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                                                Mountain Conditions 19/06/20


A quick update on snow conditions.  There will be more information after this weekend’s feedback.  

From Saturday, the weather is due to stabilise and from Sunday, should become warm and sunny.
This weekend the Leschaux, Charpoua, Argentière, Plan Glacier and Durier huts will open.


High mountain: some parties turned back before reaching the summits, (Chardonnet, Mt Blanc, Dômes de Miage...) There was a lot of deep snow making the routes a lot more tiring.


Albert 1er sector: Aiguille du Tour is well tracked and in good condition, some surface snow sluffs.  There is a good 60cms on the Forbes Ridge, not tracked. The Migot has been skied. There is hardly any snow at the hut.  The best approach is by the moraine as there are still exposed snow patches on the summer path coming from Charamillon.

Couvercle sector: There was a party on the normal route of the Droites but they turned back due to too much snow. The freezing conditions are not good but the Droites, Courtes and the Whymper look to be in condition. The rock routes are still too damp, (snow), including the S ridge of the Moine.


Aiguille du Midi and Torino sector: 40cm of very humid snow has fallen which is now crusty snow on the surface.  The traverses of the Cosmiques Ridge, Laurence Ridge, (Lolo), Pointes Lachenal, and Marbrées are tracked. The Tour Ronde has been skied.  The Tacul Triangle looks to be in condition, (plenty of snow).

  
Goûter sector: The normal route up Mont Blanc is tracked. There is a lot of snow between the Rognes and Tête Rousse and it is preferable to approach by the glacier.  More than a metre of windblown snow has fallen at the Gouter hut.  The cable at the Grand Couloir is in place, though some of it is still under the snow.  Good crampon skills are needed for the descent from the Gouter.  The glacier below the Tête Rousse is all on snow.

Conscrits sector: It is finished for skiing here. The footbridge on the summer path is still not in place, (damaged and not yet repaired)  For the approach by the glacier it is best to keep to the true right bank without crossing the river, then following the cairns after the steep section, as marked by the hut warden. The snow routes appear to be in condition, (Aiguille de Tré la Tête and Blanche) but need time to stabilise.  There is still a lot of snow on the Dômes de Miage.

At the Grand Paradiso, the routes from the Chabot are tracked and in good condition.


Mid mountain:  There is still quite a lot of snow at the TMB cols and on the Tour des Aiguilles Rouges.  Hopefully, this will disappear from the paths after a week of sunny weather.
The footbridges at Bionnassay and Armina (Italian Val Ferret) are in place. Some of the TMB variants are not in condition yet. 

Snow is still causing some problems for rock climbing in the Aiguilles Rouges, crampons could be useful.