I’d been thinking about this trip for something like seven years before I actually got off my lazy backside and went and actually tackled it.
The Alps are traditionally the proving ground for mountaineering before venturing into The Greater Ranges, but my CV in The Alps was sparse in many places.
Yes, I’d climbed Gran Paradiso in The Italian Alps, Triglav in The Julian Alps and various other 2,000-3,000ers in Austria, Bavaria and The Dolomites. But there were still so many famous mountains in The Alps that I’d never even seen let alone had a chance to climb.
With that in mind The Monte Rosa Massif on the Italian/Swiss border ticked all the boxes as a destination. There is nowhere in the Alps which has such a high concentration of 4000m peaks than the Monte Rosa group.
It’s mountains are historically significant with many famous peaks, and it has some big numbers in terms of stats. Some of those stats include: The second highest mountain in The Alps ‘The The Dufourspitze‘, the highest mountain hut in The Alps The ‘Margherita Hut‘ atop the Punta Gnifetti (Signalkuppe) at 4,554 metres and a range of summits that could be very nicely linked and climbed together.
What I’d been looking at was a variation on the famous ‘Spaghetti Tour‘ which weaves its way over and around the biggest peaks on the Italian/Swiss border.
On my wish list were the following peaks: Piramide Vincent (4215m), Ludwigshöhe (4341m), Parrotspitze (4432m), Signalkuppe (4556m) and Zumsteinspitze (4563m), including if possible a stay in that highest refuge in the Alps, the stunningly located aforementioned Margherita Hut.
This region of lofty summits, once very remote is these days easily accessible from the Italian side by a comprehensive lift and hut system which I’d take full advantage of and as a result it therefore offered some fairly straight-forward glaciated peaks to nab.
With unfortunately not much glacier experience myself I decided the best and safest plan was to go with a guide and a small team, so I booked myself onto a the trip through KE Adventure.
I left the UK on a flight from Heathrow and met my fellow teammates at Milan Malpensa Airport. We hired a very small Italian car (too small to be practical) and poodled up into the mountains at a snail’s pace towards the small alpine village of Stafal (Tschaval) in the Aosta Valley (Valle d’Aosta).
That evening at our base the nicely appointed Hotel Nordend in Stafal we met our guide and had a very thorough safety speech, kit check and trip briefing.
The next morning we left Stafal on a gondola bound for the Orestes Hut (2600m). Once we had arrived at the hut we dumped our climbing kit out of our backpacks and ascended with a now much lighter pack up to the Colle Di Salza at 3000m then on up still further to the summit of Alta Luce at 3184m to acclimatise.
This 3185m peak, as well being a good warm up, offered stunning views of the huge glaciers descending from the South face of Liskamm and Piramide Vincent.
After a good night sleep and a relaxed breakfast the next morning we left the comfortable Orestes Hut and headed up into the higher world. A good path led up to the Rifugio Mantova Hut at 3500m. From here the glacier starts properly and so in the afternoon we practiced our crampons skills (or lack of) and rope work in preparation for the multiple days of glacier travel ahead of us.
Next morning on what was now Day 3 of the trip we prepared to tackle our first two main objectives from the hut. With crampons on and fully kitted up we started out from the hut slowly starting to ascend the steep lacier towards the Lisjoch.
First objective was Piramide Vincent which was in theory a straight-forward snow climb. But unfortunately I was suffering with a bad chest infection brought over with me all the way from the UK.
Additionally the day was proving to be an extremely cold one and the wind was biting through to the very bone. I struggled on upward on the ice and snow feeling quite below par up the ever steeper snowy flanks of the mountain. Eventually we reached the summit at 4215m. Bent over double at the top I was gasping for breath!
Next The Balmenhorn, which (much to my relief), was taken off the agenda. The wind chill factor was deemed way too severe by our guide for us all to be standing around for the 15-20 minutes usually required in the single line queue while awaiting your chance to climb up the metal staples placed in the rock to reach the summit.
Instead we beat a quick retreat to the Rifugio Gnifetti. The Gnifetti hut is perched on a rocky buttress in a spectacular position and is an absolutely huge hut with 176 beds, it’s a lively Italian fortress and the food was excellent, but the ensuing nights sleep was noisy and broken.
As the next morning dawned and the realisation that an opportunity was missed yesterday on The Balmenhorn I was hopeful that today would yield us a better haul of summits.
We retraced our steps of the previous day this time heading for the Lisjoch at 4200m. We had three peaks on our radar for the day. Ludwigshohe (4341m), Parrotspitze (4432m) and then to ascend to the Rifugio Margherita on the summit of the Signalkuppe at 4554m.
Early doors a successful ascent of Ludwigshohe rewarded us with some great views. The weather was still bitterly cold but the wind had died down thankfully compared with yesterday and I made the summit feeling quite chipper!
