UKC

Planning to go to La Grave area. Anybody can report on conditions? Thanks

In reply to adrspach:

Terrible. We were there last week, and only Colère du Ciel was climbable. Even Pylône had teams bail at the base because it was so thin and with so much water running behind.

Things may have changed since then, we had a lot of snow and temps dropped a bit, but don't expect fat ice.

In reply to adrspach:

This should give an idea....as said above it doesn't look great:

http://www.ice-fall.com/Page_Secteur.aspx?IdSecteur=45

In reply to adrspach:

Links on my blog to recent photos. Nothing in condition on the south facing but the normal classics on the north facing slopes are still there though are a bit thin, hollow and detached in places.
Conditions should improve over the coming week as temps are to drop and with the recent snow things should fatten out.
Be careful though as the ground is still very soft and some of the big icefalls won't be that well attached without a prolonged and hard freeze!

In reply to Morgan Woods:
http://talisman-activities.blogspot.fr/2014/01/skiing-and-ice-climbing-in-l...

In reply to Ron Walker:

Haven't the N facing ones got huge snow-filled avalanche funnels just above them? Just a thought as we got avalanched up that side a few years back, I was belayed under an overhang but my mate was leading when a slow lava like river of sludge came down and over him for several minutes. We went back down and went skiing instead.

In reply to Ron Walker:

I am not going straight away. I am planning more at the end of Feb but is good to know development in the area. Normally we sleep in Argentiere and drive arroun depending what is in condition.