Page 23 - 2010 AMA Autumn

as quickly as possible and not stand around on the summit too long as the temperature had plummeted and the winds were pick- ing up; a typical Alpine pattern in the afternoons: The winds pick up the higher up you go and the temperature drops and as the air cools once the sun starts its descent; cold air then sinks down the mountain and can be a danger to unsuspecting tourers out later than expected.
The ski off was terrible as the snow was a double layer of crust which grabs your ankles as you try to ski, resulting in lots of falls or lots of frustration as it is very difficult to get turns in where or when you want them. We eventually skied all the way back down the glacier and back to the Tre La Tete hut where we had a drink and a sandwich before skiing most of the way back down to Les Contamines for a days rest and a shower.
AMS had affected another one of the guys, so Nick Hesp stayed in for the next tour, recovering well and continuing thereafter. It did mean though that he missed the first of four mountains over 4000m in the Swiss Alps. Oh well there’s always next time Nick! From Les Contamines we drove (thanks by the way to TP & Danny the dedicated drivers for the duration of the exped), to the Swiss town of Tasch which is sited just down the valley from Zermatt (Matterhorn country). The town is a car free (most of the time) commune of Switzerland serviced by a train from the huge car park below. We walked through the beautiful village and up to the lift station taking us to the Kleine Matterhorn.
From the top of the Kleine Matterhorn lift which is already at about 3800m, we only had a height gain of just over 400m. This is prob- ably the easiest of all Alpine 4000’ers and is therefore very popu- lar. So we set off up the hill and followed the tracks already in place left the countless other groups from previous trips during the sea- son. The route is very straight forward and although not much of a height gain is still over 4000m. Maj Bob Lovett was starting to feel the altitude and had now slowed to a snails pace. As fit as a fiddle at sea level, Bob was no exception to altitude.
Bob soldiered on and we all topped out to enjoy the view from the summit of the Breithorn; Marvelling at the Matterhorn standing proud and all on its own, looking very intimidating and spectacular all in one! After a few moments and the obligatory photo shoot on the summit we decided to clip the skis into ski mode and ski down the lovely steep mountain back to the top of the lift station. From the Breithorn you can ski down the ‘Szchwarztor’ gully and over to the Monta Rosa hut and
then down to the valley from there. However, the snow cover lower down was not very good so it was decided to go to the top of the pisted area and
ski all the way down; plus it was a better choice for those not deal- ing so well with the altitude. I would much rather effect a rescue from the pisted slopes than deep in Off Piste/Back country area.
The next day was a Battlefield tour from WWII. Sometime early on in the war the German Mountain Troops led an assault UP HILL! From Courmayeur on the Italian side of the Mont
Blanc Massive, up to the Turino Hut which is bal-
anced precariously on the edge of the Mare De Glace. This glacier divides the mountain between Italy & France and during the war
the Germans attempted to cross the
glacier and invade France from high up in the Alps and down into
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