Blackbird teams summited the highest peaks in France and Italy this week as weather changed for the better. Thus far, it's been a warm season in the alps and the conditions were difficult with hot weather making for soft snow and more hazardous climbing conditions. This week things changed for the better as a small storm pushed through and colder nighttime temps offered a chance for the snowpack to freeze hard, even below 4,000m.
Gran Paradiso | June 15, 2025
Our teams started on Gran Paradiso, where unsettled weather threated the climb. With rain in the forecast, we hastily made our way to the Vittorio Emanuel Hut, watching clouds slowly build throughout the day. The clouds turned out to be more of a blessing than a curse as they blocked some of the sun and kept us cool on the hike into the rifugio.
Soon after arriving, the rain unleashed. We complimented ourselves for perfect timing as we and other climbers rushed inside the rifugio to escape the large droplets that began to pelt the sun deck. But it was more of a warning shot than anything and as quickly as the rain began it stopped and the skies cleared.
With clear skies that night, we were optimistic for good snow conditions the following morning. We started well before dawn in an effort to manage the high temps, but the morning started warm. The snow just outside of the hut was soft and punchy, even at 4:30 in the morning. Luckily the bootpack from weeks of climber traffic was supportable and we only post holed when we strayed from the trail.
A few hundred feet above the Rifugio, the snow firmed up and became supportable in most places. Still easy to climb without crampons, we kicked steps in the trail for traction and made our way up to the Gran Paradiso Glacier before donning crampons. Here the snow was harder still and we were able to climb outside of the trail in many places to pass other climbers.
At the Schiena d'Asino, the snow was perfect, but a dark and ominous cloud moved in and it started to snow. It looked like a thunderhead, so we were worried we'd start to see signs that it was more of an electrical storm than a simple snow storm. We continued on, watching the cloud closely.
We added layers and braced against the wind and snow, continuing toward the summit. As we approached the summit, we caught a break - the clouds began to dissipate! As we moved up, the snow conditions were close to perfect. A wide trail in the solid neve snow made the contour to the summit via ferrata easy and secure.
The summit views were closer to whiteout than bluebird, but we couldn't complain - the storm allowed us safe passage to the top of Italy! We took our summit photos and kept moving on the windy summit, working our way across the exposed rock ledge back to the snow of the Lavecaiu Glacier.
The storm clouds continued to disappear on the descent and by the time we were back on snow, we had incredible views. The snow held up back to the huts and we were able to make good time on the descent without getting soaked to our knees!
Mont Blanc | June 18, 2025
After a jet lag rest day, we headed to the Cosmiques hut to begin our Mont Blanc attempt via the Trois Monts route. The weather forecast was as perfect as it could get - a freeze would keep the snow solid throughout the day while the skies would be clear with little to no wind!
We climbed the Arête d'Laurence to the hut. Lots of snow still remained the ridge and the climb was beautiful. Wild exposure with amazing views of the Mont Blanc Massif was a great way to enjoy the commute into the hut.
We woke to clear skies with calm wind. The snow was firm and loud - crunching under the steel of our crampons as we walked. The seracs on the north face of Mont Blanc du Tacul had collapsed a bit in the last day or two, but there was still some remaining hazard above, as per usual on this route.
We climbed steadily to minimize our time on the serac exposed face and reached the shoulder just as the sun was peaking above the horizon. Taking a break on the shoulder, we refueled and drank before starting off toward Maudit in the same light layers we had worn up the face of Tacul.
A large, splintered serac was perched over the traverse onto Maudit's north face, and we hustled past that to the first crevasse crossing. This crevasse was open and required a big overhanging step, getting a solid stick an ice tool to make the move. There was also a knotted fixed line in place that had been threaded through the snow and ice above by a previous party. It was a quick step with good snow and ice for tool placements and didn't take us long to get through it.
After the crevasse crossing was a long, exposed traverse above the bergshrund to the shoulder of Mont Maudit. The trail was kicked in, but it was quite narrow - only a boot width wide in many places - definitely a no fall zone with attention required. But ultimately conditions were good with supportable snow and good cane ice axe placements available.
Once on the shoulder of Maudit, we breathed a sigh of relief - the hazards of the day were behind us. From here on out the greatest challenge would be dealing with the altitude on the final stretch of the climb up to 15,766'. The snow remained solid and we summitted in light layers with sunny skies and minimal wind at the very top! One of the best summit days I've had on Mont Blanc.
The descent went smoothly as well - solid snow kept the travel easy for the entire duration down the Bosses, the Col du Dome and down to the Goûter Hut. We ducked into the shelter, happy to be avoiding the Grand Couloir in the heat of the day.
The next morning was similarly beautiful and with a solid freeze the Grand Couloir was quite. We didn't hear any rockfall on our entire descent, and while we didn't doddle while crossing the couloir, we didn't feel as threatened as climbers have in the last few days when multiple substantial rockfalls were reported.
Once through the couloir, we were done with the climb. All that remained from there on out was the hike down to the Tramway du Mont Blanc, the cog railway that travels up to the Nid d'Áigle. We sped down the trail, which was melted out with the exception of a couple of short snow patches, to the train stop. We dropped out packs and chatted with other climbers while eating and drinking our last food and water before the train arrived - perfect end to a perfect Mont Blanc summit climb!
Climb Mont Blanc & Gran Paradiso with Blackbird Mountain Guides
Our IFMGA guides know all about the best approaches to climbing Mont Blanc and Gran Paradiso and our office team will sort out all of the logistics for you! From trains, cable cars and buses to hut bookings, start times and hazards on the route, our team will make sure everything runs as smoothly as it can on the mountain.
The best way prepare for Mont Blanc is to do a few days of Private Climbing with us or climb Gran Paradiso with us prior to summit attempt. This will help you acclimatize to the altitude and ensure that your skills are sharp before we rope up together and climb the highest peak in Western Europe!
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About the Author
Zeb Blais is an IFMGA Mountain Guide based in Truckee California. He loves all the disciplines of mountain guiding - ski, rock and alpine climbing - and tries to spend as much time as he can in the French, Swiss and Italian Alps. He has summitted and skied Mont Blanc 8 times via 3 routes and loves showing his clients the splendor of Europe's highest peak.