Previous
Friday August 7, 2015
Tour de Monte Rosa Trip Report
Resy to Rifugio Gnifett
Saturday August 8, 2015
Tour de Monte Rosa Trip Report
Rifugio Gnifetti to Alagna Valsesia
Next
Sunday August 9, 2015
Alagna Valsesia to Saas
Fee
I had selected the bed closest to the window figuring the view would be
nice.
The view was fine, but the 'bed' was a warped sheet of plywood that
creaked loudly every time I moved a muscle.
I should have moved to one of the other beds...I slept pretty poorly
and woke up my roomies.
There were actually 7 beds in our room if you include mine - the
bunkbeds were triple stacked and I hadn't even realized it until the
next morning.
I assumed we'd have just the four of us in the room and I was correct.
The hut was 2/3 to 3/4 full.
The rooms closest to the bathroom were all left empty.
Paul's picture
iPhone panorama - click here for a
full size image of the pano
7:37
Breakfast. We're just about the only ones left at the hut, everyone
else is headed uphill for Rifugio Margherita.
That was our original plan, but Paul, Jed and I are beat.
The hut guardians here also warned us that the weather is suppose to be
bad later today.
We're headed downhill.
08:30
Looking down from Rifugio Gnifetti
08:56
Paul's pic
09:11
09:11
Paul's pic
Paul's video - warning - language
iPhone panorama - click here for a
full size image of the pano
This pano shows both snow crossings and almost the full route from
Punta Indren to Rifugio Gnifetti (top right)
The rock scramble up from Endre Glacier (left) is directly below and to
the left.
Rifugio Citta di Mantova is in the center
Earlier we saw a helicopter ferrying supplies to Rifugio Quintino
Sella, which is on the distant ridgeline halfway between Rifugio
Gnifetti and Rifugio Citta di Mantova
09:26
Rifugio Citta di Mantova is in the top right center
Jed's pic, Paul's camera
09:26
09:33
09:51
Kent's video, Paul's camera
Jed's picture of me starting down the rock scramble / climb between
Endre Glacier and Lys Glacier
Jed starting down the scramble
Paul is using Jed's camera
Kent's video, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
Kent's picture, Paul's camera
09:56
This was a little less fun coming down than going up.
Paul's picture of Jed and I coming down the rocks.
Jed's camera
Paul's pic, Jed's camera
10:01
10:01
Kent's video, Paul's camera
10:01
This picture fairly accurately depicts how vertical this scramble /
climb was.
Paul's picture, Jed's camera
Kent's pic, Paul's camera
Paul's picture, Jed's camera
10:09
10:09
10:11
10:11
10:17
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
10:45
A nice deep crevasse!
10:45
Paul crossing the nice deep crevasse...
10:45
10:54
I decided to hike across Endre Glacier without crampons again. I
did fine until the very end when I slipped on some solid ice, hit my
butt with a solid 'thump', and started slowly slidding downhill.
The slope was quite tame so I wasn't afraid I was going to die, but I
was concerned with how I was going to stop, stand up, and get the off
the ice.
I managed to stick my poles out ahead of me and came to a stop perhaps
10 to 15 feet downhill.
After one or two failed attempts I managed to stand up while using the
poles to keep me from continuing to slide downhill.
In hindsight crampons would have been a great idea.
10:54
Kent crossing a crevasse!
Paul's pic
11:20
Punta Indren
11:29
11:29
11:29
11:29
11:31
11:49
11:51
12:09
12:18
12:22
Pianalunga - Cimalegna - Salati lift
12:26
Pianalunga - Alagna lift
12:37
12:43
12:49
We arrived in town and found the Hotel Monterosso.
We were quoted 160 euros each for the last 2 rooms and quickly took
them.
Turns out Hotel Monterosso was bought a few years ago by 4 Swedish
families who take
turns running the hotel during the summer.
They were originally looking for an apartment in Alagna Valsesia for
ski season but ended up buying the hotel instead.
Peter's English is perfect but by his own admission he's still working
on his Italian.
We asked if there was a laundrymat in town, Peter immediately offered
to do our laundry with their own, and then he refused to take any form
of payment.
"That's how we are in Alagna!"
We then started to wander the town...
14:00
14:00
14:01
14:04
14:08
14:08
14:13
14:13
14:19
14:19
14:19
14:24
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Paul's pic
Jed's picture
Paul's pic
16:00
We wandered downhill for quite a while trying to find a 'center of
town' and a decent market before giving up and drinking for the rest of
the day...
This was the covered bar in the 'basement' of our hotel, it also seemed
to be the main town square.
A fair number of folks gathered waiting for the tobacco shop next door
to open up.
Jed's pic
Picking up our laundry at the Hotel Monterosso
17:06
Our room was small, the bathroom was even smaller.
17:38
We found old ruins out in the forest before it started pouring rain.
17:50
17:50
17:51
19:53
The church was amazingly nice considering how remote and relatively
poor this region is.
20:17
We tried to find a restaurant for dinner.
This bar offered
'snacks' but not dinner, you had to eat downstairs at their pricy
restaurant for dinner.
We ended up eating dinner at our hotel.
21:59
We saw signs in front of our hotel for the 'Baby Dance'.
Eventually lots of kids showed
up, clearly this was the thing to do on a Saturday night in Alagna.
Perhaps this was the only thing to do all week or all month in Alagna.
21:59
22:09
22:17
Previous
Friday August 7, 2015
Tour de Monte Rosa Trip Report
Resy to Rifugio Gnifetti
Saturday August 8, 2015
Tour de Monte Rosa Trip Report
Rifugio Gnifetti to Alagna Valsesia
Next
Sunday August 9, 2015
Alagna Valsesia to Saas
Fee
