We met Russ and his son Will in a lift line at the Grands Montets! When they told us they were looking for a guide for the Vallée Blanche, we made a date and....

 ... nous voilà! Descending the ropes on the exit ridge of the Aiguille du Midi.

Awaiting the cable car at the Plan des Aiguilles station.

A taste of what is to come.

Crowds at this time of year are light, as is the snow!

Will eats it up as we set off at last.

Will negotiates some tight terrain above the Requin hut.

And some still tighter terrain! Not hard, but not for the faint of heart nor for the careless.

A bit lower on the route, we see the Dent du Géant to the south.

Though tracked, this snow was wonderful.

Russ enjoys the light snow, with the impressive icefall in the background.

There was plenty of time to enjoy a drink and a pause in some warm sunshine at the Requin hut.

From our terrace we had a good view of other skiers below in the so-called "Salle à Manger" section of the glacier.

After our break we continued on down the glacier ourselves. Here we catch up with another party on the Salle à Manger.

Our brisk hike up off the glacier left us a bit thirsty; Russ selects some drinks at the Buvette at Les Mottets, before our final descent through the woods and back to town.