Pisse Froid ... Great climb, shame about the name!

What a line!
It's across the valley from St Christophe, and we've been eyeing it off for a while  - it's long and spectacular, the grade wasn't too hard, it had a shorter walk-in than the Valley of the Devil climbs and it looked fat (well, mostly).

The first day we wanted to climb it, we could see a party on the walk in - and there was another party gearing up in the carpark ... well, it was the weekend. So we aimed to come back (earlier) the next day.

 

So up we went ... 

And this time, we were first there!

Mark heading up the upper pillar.

The first pitch was a bit scrambley, but the ice then improved and  a few lovely pitches followed, gradually steeping to the top ... but the very top, the part that disappears into a gully ... well, it's climbable, but ... see the photos taken on rappel below! The weather was warming up and the icefall is melting - it was good to climb it, though.

Just stick to the left ... 

... one swift kick!

A great day out. 

Deliverance

 Back again to the Valley of the Devil!

We first saw the line of Deliverance from the other side of the valley, and it looked awesome - four pitches, 180m, WI4+ (it's the line of ice on the right, still all in shadow). Knowing it got afternoon sun, and the temps weren't that cold, we aimed for an early-ish start, not wanting to get too wet.

... on the first, and crux, pitch.

Mark starting out ... 

The second pitch: Mark avoiding the holey bits, but lots of solid ice to be found.

 

By midday, we were at the top of the third pitch ... not feeling like we'd done the approach or the climb as quickly as we would have liked, as the sun was now out in force. Jen scrambled up the final pitch to the top, as the water started pouring off the route ... we were soon, again, completely soaked!

Surprisingly, for an apparently 180m climb, we managed to rappel off in two lengths ... We only have 60m ropes. We were definitely at the top (it ends in a plateau). So where did the missing 60m of climbing go? Sure, you weave from one side to the other, that adds some distance ... but 180m is a little optimistic. A shame, as it was a fun climb and a great line - and in a spectacular part of the Alps, too.

A random catch up in the mountains

Jason, our mate from Amsterdam, was going to be skiing at Les Deux Alpes - which is the ski resort just up the hill from where we were camped at Venosc. We thought it would be pretty cool to catch up.

We then found out that Jason and his mates were in a chalet in a village just down the hill from where they would be skiing ... and, even better, that the chalet was right across the road from the campsite, 100m from the van.

We couldn't have planned it better!

So we headed up the hill for a great day on the slopes - perfect blue skies and fabulous views across the mountains. During the week, Jason and his mates invited us around for drinks and dinner on numerous occasions, and we quite happily crashed their holiday and hung out in the comfy chalet.

We'll have to randomly run into each other in the mountains again some time ... maybe Canada next, Jase?

The boys heading down the piste ...

... and relaxing in the sun.

Les Hémos à Godo

Back in the Valley of the Devil!

Jen started up pitch one, and missed the first bolted belay turning it into a mega-simul-climbed pitch  ...
but worse, managed to open a river near the top of it.

So, early in the day we had some pretty soaked ropes which then froze into fat cables. Forcing the ropes through the belay devices was probably more work than climbing. 

But we continued up, into the top bowl for the final two pitches.

 

Cables. Much heavier on the walk back, too!

Dancing Fall!

Yes, it's named for the Frank Zappa song ... 

Heading up the first pitch ... 

... and Mark leading up the second.

And just one more shot of the line ...

Another day out at Ceillac

Ah, Ceillac - the shortest walk-ins we've seen, and some reliable ice too! So once again we managed to knock off two routes in a day ...

The first was Formes du Chaos, where we were followed by a French father / son team (Son doing all the leading; Dad enjoying a day out for his birthday) who lamented the shape of the ice fall this year: it was, like everything else in the Alps, a little on the thin side.

Apparently there isn't usually this gaping hole ...

But there was enough good ice to climb, or the gorge was narrow enough to bridge between the rock and ice (funky moves required - particularly to avoid the bloody streak a previous party had left behind ...!)

 

But thankfully the very top pitch was a bit more solid, giving Jen a chance to jump on lead.

As the day was still young, we headed across to the one-pitch wonder of Sombre Heroes (or as we keep calling it, Sober Heroes). We soloed up the first easy bit before Mark headed up the amazing pillar ...

An awesome pitch

Christmas Cheer

We were joined by Jen's family for the week before Christmas, and celebrated the week away in this fabulous gite in Le Laus, a tiny hameau near Cervieres, which is up the road from Briancon ... somewhere in the southern French Alps. The weather obliged by providing the area with a cover of white, making it the perfect location for a winter Christmas.

... and the fire kept roaring!

Of course, much champagne was drunk ... 

The table set for dinner on Christmas Eve - roast chook!

One night, we caught skidoos up to Refuge Napoleon on the Col de l'Izoard to have tartiflette for dinner - yum! Jen and Mark then toboggan'd the 7km back down again ... if only the road was a bit steeper, we could have gotten enough speed to beat the skidoos down.

Mum and Dad braved the snow and cold to walk around the area and the fortified city of Briancon too ... 

... Steph headed out to Serre Chevalier to learn to ski, impressing Jen and Mark who joined her for a day or two on the slopes ...

... and whilst Mark and Jen didn't quite get ice-climbing ...

... it's a beautiful part of the world just to be out and about in.
What a week! 

A birthday in Saint Jeannet

What a birthday!


Saint Jeannet, a small medieval village in the hills above Nice, was the location for a small party to celebrate the end of Jen's 20's. With Steph flying from Oxford, Evelyn and Emily from Amsterdam and Rho from Munich, as well as a special bottle of champagne and loads of food and drink, it was going to be a very special weekend.

We found a quirky but perfect "gite" in the village, called "The Studio of the Artist" - obviously because it is frequently inhabited by a local painter and sculptor and is still inhabited by his works, which cover every available space. At the top of an old building in the town and facing south, it caught all the sunshine going - providing much needed vitamin D for the northerners.

Some people had some work to do, some read books, others lazed in the sun or went for walks or runs around the village or up the hill behind it. Jen really enjoyed catching up with her sister and friends; it could only have been better by being longer.

Everyone helped cook (and clean up after!) the numerous meals consumed - proper English bacon for breakfast, a Morroccan inspired banquet for dinner, and no shortage of French cheeses and saussison inbetween.

One highlight has to have been the gift of new ice tools for Jen from Mark - Petzl Nomics, to be precise ... can't wait to try them out on the ice this winter!

And that special bottle? A 1990 vintage Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin, purchased from the cave in Rheims a while ago and carefully kept for this very day. Whether it was the company, the location, the occasion or even the anticipation - it was by far the best champagne Jen has ever tasted, and the whole experience was unforgettable.

A big thank you to all those who made it such a special day, whether through your presence or your messages from afar. It was truly the most memorable and most fantastic birthday I have ever had.

Verdon (Part III)

Our last days in Verdon were spent enjoying the scenery,

and making a leisurely tour around the gorge. 

We'll let these pictures speak for themselves.