Mont Blanc (Le Grand Coulior)
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Day 1 ascent of Mont Blanc in July 2011, between Refuge Tete Rousse and Refuge du Gouter. Footage shows a resuce helicopter recovering the body of a fallen climber and then our team crossing the dreaded Grand Couloir minutes after the accident.
Comments
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It is the one thing I like about mountaineering. The climbers just keep going even after an accident.
Even on Everest. The only thing that shuts that mountain down is when the Sherpas get killed and they don't want to climb anymore. Well, not until they renegotiate for more money.
The next day or even the very same day of the khumbu icefall or the earthquake base camp avalanche, climbers would have attempted climbing it again if the route would have been passable. "Send up more Sherpas.. Or some of the baggage porters for all we care.." I think the use of Sherpas is the one reason I don't want to climb Everest. They will drag or leave people bodies who have no business being up on that mountain, but god forbid something happens to one of them.
The Europeans are even more nonchalant about death in their mountains than in America.
Deaths of others is what makes successful summits so rewarding. If there was no danger and everybody was succeeding.. What's the challenge in that? -
it's a scary but exciting place for sure! I crossed it a couple of years ago... the mountain is not your friend!
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Senza assicurarsi sul cavo di sicurezza, complimenti, ne son morti 2 pochi gg fa per questo motivo.
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He was the great man!! +Wojciech Kozub+ (18.XII.1980 - 6.VII.2011 Mont Blanc)
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Actually it's turning so fast that the camera can't get the view that an human eye get, it makes it look turning slowly.
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haha Nice that you wrote in Arabic. Im a Half-breed (English Mother) my friend, so English is equally as important. No reason to fail unless the wather stops you like it has done to me. Get to the Coulior before the hot afternoon sun. If youre going without a guide then u are more experienced than I am. Just be safe!
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Yeah and a lengthy sling seems like a good idea. As I mentioned before the tie in cable is a little on the high side. If my memory recalls there were 2 last time I was up there.
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I wish you good weather with your climb. They should finish the new Gouter hut pretty soon which will be nice. Hope you shoot some video.
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Ive crossed it 4 times, and most of the time people are short-roped across it with their guides. The tie-in cables are a bit high and the guides possibly see them as more of a hindrance than a help.
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At the time he was hit by a falling rock (a common occurence when crossing the couloir at midday), its a bowling alley and climbers are basically the pins. Ive crossed it 4 times so far and crossing after seeing that unfortunate accident was by far the most sobering of realities. Short roping with a guy or clipping in is sometimes a good way to minimise risk. That climber I think was not roped up I believe. I shall look for news articles.
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Hey, you must have just made it before the wind worsened. We were going up to the Gouter hut when we saw this happen. It is such a tragedy. I heard he wasnt roped up while crossing the Coulior. I have crossed this couloir about 4 times so far and its one of those runs whereby it doesnt look so bad but it is the place of so many accidents and fatalities. The following morning we went up as far as the Vallot refuge in those terrible winds, we were forced to turn around 500m from the top :(
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I was there!!! I had just come down from soloing mt B and was at camp in TR. what a tragedy, trust me the whole camp mourned, a big reality shock.
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@LestraJo Yup, happens alot around that area... very dangerous..
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Scary movie, poor climbers... bat it's truth about this couloir...Thank you.
9m 15sLenght