Summit Day

Wednesday 4th August 2010

The events of this day are to be quite incredible. There are still more details to think through and be more accurate on but below is an account of an extra ordinary day ...and one that I will never forget....

As you recall from my last blog the weather window had been shut, and sitting here on thursday back at the train station at 2000m the forecast was correct if we had set off as planned (i.e. to hike to the Refuge de Tete Rousse on the Wednesday, get some well earned rest and recharge our batteries for a few hours and then start the ascent to the Summit in the early hours of Thursday morning) we would not have made it. Philipe informed us that the only chance we had was to ascend and descend Mont Blanc in one go, meaning a total ascent of 2800m, walking and 3800m from where we were in the hotel in Chamonix that morning. A feat that should take us 18hrs and also a feat that is rarely attempted let alone accomplished. Philipe tells us the chances of succeeding were low, less than 10%, but we get our wish and attempt at the summit. this is all we wanted a chance......

We were introduced to 2 new guides, as principally the guides are only allowed to take 2 climbers up the mountain as its to dangerous in larger groups, Simon and I were allocated Valthoir (VAL) who has sumitted the mountain 9 times, Phillip and Elizabeth were allocated Phillipe are existing guide for the week, a 27 time summitter of Mont Blanc and Samera had Eric a 2 time summitter of the great mountain.

So at 8am. We commenced our climb. The hike from the valley up to the Gouter Hut at about 3800 meters was steep and treacherous and physically and mentally demanding and left my heart screaming to burst out of my chest. We reach the Tete Rousse Hut at 10.00 am, where we quickly put on our crampons and helmets and then came a grueling 2 hour rock climb 600m up the Gouter ridge to the gouter hut, traversing across the death coloir, effectively traversing across 100feet of near vertical rock as fast as you can avoiding the falling rocks from the glacier, we were informed after successfully traversing that their are 10 deaths a year here from people going to slow and getting hit in the head from falling rock, and it wasn't without inceident, I took a hit on the ancle, just as Simon nearly had his head took off by a rock the size of a small football.

I refused to look anywhere but where I placed my feet and concentrated hard on putting one foot in front of the other and not feeling the pain, which was extremely hard to do. I needed more oxygen, more time to catch my breath so I could carry on walking/climbing on the twisting ledges of the mountain. So this was what high altitude did to you. I didn’t know what I was expecting. I had read plenty of books and watched several documentaries re peoples experiences of high altitude climbs and knew what the signs and dangers were, but I don’t think you ever truly know until you have experienced it yourself. I never thought that I would go through such torture just to take a breath of air. My lungs and heart were telling me not to go on, that I couldn’t go on, but it my head I was telling myself that I CAN do this and somehow mustered the strength to carry on.

Sheer determination got me to the Gouter Refuge. A further 4hr climb to summit lay ahead. I had just ascended 1700m, which was our original planned ascension height of our original summit day on Thursday and now on Wednesdy afternoon at 1.30 pm I am sitting in the Gouter hut with a 1000m ascent still to go further into thin air. I put my head in my hands. I was exhausted and knew that this could be the end of my journey, but was finding it hard to accept that this might be the case. I had failed. I had failed myself, my family, Simon and the Charities.

I text Rachel, telling her I am exhausted and cannot feel my legs and ask her not to be mad at me if I fail. She texts backs telling me not to be stupid and that she is very proud of me and what I have accomplished and that I should be too. She told me to take a moment to gather my thoughts and focus on what I had come here to do and that she was behind me all the way whatever decision I made and that she believed in me. Kind words, that briefly comfort me, but can I really muster up the energy to carry on. At this precise moment in time I did not think I could.

