Bionnassay - Aiguille & Glacier*

Walking at this altitude & in this heat - not to mention all completing the 'hard' options each day had patently taken a toll on the clients today when they came down for breakfast - the creaking of limbs was audible, though that was mainly my knees.
So some dynamic planning was called for & I decided that we'd ride the lift from Les Houches to Bellevue - where the views are just....well I'm sure you can guess. A stroll out along the Prarion ridge and then the lift down saw the group happy and hopefully able to rest ahead of tomorrow's last full day. 

The extra is a very zoomed picture of the new Gouter refuge - I grabbed a shot aimed in the general direction because even from the Prarion this spaceage 'hut' , obviously styled by Ernst Stavro Blofeld, is just a tiny dot over a mile higher on the edge of the cliffs. However when I put it up on the screen I was amazed to see I'd not only captured the helicopter - but the eagle eye'd amongst you will be able to make out some tiny little climbers making their way down after what I hope has been a successful summit bid. Its been a few years since I last climbed Mont Blanc via this route - so I've never had the chance to stay in the new refuge, instead we bivvied under the stars, set off at 2am and were on the summit alone for sunrise - I hope these guys got a moment just as special.

* Bionnassay to the left where it runs through to the Gouter - centre is the Tricot and behind right is the Dome du Miage