Mont Blanc sans guides & huts.

[dav2930]

What an inspirational story Thanks for sharing.. Expeditions always seem so much more grand in a foreign country somehow..
Not that I'll ever do anything like that.. I've got a blood disorder that makes altitude sickness far more severe for me than your average Joe

Thanks BC
Sorry to hear about your blood disorder - that's a shame. Still, as Hamish MacInnes once said, climbing in the Alps is good practice for Scotland! Who needs all these big foreign mountains when you've got places like Torridon, Skye, Glen Coe etc. etc. on your doorstep? They're as good as anything in the world!

[mountainstar]

Superp report.... brough back some great memories for me (I summited 2 years later)
You were very brave to go solo with limited Alpine experience, but luckily you pulled it off.

[dav2930]

Superp report.... brough back some great memories for me (I summited 2 years later)
You were very brave to go solo with limited Alpine experience, but luckily you pulled it off.

Thanks Mountainstar. Well done yourself for summiting MB; I did see your report on that a while back but I'm going to read it again.

Yes, I was lucky to pull it off and I knew it! If the weather had turned really nasty I would have been in serious trouble I think. I learned a lot from that trip!

[A Drunken Taffer]

Fantastic Report.

Would love to do this myself one day...

[dav2930]

Fantastic Report.

Would love to do this myself one day...

Thanks DT - go for it! A bit of Scottish Winter stuff would stand you in good stead.

[trailmasher]

It's good to have a read of a great report with wonderful pics thrown in . Well done for fighting the altitude sickness and persevering to achieve your mission . Meeting the four on the ridge sounded like a Little John versus Will Scarlet scenario but 4 against 1 maybe it was safer to slide over a bit

[dav2930]

It's good to have a read of a great report with wonderful pics thrown in . Well done for fighting the altitude sickness and persevering to achieve your mission . Meeting the four on the ridge sounded like a Little John versus Will Scarlet scenario but 4 against 1 maybe it was safer to slide over a bit

Thanks trailmasher! Yep, tangling with that lot was definitely not an option!

[Mantog]

Cracking report!

[johnkaysleftleg]

Fabulous report, I can only just imagine your feeling of satisfaction at having completed this solo.

[dav2930]

Mantog - thank you!

johnkaysleftleg - many thanks. I was on a high for a while after!

[past my sell by date]

Great Climb and report.
I'm afraid I need a couple of weeks acclimatising just to get to 4000m. Planned MB in 2002 I think after a doing Nordend and Dufourspitz and staying at the 4500m Margherita hut, but the weather broke and that was the end of a rather poor Season

[dav2930]

Great Climb and report.
I'm afraid I need a couple of weeks acclimatising just to get to 4000m. Planned MB in 2002 I think after a doing Nordend and Dufourspitz and staying at the 4500m Margherita hut, but the weather broke and that was the end of a rather poor Season

Many thanks. It's a bit of a mystery, isn't it, why some people take longer to acclimatize than others?

Not that I've been up Monte Rosa, but from what I understand it's significantly more difficult than MB, with tricky rock scrambling at around 4600m to summit the Dufourspitz. So, kudos to you - I don't think I'll be soloing that one!

[past my sell by date]

Re your reply
You might be interested in my report on Monte Rosa which by chance I have been working on and just posted.

[dav2930]

Re your reply
You might be interested in my report on Monte Rosa which by chance I have been working on and just posted.

Yes indeed - I've just read it. Absolutely fantastic - it really makes me want to do the same traverse. The Liskamm looks especially stunning. Thanks for the tip-off btw!