I discuss with Simon and we agree he should go on with young Phillipe. I stay with our guide Val he's a great character and at 2am I decide to go on, as I feel a little better, about three quarters of an hour behind Simon. If I can get to the Dom Du Gouter at 4304m it will be an achievement. The snow slope climb is gruelling and zaps your energy, but I continue one step breathe, one step breathe, the air is thin and I have developed a hacking cough, but I keep going, its to difficult to eat anything and even drinking is difficult, food just conjeals in your mouth,so you end up spitting it out as you need to take your next breath. We reach the Dom Du Gouter in just over 2 hours. Val looks at me and says good time only 500m to summit, its still possible, so we go on.

In the distance I see Simon and Phillipe I think they are surprised to see me. They seem so close but these snow slopes are vast, they are about 200m ahead which is about 45 minutes walk. I start believing now that I can do this, but the pain from climbing the slopes are brutal you get over one to find a bigger steeper one, you also have to go down only to go up again. At 300m to go Val says we are at critical point he says we should turn back, but then he looked at the sky and says it looks like the mountain is being kind to you there are no snow clouds as predicted. We looked at each other, no words spoken just the glint of determination in our eyes and moved on. If She's opened the weather window then I am not going to pass on the opportunity. You see you can never just climb a mountain like this the mountain allows you to climb her and then perhaps let you summit.



The pain in my legs is excrutiating but I keep going. I can see the ridge and my god it is daunting... 5000ft drops either side, and the path is only 1ft wide, fall to the left your in France, fall to the right and your in Italy. I pass Simon and Phillipe, they have done it. I get great words of encouragement from Simon, this drives me on further, I can't describe what it means to see him, it seems so long since we were at the Gouter refuge, I am proud he has summitted but have no energy to say anything, I must have looked like a zombie, across the ridge 100feet, 50feet, 10feet, I'm there, at 6.15pm on Wednesday 4th August 2010, I reach the summit of Mont Blanc and achieve the first of the 3 challenges.



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I've done what I set out to achieve. I cannot believe I am here. The emotion is indescribable, the view is amazing, but its cold, very cold and high winds. I try and find the 3tc challenge banner, I can't find it, its there but I can't see it. I look for the phone again I can't find that either, I so wanted to and needed to phone Rachel and tell her I'd made it, but mostly just to hear her voice, especially as the last conversation we had was around me giving up. So a quick video diary, I have my families cards of good luck with me. This is a very special moment. I would have liked to have shared it with Simon,and although he was not physically their with me, I know he was, we have done this journey together and therefore it didn't matter that we arrived 20 minutes apart. In a way there is something very peaceful about being the last person to summit today with my guide and not a sole anywhere else. I had the whole summit to myself, Vals 10th summit my first very special indeed. I had a quiet word with dad about the weather window he'd arranged and the stamina I kept drawing upon. Back to reality its 1700m back to the Tete Russon Refuge (my bed for the night) and its late very late and I'm exhausted. It's 6.30pm I think, I know this is not a good time, the trek back is equally as hard, my legs are gone but my spirit is there, this will get me through, plus at 4800m no altitude sickness great news!

I can see the worry in Vals eyes and he can see that my tank is empty, but he knows my spirit will come through, he's learnt this on this very long day. All I hear from him is alley, alley alley, go, go, go. I am going as fast as I can, but i'm starting to feel frightened. The clouds have closed in, I'm at 4500m, and visibility is nearly zero I just follow Val's yellow jacket its all I can see and I can feel the cold now. Fear kicks me into another gear and I pick up the pace, Val is pleased by this. We finally arrive at the Gouter Refuge and I am shattered. I can't feel my fingers and can't get my crampons off, and I know the worse is to come the descent to the tete russo refuge my bed for the night is another 600m rock climb down the Gouter Ridge and its very late 8pm maybe. I walk into the hut and am greeted with a big hug from Simon, its a very emotional moment we have both achieved what we thought was impossible earlier in the day, I was so glad to see him, its been 9 hours since we last spoke at this refuge and the journey we both went on was amazing, I think we both shed a tear, the enormity of what we had achieved just taking over, Simon has been a great friend along this journey. Many times we both wanted to stop and turn round.

