Mont Blanc summit push – there and back again

Then at last was the day we all had been waiting for the last 2 weeks at least. On my part I wasn’t sure if I would reach as far as I was at that point. But 0300 in the morning of 27-th July it was time to start for the top. It was a full moon night. All my fb friends were posting their “blood moon” pictures on fb after that night. In my home country it was a peek of the hot season and I too was in the middle of the desert… Snow desert tho.

It was perfect conditions to start pushing for the summit. Clear sky and full moon lighting our trail so we didn’t even need our headlamps. We had 1000m upwards to go. No steep climbing but a hell of a lot of walking. The first part on that day was dark and being dizzy from the oxygen deprivation and lack of final nights sleep it all melts together in my memory. So I don’t have much to tell about that.

Around 8 in the morning we reached Vallot Hut at 4362m. On our way there we met up with another group of our hiking companions who set out from Italian side and reached the summit the night before. After some encouragement from them we set out again for the summit. At Vallot Hut we made a little break. Some changed socks, and most ate something to prepare for the last stretch. That was at least for me the last point to quit. After that we hooked ourselves to the rope. 5 people in one rope, 5 in other and our guide continued alone looking after us all. We had 448m to go upwards. Our guide told us that if we needed or wanted to quit, someone had to come with us. For me that meant that if I didn’t summit, someone had to lose the summit with me. And I didn’t think that was something I wanted on my conscience. So for me quitting wasn’t an option there on after. But my energy was drained. Only thought I remember was “one step at a time” and I kept going. Thinking about it afterwords and reading books about ascending mountains… it was a stupid move. I shouldn’t have gone up from the Vallot Hut. But as a stupid first timer on a mountain. I did. Like I said in my earlier post “Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.” – Ed Viesturs. And that is the quote that I ignored. This time I was lucky. I had my best friend with me and a whole group of backup.

So there I was, no going back and pushing forward. I didn’t have any physical strength left, just the mind power of “one foot in front of the other”. I know one girl gave her backpack to one of the boys to carry and her feet were so cold that when we reached the summit she had to change socks. I moved my toes in my boots and didn’t have the mind power to even think about the backpack. When we started the way up from Vallot there was some strong winds and someone asked “Are we really going to continue?” but when we crossed the first hump on our way to the summit, even the wind retreated. After that it was just narrow ledge and setting one foot in front of the other. I didn’t have time to look up, I just saw in front of my feet. And I kept going, for the sake on reaching the summit and for the sake of no one having to quit because of me. In some sense, I knew that if I went back it would have been my friend who would have gone back with me and I didn’t want that. I wanted him to reach the summit as much as I wanted to get there myself.

According to my pictures metadata, first picture at the summit was taken 10:25 at 27th July 2018. When I first looked at the plans and days we had in reserve to try for the summit, I somehow knew that if I would reach the summit, it would be on 27th. Original plan was to start a day earlier and reach to the summit on 26th but it went sideways do to the fact that we didn’t get the hut reservations as we wanted. So it was after all my special day as I figured, like so many others before that, we reached the summit on 27th.

I can’t even remember how much time we spent on the summit. We took some pictures together and selfies. I remember having hard time concentrating and thinking just about how would I get down 😀 At that moment I didn’t feel much of emotions about reaching the summit. Yes, I was happy but kind of anxious, wanting to descent and be done with the mountain, and also feel better physically.

I really can’t remember how long time we spent on the top, but I don’t think it was any longer than half an hour. All photos I could take and then was time to descent. Again we hooked up on a rope. I don’t remember when exactly but at some point one of the guys in our group took my backpack from me because I was so tired and he was kind and able enough to carry it for me. The firs part of the descent was most dangerous. The part back to Valot hut when we were hooked on a rope. Afterwards my friend told me that I fell. I can’t remember that but he told me I fell on my knees and pulled him with me because he was right behind me. I know I scared him, and later I apologized for that but do this day I only have one memory when I staggered and he grabbed me so I wouldn’t fall. So that’s how much I remember.

On our way back when we had the chance on a smoother parts, we slided down on our backsides 😀 We made a little lunch brake at the Gouter hut. Again I don’t remember eating anything, but I do remember being “half dead” and my friend bringing me a cup of tea. I felt really good at that moment, that he had asked me to come to this trip and convinced me that I could do it. Part of a deal was that he would take care of me while on the mountain and he did. I believe he did it at the best as he could. And for that, I’m really grateful.

From Gouter hut we had about 600m to descent to Tete Rousse hut, where we left our tents. This time, getting down from the cliffs wasn’t that scary. Part of it being I was too tired and part of it because I knew I had made it up, so I can go down as well.

And we had to cross the Grand Couloir again. Afterwards we heard that our group that had started the day before us, had a accident in there. On their way back, grossing the couloir one of their group members had a nasty fall, and he managed to brake his fall at a last minute with the self arest technique we had been practicing on our trip to Italy in Pointe Hellbronner.

We got to Tete Rousse hut in the evening just about the time for dinner. We ate and we spent a night at the hut. We left our tents outside because nobody had no energy to take them down that night. Another good thing was that my friends was nice enough to bring our sleeping gear from the tents. I gathered my last strength after the dinner to go get my stuff and as I got out from the hut, there he was, with both of our stuff. That was so great of him, because I know he must have been almost as tired as me from the day.

Next day we started with packing. We had to pack the tents and sleeping gear again in our bags and then it was time for the last part of descent before we could take a tramway from Nid D’aigle.

Back at our campsite we had a party to celebrate and the next morning people started to leave for their planes. My friend was one of the first ones to leave, and he left his tent for me to sleep in until the noon. I helped him pack his stuff and after hugging him before he left I was devastated. The trip was almost over, I had to travel back home without him, and all and all it was the saddest morning on that trip.

On my way home I had to deal with planes being late and spent an extra night at some hotel in Denmark and arrived home monday noon, instead sunday. But it was all worth it in the end. We got our first summit, and soon after we started planning for our next mountain adventure.