Meije crossing

First day: From the mid-station of the cable car at La Grave, you initially stroll quite flat on a path toward Breche de la Meije. Behind the constructed playground near the mid-station, the path descends a few elevation meters and then traverses with some ups and downs to the base of the rocks called "Les Enfetchores." More on the left side there is a path repeatedly marked with cairns ascending over rocks, slabs, ledges, and scree. The hardest part is right at the beginning, where you have to overcome a roughly fifteen-meter-high steep step graded at UIAA grade three. Afterward, you never go above grade two again—and if you do, you have lost the route. Above, the rock merges into the glacier, which offers some nice crevasses on the approximately 30-45 minute walk to Breche de la Meije. So it is advisable to rope up. Due to significant glacier retreat, the last fifty vertical meters to the notch in the rock must be climbed or, better, overcome through large-blocky steep scree, which is easier to traverse in a big left arc than it initially appears. On the south side, it goes steeper down than it does up on the north side, keeping right in the descent to the right rock face. Using a 20-meter abseil spot is recommended. Thereafter, you should descend somewhat quickly to the flat glacier because after the abseil section you cross a rockfall-prone passage. Just behind us, a few refrigerators fell down here—definitely not a place to linger. The remaining ten minutes to the hut are easy.

The hut itself is also easy. Small, nestled against the rock, with a wonderful viewing terrace. The hosts conjure up an alpine but nevertheless surprising three-course menu from the tiny kitchen; afterward, you'll be full. Until dinner, it is quite sensible to inspect a few climbing meters towards Meije, as the next day starts in the dark. You should carefully examine, for example, the first steep section about thirty meters above the hut. It immediately looks like a grade five, as it goes straight up. The trick: keep fairly left, even if it is very exposed at first. Large holds help over the steepest part.

Second day: After the first steep section, the ridge initially becomes flatter and easier but soon steepens again. To the left and right, it drops quite steeply. This is also the foretaste of the rest of the route: although it rarely gets harder, the exposure pulls at you like a terrier for the next ten to twelve hours. And it is somehow a first test. If you need to belay here, that’s a pretty clear sign that the route might be too much for you. Conversely, the exposure from the first meter at the hut likely leaves hardly anyone unaffected. But usually, you get used to it fairly quickly.

After about half an hour on the ridge, it broadens, and you keep diagonally left ascending over inclined terrain toward a large ravine between two towers, the "Couloir Duhamel." However, a steep section has to be overcome to reach it, and then you have to traverse into this couloir. It looks quite scary at first, but if you find the right spot, the traverse including a few meters downhill resolves quite well. The couloir itself is then enjoyable climbing, mostly at grade two on very solid rock. After a total of 1.5 to two hours, you find yourself at the base of an impressively steep rock wall, which experienced climbers recognize as requiring at least grade five. Here the rope is unpacked—even though, thanks to very skillful route guidance, this grade five is rarely touched.

The first pitch leads in a traverse to the right and then straight up. Upper grade four, I would say. And highly exposed, as it goes without any ledge down to the glacier about 300 meters below. After this pitch, there is one more going diagonally right upwards, then two pitches to the left toward the edge bounding the wall on the left. All about grade three or easier. On the next pitch, you heave yourself directly on that edge over a small overhang and then traverse back right to a belay with bolts. Then, three steep pitches that repeatedly demand the upper grade four (or four-minus?) lead along corners to a large block directly on the edge. For twenty meters, it is then very easy through a wide gully with bivouac sites, but then you have to sharply go right around the corner and even descend a meter. A very exposed narrow ledge and a short steep climbing section lead over to Glacier Carré.

Whether it is really a glacier is debatable. In any case, the upcoming firn section is not without challenges. Less because it is technically difficult—steepness does not exceed 35 to 40 degrees—but because it is once again mercilessly exposed. While you traverse diagonally right upwards toward the summit pyramid of the Meije, the Glacier Carré descends without any flat spots and breaks off into the steep south face already about 500 meters high at this point. Stumbling is really forbidden. If good footsteps are lacking, it is advisable to traverse close to the rocks.

The first hundred meters of the summit pyramid are quite easy, going at grades one and two. Pitch-by-pitch belaying should not be necessary. At the reddish slab called "Cheval rouge" near the left bounding edge things get a bit harder, and rope protection is again welcome from there. The slab is best climbed at the left edge; then you go a bit right again to below a final overhang, the "Chapeau du Capucin." In my opinion, this is the technically most difficult passage: a roughly three-meter-long leftward-drifting corner that goes to the left edge and then past the overhang into easy terrain. Unfortunately, there is no bolt at the four-minus spot; a smaller friend probably helps a lot here. A few minutes later you stand at the summit of the Meije with a sensational view in all directions, especially of the razor-sharp ridge that guides your direction. If you took five to seven hours to get to the Meije summit, you are well on schedule and should prepare for another four to five hours in exposed terrain.

Two to three abseils bring you to the notch between Meije and Dent de Zsigmondy. You reach the first abseil chain after about thirty meters descent from the summit. Once down, a narrow ridge leads to the base of the Dent de Zsigmondy, where a wire cable starts. In the past, climbers presumably climbed directly over the steep rock tooth, but a massive rockfall now makes this impossible. Therefore, you follow the wire cable, which accompanies you for a total of 160 meters around the tooth. If on the way back to the ridge on the other side it is covered by ice, advanced ice climbing up to 70 degrees steepness is required. If the wire cable is exposed, it is just a fairly demanding via ferrata (crampons on feet are almost always necessary).

Depending on conditions, the route over three smaller ridge towers to the Doigt de Dieu is either rock climbing at grades one to three or mixed terrain with firn passages up to 40 degrees. It all does not sound very difficult. Nevertheless, it is challenging: first, it is always exposed. Second, it is not very well protected. Third, you will likely start to feel some fatigue. And fourth, you are constantly moving at just under four thousand meters. But eventually (including a short abseil at the second tower) you reach the summit of the Doigt de Dieu, and then only three abseils separate you from the glacier. The first you reach from the summit in about 35 meters of scrambling diagonally right down to an abseil chain. Caution is required here; the risk of a rope snag while pulling is not small. After this abseil, it is another thirty meters along the ridge eastward to the next chain. Thirty meters below is finally the last chain, which you should still use with a 50-meter double rope to safely cross the bergschrund to easier terrain on the glacier.

The glacier itself is finally unproblematic but not free of crevasses. And because you will likely arrive only in the afternoon, the rope should stay on until Refuge d'Aigle. The rest is then just routine. However, it is no small routine, as it is 2000 vertical meters down to the valley. And the descent is not always a walk in the park. Sometimes the second grade is required again. And depending on conditions, you descend on steep snow fields where crampons might again be helpful.