italian side the mountain presents itself with its wild side, terrifying glaciers, deep rhymes, cut , sharp edges. The tame mountain versus the untamed mountain.
SECURITY WARNING
As the Pope route is known to be the so-called *normal* route on the Italian side, there is a misconception that it is similar to the normal French route, only a bit more difficult. This is not helped by its PD+ rating either, as this classification covers very different routes. So a quick comparison is convenient to see that it has very little of normal. The French route has a train and the Italian route does not. The French route has three shelters: Nido de Águilas, Tete Rousse and Gouter and the Italian only the Gonella Shelter, that is to say, in France you are always 500 m from a shelter at most and in Italy you can be 1,500 approx. The French route is equipped with cables at practically all climbing sites, the Italian route is not. The French route does not have glaciers with large crevasses, the Italian route does. The French route has many mountaineers in procession who can help you, on the Italian route you are alone. On the French route you only have to follow the track in the snow, on the Italian route, no, the glacier moves and between the night and morning ropes, there may be changes that need to be checked. The beginning of the French route has a well-marked path, the moraine at the beginning of the Italian route is a chaos of stones where there are no milestones. On the French route you hardly have to decide the route, on the Italian route, as we are seeing, you have to decide all the way. The French route does not have extreme aerial edges, the Italian has one that takes your breath away. The French route has far fewer areas prone to landslides than the Italian side. Enough. It is clear that they are absolutely different. Whoever wants to try this route should do so at least studying well where he is going and not just because he believes that it will be similar to the neighboring route.
The Italian side is truly fascinating. We have live the glacial operation, of which we have appreciated its results in innumerable mountains. Here we even hear it roar. It looks like a quarry at full capacity that crushes all the rocky mass in plain sight. Giant landslides, thunderous noises of falling rocks, the dirty and chaotic glacier revealing its slow movements. The mountain is like a sleeping mineral monster that wakes up from time to time.
Its different nature is the reason that there are hardly any people on the Italian side, compared to the populous French side.
You climb mountains with your mind and the way of the Pope is undermining you. Right from the start there is a glacial moraine like a knife. The Miage glacier is chaotic and I have had to deal with the icy rocks, then the cracks come, a dark rimaya, dirty rock to climb. The mountain gives no respite and the serenity is wearing thin. Luckily, the shelter will soon arrive to load good feelings in a place conquered by nature, civilized. The shelter, closed. Howler. You have to follow another glacier with devouring cracks whose exit is a difficult climb, because the fall takes you to a giant crack. You keep climbing because you can't even sit down. It is a mixed section where you have to support crampons on the rock. When it ends, a snowy ridge with two precipices on each side arrives after passing the Piton of the Italians. And yes, the Dome in sight and we take the highway that comes from the French side. Respite. Immediately Vallot arrives, who also recovers you: in case of problems there is a shelter 500 m from the summit. The final ascent has been more problematic than expected due to the wind, with enough force to take you off the track, so you had to wait with the ice ax nailed. At the summit, no one, there were roped up and down, but it coincided with no one. Unusual in a summit always populated. A sign that it was not the right day to go up, although it was to take photos from afar. In fact, I couldn't eat because of the gust of wind and I caught a bit of a bird from which I recovered immediately by replenishing my strength on the descent, on sheltered slopes.
WATER. I usually find anywhere, but since it was very cold, it was hard to find. In the Gonella refuge, behind, there was a drum. In the bowling alley, although it is not the best place to stop, I have found a watercourse that frees us from paying €7 for a bottle! at Tete Rousse. And then swim to a visit to the river but already very far down, reaching Les Houches.
I put it for experts because from the Gonella refuge there is a long way to the summit due to compromised glacial terrain and, as I have already said, decisions must be made continuously. So whoever goes there must have enough resources to withstand what the mountain wants to offer that day. Objective difficulties: Very dirty Grade III, 50º ramps, Glacier with cracks, dangerous rimaya, 40 cm sharp edges, 3,400 m difference in level+, 1,800 m from Gonella, and 3,800 difference in level-. Very changeable conditions and on top of that, if you do it in a traverse, you have to carry the backpack to the summit, of course.
I put a very illustrative video of some colleagues here, from wikiloc. They fell into a crevasse and...! Better see it.
https://en.wikiloc.com/climbing-routes/mont-blanc-monte-bianco-via-italiana-italian-route-77755451
And a more extra-sports note. The return is on a bus, which goes to Courmayer through the Montblanc tunnel, but they require a passport! I didn't have it and I've had an *administrative adventure.
Waypoints
Waypoint
6,855 ft
Comments (4)
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Muchas gracias por compartir el vídeo, Bil! Salud
Bonita subida.. y con muchos sudores de solo ver por dónde pasa 😅😅😅.. la bajada eso sí por el lado francés, q lo veo casi un suicidio..
Hello, how did you book the Gonella hut?
I didn't use the Gonella Hut 😅