Our innovations require input from the best mountain professionals.
Frédéric Souchon, high mountain guide and rescue specialist at the PGHM in Chamonix, chooses CimAlp for his personal kit.
Looking for new ideas for your next mountain adventures? Frédéric shares accounts of his Mountaineering and Paragliding outings and tells us his "CimAlp Essentials" selection that accompanies him on every expedition.
Frédéric recounts his circuit of the "Glacier du Tour" via the summits
" Having flown over the area several times and climbed the summits of the Chardonnet and the Aiguille du Tour, I came up with the idea of attempting an original route: circuit the glacier by crossing every summit — and if possible in under 24 hours! While the idea looks appealing on paper, after an initial study of the maps and topos (a glacier ringed by a ridge and summits stretching over 18 km), it seems the challenge is far from straightforward, with some fairly seldom-travelled sections along the route...
1st July 2015: with Jeff Mercier, my teammate and colleague at the PGHM, we finally decide to go for it! The link-up started from the hamlet of Tour at 1400m and took us along the normal routes of all the iconic summits surrounding the Glacier du Tour, namely: Péclerey, the 2 Becs Rouges, the Aiguille du Passon, the Aiguille du Chardonnet, the Grande Fourche, the Petite Fourche, the Tête White, the Aiguille Purtcheller, and finally the Aiguille du Tour...
View of the Aiguille du Tour 3542m at sunrise from the Col du Passon.
At the summit of the Aiguille du Chardonnet 3824m, with the final planned ascent of the day visible in the background — the Aiguille du Tour, still a long way off!
A heady mix of 20 hours of ridge traverses, route-finding, rock, ice, climbing and glacier travel.
For this kind of summer glacier and rock link-up, kit is everything: it must be technical, comfortable, stretchy, waterproof, lightweight, and easy to pack in a rucksack.
Here is my "CimAlp Essentials" selection for this type of expedition:
- The Laos 4 mountain trousers: 3D Flex Plus fabric, 100% stretch, durable and ultra-comfortable.
- EMANA ultra-comfort compression t-shirt: the new EMANA® fibres feature thermoregulatory properties that act on blood microcirculation and deliver a sense of well-being during exertion. The 3D-Flex® weave provides greater stretch for a compression/support effect (firm muscle hold).
- Ultrashell ultra-breathable waterproof jacket VINSON with Kevlar reinforcements: a must-have!
- VENTURI ultra-fast-drying & anti-odour t-shirt: dries 10 times faster! Ultra-breathable, lightweight, anti-odour and versatile.
- primaloft DOWN synthetic down gilet: windproof, lightweight and as warm as down.
- CROSS 3-layer lightweight softshell jacket: this stretch softshell fabric jacket will accompany you in your outdoor activities. Designed for sports such as nordic walking and cross-country skiing, it is also ideal for mountain biking and hiking in the mountains.
3D Flex stretch mesh inserts at the elbows and underarms for maximum freedom of movement. Windproof, waterproof and breathable!
- RAIN breathable waterproof hiking jacket with membrane: keep it at the bottom of your pack for when the rain hits! An ultra-lightweight, waterproof, breathable and compressible jacket. Stretchy and ready to shield you from the elements.
- HIKKING high-performance hiking socks: tough and reliable for hiking, hill walking and mountain trekking. They feature right-foot/left-foot ergonomics, a heel and toe in CORDURA — 4x stronger than polyamide — and merino wool to keep odours at bay.
- Special Travel air-evacuation waterproof bags: these bags save up to 70% of space and protect against water, odours and insects.
Frédéric's flagship project for the season: "Alps Traverse by Fly-Bivvy"
This great Alpine traverse will take us from the shores of Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean. We have opted for a low-impact, mountain-friendly approach — on foot or by paraglider exclusively. The unique feature of this project is completing the ascent of the 6 highest points in the 6 departments crossed:
- HAUTE-SAVOIE: MONT WHITE 4810m
- SAVOIE: LA GRANDE CASSE 3855m
- ISÈRE: PIC LORY 4088m
- HAUTES-ALPES: BARRE DES ÉCRINS 4102m
- ALPES DE HAUTE PROVENCE: AIGUILLE DE CHAMBEYRON 3412m
- ALPES MARITIMES: LA CIME DU GELAS 3143m
Connections between summits will be made by paraglider wherever possible, or on foot hiking in unfavourable flying conditions. This mode of travel will require us to carry all our flying, walking and bivvy gear with us. This project will allow us to combine mountaineering, hiking and paragliding. The mountain will take centre stage in our journey, offering us what matters most to us: effort, team spirit, respect and sharing.
Unlike classic mountaineering, where the summit can be seen as an end in itself, for us the peaks we climb will be the springboards of our odyssey. Today, heading off on an adventure is still possible just a few steps — or flights — from home!
For this traverse, we chose to pack lightweight, compact and effective products — whether in the air or on the ground during our ascents!
The gear we carry on our backs every day — around 20 kg!
Follow all the news about the traverse on our Facebook page here!
Have a great sporting summer, everyone! "
Fred