I force a coca cola down me and some chocolate. It is hard to swallow though. I feel drained, my thoughts turn to home and my wife and kids, this brings yet another tear to my eye. Everyone can see I have nothing left, and the beginning of a headache. I can't breathe and the hacking cough is getting worse. We need to go down and now. Getting down safely is always the hardest thing on a mountain like this. My rucksack is split between Simon and Phillipe. Helmets and headtorch on, shit crampons again, I can't so Simon does it for me. Climbing near vertical rock in crampons is hard work. I am roped to Val and go first within minutes it seems to be dark so headtorches on. It's hard finding the path but I keep going. After another 2 hours we are 300m down, but I can't go any further, I have been throwing up for the last 10 minutes and my headache feels like my head will explode. I try to breathe but can't get enough oxygen into my lungs. It's bloody cold. I sit down. I'm starting to get really scared now, I suspect I know what is happening, I had read about it enough times, but it shouldn't. How can it I'm descending?, I sit down, but start hacking immediately, the guides Phillipe and Val are conversing in French, they then listen to my back. I know exactly what they suspect, high altitude mountain sickness, a bad situation as this if not treated could turn into HAPE, as I still have another 300m to descend to the hut and its a near vertical descent, rock climbing down the Gouter Ridge, with the deadly traverse at the end, how can I make it? Philipe is now wrapped around me and young Phillipe is rubbing my legs, I can't stop shaking. I can't feel the cold in fact I feel warm very warm, so clearly I have hyperthermia it doesn't look good. Physically I made it, but this illness just crushes you in seconds. It's the scariest thing to have happened to me, and you genuinely want to drift off into a deep sleep and die. Phillipe and Val are on the phone to the doctor and mountain rescue, the helicopter won't come its to dangerous to winch from where we are. Simon is trying to warm me now with his body heat, I tell him I am a little scared now, he tells me don't worry everything will be fine and we will get down. The doctors advice was paracetamol and descend, they don't really understand where we are perched. I take the tablet. Val comes to speak to me and explains the situation, he's asked me to show him the spirit I'd shown earlier in the day to make the summit. All I can think of at this time is Rachel, Ethan and Kian. I need to be home with them. I promised them that I would. It can't end here surely. Val says to concentrate only on my family it will take my mind of the situation. This time Phillipe leads, this is better for me as before when I was leading I was looking around to find the path and this made me even more disorientated. I muster the energy and get to my feet. Every step hurts. My head wants to explode but I'm not going to give up, I can't give up. In total darkness it took 4.5 hours to descend the Gouter Ridge, it only took 2 to climb it. I spent the night in the oxygen chamber at the hut, which on reflection is the best nights kip i've had on this trip. We did the impossible. We ascended 3800m and descended 1700m in the same day. 16 hours trekking and climbing at altitude an incredible feat.

So was it worth it?, I'm not sure? The memories I have will last forever and I feel very privileged iged to have been to places not many humans generally go to. Phillipe our guide said to me this morning, he had never seen altitude sickness strike that fast. At no point in the trip was he worried about my acclimatisation, it was young Phillipe who was showing symptoms even at 2700m. I owe a great deal of debt and thanks to Simon, Philipe, Phillipe and Val, as without their support and encouragement I don't know what would have happened and It doesn't bare thinking about, when people support and believe in you it is possible to achieve nearly anything, this was proved on this extraordinary day for Simon and I, two men who decided we were going to make it and believed and achieved. I now just want to get home to Rachel, Ethan and Kian, and after reflection on this amazing experience and discussions with Rachel I will make a decision about attempting Kilimanjaro in 5 weeks time.

I am now lying in a hot bath which is heaven. I have no pictures on my phone of the summit but do have some incredible ones on my camera which I will upload on our return. I do however have the asscention certificate that says I climbed 4807m to reach the summit of Mont Blanc.