After the recent snow falls on Mont Blanc Massif, most routes were in winter conditions except the Pointes Lachenal. Pascal and I went back to climb another route there ; A l’oree du bois. There are some nice pitches but the route is a bit confusing as it crosses 3 other routes. Anyway, it was a nice day and a fun climb on the nice granite of Pointes Lachenal.
Early start on Aiguille du Midi ridge (© P. Gatta)
We took the first cable car from Aiguille du Midi and reached the bottom of Pointes Lachenal in about 30 minutes.
On the way to Pointes Lachenal (© P. Gatta)
The route is 250m high and graded TD+, 6b/A0. There are bolts on slabs and for the anchors, the cracks are relatively easy to protect.
The start of the route (© P. Gatta)
On the photo above, we can see the start of Le bon filon in the shade and the start of A l’oree du bois and Harold et Maud is just 2 meters left.
On the 1st pitch (© P. Gatta)
The first pitch is common with Harold et Maud, then we took left above the 1st anchor (2 spits).
Very nice 4th pitch (© P. Gatta)
The grades: 6b, 6a, 6b, 6a, 6b/A0, 6b, 6a, 5, 4.
Pascal in the 6b/A0 pitch (© P. Gatta)
With a 60 meters rope, it is possible to link the 6th and 7th pitches which are common with Harold et Maud.
In the 6th pitch, 6b (© P. Gatta)
We climbed the route in 4h (with the pack) and went back to Aiguille du Midi in 35 minutes.