Page 28 - AMA Winter 2023/24

CLIMBINGMEETS
concern lay in the event of having someone not able to participate in the activity and hence requiring valley accommodation, though again with the ease of internet accommodation booking and for small numbers, this is easily surmountable with a small contingency fund in place.
From a travel perspective, I have now done ‘the drive’ enough times to know that ‘16 hours’ equates to ‘two eight-hour days.’ Whilst the excitement of driving out to the Alps gets you there within 24 hours, the next day is always ‘payback’ and often short of real training value. After ten days, experience has shown me that the second half of the trip is spent hatching plans of how the last day could be shortened and how we could at least get to Dijon, stay in a Formule 1 and be back in the UK in good time. Having come to accept these facts, I’ve come to question how bad is it to fly? By all means, challenge my ‘environmen- tal credentials,’ but a return flight from the UK to Geneva with an extra bag is about £300. That is easily less than two extra days of work or wages, additional accom- modation and a share of the driving costs (fuel and tolls). Whilst hire car charges may seem to tip the balance, many people seem to prefer hire cars, even from the UK, given the recovery arrangement for most white-fleet seems to involve unit responsi- bility anywhere in Europe!
ROUTE FOCUS – MEULI ROUTE, PUNTA DA L’ALBIGNA
The AMA Swiss Rock & Ridges Meet focussed on rock routes chosen from the excellent ‘Mountaineering in the Swiss Alps’ by Vertebrate Publishing, which
although being around for years is still very accurate (certainly true for the rock routes). I have chosen to focus on one of the routes that we did in the second half of the trip. The Meuli route on the Punta da l’Albigna is an excellent route for breaking into alpine rock routes. The route and the descent can be seen from the hut, meaning that the climbing day is reasonably stress-free; you can see how to get to the start and confirm that the descent route is clear (enough) of snow. As well as starting at a prominent feature (helpfully there’s a photo of the first pitch in the guidebook), the rock is marked and a clear line of bolts mark the way. The route sees surprisingly little traffic, given other options and the hut guardian tries to deconflict starting times, so that you should be able to climb the route without other teams breathing down your neck. Given that the route is predominantly north-facing, it is a great choice on a sunny day if you are looking to avoid the heat. After a slightly steeper first pitch, the first few hundred metres of the route reminded me of Idwal Slabs, easy padding on slabs, following the most-interesting runnels and features. With the crux on the first pitch done, if you can get up that, you will get up the rest of the route. Whilst there are rings for belays almost every 50m and adequate bolts to show you where the route goes, the route requires some trad gear and a bit of ‘classic-rock’ route-finding (follow the easiest line, cleanest rock and signs of wear) which is great for practising speed and efficiency. If you were to have an issue or the weather closed-in, then it would be very straightforward to abseil back to the start of the route.
Starting the Meuli route
Assuming you’ve continued, after three hours of steady, well-protected climbing, the route terminates on a shoulder which hangs above an impressive couloir with a short scrambly gully which leads into a less-exposed corrie of the Punta da l’Albigna. If you’ve had enough here, there is a straightforward, cairned path which leads you back to the hut in about 45 minutes. If you are still going well, then you can follow the arête up towards the summit, re-crest it where it steepens and follow the remainder of the route to the summit. If the first half of the route was like Idwal Slabs, then the second half is like Grooved Arete on the East Face of Tryfan. The route crosses and follows a series of ribs and groove lines as it makes its way to the summit; there’s even a small, exposed step to mirror the ‘Knight’s Move’ (bolt-protected of course!). Once on the summit fin-like ridge, the descent was a struggle to find, but with persistence it goes where you would expect and a scramble and 25m abseil takes you quickly back to a clearly visible and cairned path. The walkout is straightforward enough following cairns through typically bouldery terrain associated with granite alpine mountains and getting back to the hut in 1 hour is not impossible. All in all, highly recommended!
AMA ALPS 2024
I am planning to run an Alpine Meet, 1-12 Jul 24, with a wider objective, incorporating both snow and rock routes. I plan to deliver AMF for those that need it as well as providing instructor development oppor- tunities. Likely to be flying to Milan and training in Eastern Switzerland, ticking off a mixture of ‘Plaisir Alpin’ (guidebook) routes as well as some classic rock. Look out for further details in October 2023.
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