Vertical Frontiers Ltd

A final days guiding for August - an early start and a Grand Paradiso car to car with and Mark.

Absolutely fantastic weather and conditions for our ascent. And the first time I’ve worn more than a base layer this month! The wind was blowing (a little) and the air was fresh. Lovely!

An absolutely top effort by Rebecca and Mark, a smooth round trip despite the large amount of boulders to negotiate on this exceptionally low snow summer.

Now a break from guiding for some family trips and also a little computer time, need to get planning the winter and next summer. Back to the mountains in September ✌️

Another chunky days alpine climbing with Ashley Brown : finishing off our week with the Cassin route on the north face of the Piz Badile.

We had an absolutely great time, with just one other team on the route, perfect weather and smooth climbing getting us up and over the mountain before lunchtime and down to the car before the rumbles of thunder.

It was my first time on the route, and I was pleasantly surprised by the varied climbing: chimneys, cracks, corners and endless slabs of course.

One of the highlights being the swim in the river and ice cream in the valley after the long descent. A well deserved treat after a hot day 😁

Chamonix granite classics with Ashley Brown
An “active rest day” - and we beat the storms.

South ridge aiguille noire - what an absolutely stunning route.

Another car to car mission, this time with the ever psyched Ashley Brown : some quality pitches and solid rock, and the descent wasn’t nearly as bad as advertised, although it is long…..

It took us 11 hours to summit from the car, and a further 7 to get back. We just about made it before needing the head torches, always satisfying!

Now a little recovery time before the next one 😵‍💫

A few moments in-between high mountain adventures.

Bivouacs, falconry, cycling, training 😁

North ridge of the Weissmies from a couple of weeks ago. A great group of guests and guides, 8 of us at the summit!

The north ridge is a pretty long route when combined with a descent of the south ridge to the Almageller hut. Lots of fun scrambling along some nicely exposed arêtes and walls, with the odd harder section every now and again. A night at the Almageller hut makes the whole thing manageable, with a later start the following day for the walk back to the valley.

Good fun working with Kenny, Tom and Dom (fellow British Mountain Guides ) plenty of mid route heckling 😁

Had a big day climbing the Matterhorn church to church from Cervinia yesterday, via the Lion ridge.

As we left the village at 4am, we could see the head torches of the teams who had already set off from the Carrel refuge high on the route.

Conditions couldn’t have been better, with virtually no snow on the climb, meaning we left axes, crampons and the mountaineering boots behind and could travel as light as possible.

After a couple of hours we picked up the water that I’d cached the day before, put helmets, harnesses and the rope on and continued up towards the carrel hut.

We passed various teams going in both directions, most of whom had stayed at the hut or a bivouac. The route spends a lot of time above 4000m, and the thin air, plus 2000m in the legs made for some slower progress on the final tower but Steve ground it out.

It took us a little over 7 hours to reach the summit cross, and about the same coming down again, plus a coffee and cake stop at the lower Abruzzi refuge.

What an absolute mission! And congrats to Steve for ticking off the iconic Matterhorn in style on his first trip to the alps. Chapeau

Scrambling into climbing on the Aiguille du Peigne last week. Such a great route with a mix of easy ground and proper climbing. Although always a long day, especially if stuck behind other teams in the upper mountain.

Good prep for the bigger peaks too.

Chamonix granite last week. Staying in the shade rather than cooking in the sun. Good traditional cracks and chimneys 👊

After a few years of training and waiting it was finally time to get on the Matterhorn with Richard and Charlie.

Having previously been shut down by the weather (but having climbed some excellent alternatives) the weather was pretty much perfect for us this week. The mountain was shockingly dry however, with no snow or ice on the route meaning a lot of loose rock on the upper mountain.

The main danger in those conditions is other parties knocking rocks down the route into other climbers. Careful rope management and smooth footwork required.

What a satisfying day on the ‘horn watching Richard realise a long held dream alongside son Charlie, and thanks to BMG aspirant guide Dom for the solid guiding 👊