As is obvious from these fantastic photos, a truly exceptional day was had by Karin Burnett and Liz Jones on the Forbes Arete.
The Forbes Arete is a 'must do' hard alpine ridge on the Aiguille du Chardonnay (3850), which is situated in a commanding position above the village of Argentiere. The route is graded AD and is strictly for alpinists with experience.
On the Arete we met none other than Nick Parks and Jeff Colegrave! This lead to some cheerful banter which added to the day's enjoyment.
The Forbes Arete is a long and demanding journey on both snow, ice and rock. The day began at 3am from the Albert Premier Refuge, a 2-hour snow plod, is followed by a steep glacier, up to the arete itself. The arete consists of many consecutive gendarmes, all uniquely difficult in there own way. We chose to keep our crampons on for the majority, but there were sections which felt precarious, and demanded a cool and experienced approach.
We joined forces with Nick and Jeff on the descent, which consisted of 'short roping' and several rappels. All in all it was a long day, the round trip took 12 hours back to the Albert Premiere Refuge.
Often when climbing and skiing we have to adapt to less than perfect conditions, however on occasions the conditions and weather are perfect. This was one of those days, and a magic experience was had by both clients and guides.A great end to the season.
See you all in the winter...
Matt Dickinson
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