Roger Weatherby brought his son Harry over from England for a climb of Mont Blanc with Kathy. They had climbed Toubkal together, and thought they would see how a bit higher altitude would feel.

Harry is shaping up to be as energetic and athletic as his father. Awaiting the Aiguille du Midi cable car.

A quick stop at the top of the Aiguille for views over the Chamonix valley.

A bit hazy but we can't complain about this weather!

We started our acclimatization with a trip across the Vallée Blanche on the Panoramic cable car.

From Pointe Helbronner we walked back to the Aiguille du Midi across the glacier, getting very crevassed at this stage in the summer season.

Up the steep ridge, and back into the station!

On day 2 we had only to get to the Tête Rousse hut, so we took time out in the early morning for a bit of rock climbing at Gaillands.

We had very hot weather for our approach of the hut!

The following morning we got up before dawn for the clamber up the ridge to the Gouter hut. A break midway up the climb.

Watching the shadow of Mont Blanc outlined against the haze.

We made it to the hut! The hardest part in many ways. In the background is the helicopter bringing supplies to the construction site of the new hut, due to be finished next summer. The Aiguille de Bionassay also behind.

We continued up toward the summit that day, but it was too much elevation gain too soon. Also the weather was not forecast to remain good that afternoon. We turned around a few hundred meters higher.

Alas, the following night was also not very good weather. A strong, gusty and icy wind thwarted our efforts, throwing us off balance and strafing our faces with ice pellets. We took shelter in the Vallot to escape its fury for a few minutes, then made our way back down, satisfied we had done all we reasonably could. We did break Harry's previous altitude record by several hundred meters!

The summit was shrouded in this dense and very fast-moving cloud.

On the way back to the train, this ibex let us admire him before turning his back and scampering off.