Page 26 - Army Mountaineer Winter 2022

EXPEDITIONNEWS
Cragging in the Aiguilles Rouges (REMEC)
the opportunity to witness just how dry the Vallée Blanche has been. Many of the team then moved over to the Aosta Valley to summit the Gran Paradiso (via Chabod route, PD). This was icy but objectively safe, although the ‘schrund took some negotiation and on the descent, they came across a guide installing a ladder over it.
The majority then departed for the UK, leaving a reduced team to undertake some instructor development in Switzerland (as that is where the CILOR had been bid for, so stick to the plan we had to!). Two of the best routes were the Traverse of the Klein and Gross Simelistock (AD, a great rock route in the stunning Engelhörner basin, although with a descent you don’t want to be caught in a storm on) and summiting the Eiger via the Mittellegi Ridge (D) and down the South Ridge (AD).
If conditions are similarly challenging next summer, then three things may be worth highlighting for the benefit of others’ future AT meets in the Alps. Firstly, maximum flexibility is key so as to make the most of conditions (not being fixed by accommo- dation, having the vehicles to self-move,
Towards the top of the Mittellegi Ridge on the Eiger (Mike Dudley)
having the instructors to flex ratios up or down etc). Secondly, local knowledge is best but much can be gained from reading up on conditions in great detail in the weeks/months leading up to your trip (e.g. La Chamoniarde for the Mont Blanc Massif). Thirdly, emphasise in your High Risk & Remote (HR&R) presentation, and in your risk assessments, that the plan is liable to change depending on conditions and weather so as not to ham-string yourself to particular routes.
Note 1. For anyone still on the fence about this, there are many articles you could read but a good start would be: https://royalso- ciety.org/-/media/Royal_Society_Content/ policy/projects/climate-evidence-causes/ climate-change-evidence-causes.pdf
An alpine start (REMEC)
Negotiating a glacier (REMEC)
Descending the S Ridge of the Eiger (Mike Dudley)
Early morning on the Mittellegi Ridge (Matt Hastings)
26 / ARMY MOUNTAINEER