“THIS IS ALWAYS A DISCONCERTING SIGHT FOR A CLIMBER. IT WAS ESPECIALLY ALARMING BECAUSE WE WATCHED THE DEBRIS PETER DOWN TOWARDS A GULLY WHERE WE'D BEEN PLANNING TO VENTURE IN THE COMING DAYS.”
This is always a disconcerting sight for a climber. It was especially alarming because we watched the debris peter down towards a gully where we'd been planning to venture in the coming days. The gully was the access to 375m-long alpine climb called Sala Athee, on the peak known as The Monk, which was recommended to us because of its technical crack climbing.
We were sitting in an idyllic bivvy spot below the granite needles of Envers des Aiguilles, near Chamonix, in the heart of the European Alps. The rockfall wasn't anywhere near us, but witnessing such a large one always focuses the mind on what might fall down at any moment.
All through the night, the unnerving sound of collapsing rocks echoed around us. If
