Catalin Daniel Pobega

Peuterey Integral

May 11

catalin pobegaClimbing in Alps Aig Blanche, catalin pobega, climb Peuterey, craveri, Grand Pilier d'Angle, mont blanc, mont blanc de courmayeur, Noire, Peuterey, Peuterey Integral, romanian team, silvia murgescu, Silvique 7 Comments

Topo for Peuterey Integral you may find here.

Peuterey Integral was our big project for the summer of 2010. Jon Griffith inspired us with his film on Peuterey. He was the first one I’ve contacted to ask about the route condition, the minimal equipment to use, the rope length,  bivouac places, etc. Thanks Jon!

For this dream to come true, we have prepared in detail for one year both physically and mentally. Our previous experience in Alps was not huge at all: in 2009 we’ve climbed Matterhorn via Zmutt ridge, Eiger via Mittelegi ridge and Mont Blanc via 3 Monts. So, Peuterey Integral came as a real challenge to us, a real adventure. To be honest, I was more afraid about the rappels section from the top of Aig Noire than anything else. The facts now:

Together with my girlfriend Silvia Murgescu, we climbed Peuterey Integral (TD+ / 3 / 5c / VI ) between 05-08 July 2010. Enjoy the film we did:

For this long rute (more than 4500 m ascent on different types of terrain), we’ve tried to be careful and choose the lightest equipment we could afford to buy: light alloy ice-axe and crampons, light bivy kit.
Climbing Aig Noire South Ridge (the first section of Peuterey Integral ) where you have some steps of 5c with a big backpack it’s quite demanding. So, we managed to keep our backpacks under 10 kg and it was the right way to do it.

We left Borelli hut at 4 am and started our climb at 5 am at the foot of Pointe Gamba. We had to put on our climbing shoes. The climb was nice, but we had to stay focus all the time, not to get out of the route. Shortening the rope, we could simul climb the easy part of the route. As a guide book we used Damilano’s 2nd volume of “Snow, ice and mixed”.

Getting over the first step of 5c in Pointe Brendel gave us more confidence that we would do just fine on this long route.
One rappel and than more 5c steps on Pointe Ottoz – wich is the hardest-, but we found the right solution: I decide to take 2 kg from Silvia’s backpack and now she could lead in an excellent shape.

First bivouac: It was dark when we rappeled down from Pointe Bitch and found a small ledge somewhere between Pointe Bitch and Aig Noire summit. It was quite warm during the night, we were at 3725m and the temperature was maybe around +2 C.
In the morning of our second day on Peuterey Integral, we were enjoying the view we had towards Mt Blanc de Courmayeur with all the Freney basin in the left. As the sun is warming us in it’s orange light, we get up and make the summit picture on Aig Noire at 6.30 am.

From the top of Aig Noire we started the 400 m rappels on the NW ridge down to South Breshe of Dames Anglaises. As I remember, all the raps we did were 25 m except one long 50 m rap over an overhanging wall. We had to be very careful with the rock fall in the lower part section.

Once in the South Breshe, we found water melting from the snow. Just in time, as we were thirsty. Traversing to the North Breshe we found rock all decomposing around us. Not a safe place to be. We got to Craveri bivouac (3490 m) at 10 pm. Nobody there. We were lucky to find snow close to the small bivouac, so we could boil water and eat a hot meal. We took a good sleep. We got up only at 5 am and left from Craveri around 6 am. (Quite late I could say now… because of this, we didn’t make it that day on Mt Blanc and we had to make another bivy (the 3rd) just below Mt Blanc de Courmayeur fighting with the deep and soft snow up on Peuterey ridge (on the segment between Grand Pilier D’Angle and Mt Blanc de Courmayeur).

Easy but long climb all the way up to Aig Blanche de Peuterey (4112 m).

Traversing on the narrow ridge between the summits of Aig Blanche de Peuterey (SE, Centrale, NW) you feel like being part of something special. Such a lonely and fantastic place to be ! 4 raps of 30 m (we could do it in 4 x 25 m and a little easy down climb between them), jumping over the first bergschrund and we are at the Col de Peuterey. Crossing the second bergschrund and we are at the base of South Ridge of Grand Pilier D’Angle trying to identify the easiest point where to start our climb. It looks difficult at this point, but soon we find some pegs on a traverse to the right and we feel confident being on the right route. Easy climb again, but we are very tired. From the top of GPA (4308 m) we still have a long way to go up to MB de Courmayeur (4748m) and then MB (4810 m). We meet another party that climbed GPA north face and we are happy to see them. As we can hardly move up in the soft deep snow on the high Peuterey ridge, we realize we have to make our 3rd bivouac. We fight with the horrible snow till 12 pm and we bivy 200 m just bellow the MB Courmayeur summit on a rocky spot. It was a cold night at 4550 m. Brrrr…

In the morning we met again with the french party that climbed GPA. They were clever than us, as they stopped for the night on top of GPA and in the morning taking advantage of the cold, they climbed very fast the ridge that we found yesterday in horrible soft condition. Superb morning light reveal us all the Peuterey Integral ridge that we climbed till that point. Aig Noire, Aig Blanche, GPA arising from the clouds.

Finally we climbed over the cornice of MB de Courmayeur and in front of our eyes we could see the crowded summit of Mt Blanc. Suddenly we realized that we finished the long Peuterey Integral and we felt great joy in our hearts. We made some pictures on the top of Mt Blanc and then we started to descent on 3 Monts Traverse down to Aig du Midi- a route familiar to us, as we climbed up this easy route to summit Mt Blanc in the previous year.

Equipment we used for Peuterey Integral:

– a 50 m halph rope (8.6mm)  for climbing and for most of the raps+ a 55 m cordelette (we used it together with the halph rope to make one full 50m rap on the N face of Noire). See the technique here.

– 4 cams (small and medium size) + 1 set of nuts, 8 quickdraws, 4 slings

– one ice-axe each (Petzl Snowracer) + one pair of aluminium crampons each (Grivel  Airtech Light New Matic)

– a bivy bag (250g)  each + a summer sleeping bag (600g) each + Z- lite Thermarest pad cutted in 2 pices (one for each). Also a stove and some freez dried food.

-All the photos in this article are copyright Catalin Pobega & Silvia Murgescu.
-For a full detail story in Romanian of this climb, please visit Silvia’s blog.