But then a group decision was made to bypass the Parrotspitze (4432m) and head further upwards for a bigger reward, the summit of the Zumsteinspitze (4562m) not originally on today’s agenda. The summit was the furthest away and it was the highest on our to do list, but conditions were looking near perfect for an ascent.
So I agreed with the team that we should try for it as conditions were so favourable. I was if truth be told disappointed to be missing out on an ascent of the Parrotspitze on the way but I understood the rationale and we were a group and we were making group decisions.
So we instead hiked on higher up the Lys Glacier in our iced over crampons to Colle Gnifetti 4452m which set us up nicely for a go at the Zumsteinspitze.
This peak proved to be the trickiest so far with some mixed rock and ice to negotiate and a small summit to stand on. But what a summit it was with stunning views across the Alps of the Matterhorn, Liskamm, Castor, Pollux, Breithorn, Dufourspitze and many more!
I was anchor on the rope team going up so had to lead going back down and I confess to having my stomach in my mouth more than a few times on the tricky descent.
Teams were coming up past us on the narrow icy path clogging the way and ropes were getting tangled up on the steep slopes. It was with relief that I finally led us back down to the safety of the Colle Gnifetti.
After a brief break and refuel at the colle we made our way back over crossing the Lisjoch once again and across to the icy slopes of the Signalkuppe with the Margherita Hut perched atop it. Wearily we trudged up the icy switchbacks to the highest building in Europe.
There is no refuge in the Alps that can compete with the views from this hut! But as luck would have it we had a white out to great us with mass cloud cover rolling in out of nowhere, so no views for us of the either the fabled Po river plains of Italy below or the curvature of The Alps stretching far away!
From the balcony on the Margherita you can also reputedly stare down one of the biggest faces found in the Alps, 2500m of strikingly bare space below you as you lean out over the rickety wooden rails, but alas I will have to return one day to enjoy that pleasure too.
We all spent a fitful and head hurting night of sleep on the summit of the Signalkuppe due to the extreme altitude. The first building was placed atop the Signalkuppe in 1893, it was later replaced in 1980 with the much bigger structure that we slept in. It is officially the highest building in Europe and there is no refuge in the Alps that can compete.
On that final morning we woke from our broken sleep to a freezing fog that engulfed the hut and we sleepily got kitted up in the cramped and chaotic, but also very atmospheric boot room of the famous hut.
We ventured outside into the cold morning. We were ready to make our journey back crossing the Lisjoch. Then we descended all the way down to the valley, past the Rifugio Gnifetti, and down to the Rifugio Mantova. There we had some refreshments or lunch. Afterward, we headed down to the ski-lift. We eventually returned to our comfortable valley base hotel.
Looking back at the trip now after nearly a year there are many thoughts running through my mind. Firstly I wish I had not felt so ill before, during, and after travelling. I really was sick as a dog! The chest infection was debilitating. It was annoying in equal measures. To some degree, it did affect my performance and mental outlook while I was there. Antibiotics were the only remedy to eventually shift the illness upon my return.
I also wish we had climbed The Balmenhorn and not deviated around The Parrotspitze as they now remain on the still to do list. But at the time I thought it was the best decision regarding both summits and after all hindsight is a wonderful thing in the comfort of your warm house back in England.
One day I might go back to the Monte Rosa range in a way I hope I do as it is an undeniably stunning destination with some fairly easy alpine summits to tackle as well as some very hard mountains to climb if you feel that way inclined (think Liskamm and Dufourspitze to name but two).
If/when I get older, some of the summits might still be doable due to the comprehensive lift system. This system aids in reaching them more easily. I may well appreciate these lifts in my golden years. Until that day comes, the memories of this trip will have to suffice for now.
Trip notes and information:
Rough itinerary outline (changeable due to weather conditions)
DAY 1 – Meet at the group hotel in Stafal.
DAY 2 – Walk up to the Orestes Hut (2600m). Ascend Alta Luce (3185m).
DAY 3 – Walk up to Rifugio Mantova (3500m). Glacier skills.
DAY 4 – Ascend Pyramid Vincent (4215m), and visit the Balmenhorn (4167m). Night in Rifugio Gnifetti (3637m).
DAY 5 – Ascend Ludwigshohe (4341m), Parrotspitze (4432m). Ascend to the Rifugio Margherita on the summit of the Signalkuppe (4554m).
DAY 6 – Ascend Zumsteinspitze (4562m). Return to the valley.
DAY 7 – Departure day.
Transport – Flight from Heathrow to Milan Malpensa Airport.
Hire Car – from Milan to Stafal and back.
Lift Passes – included if you go with a commercial trip otherwise factor in cost.
Mountain Huts – included if you go with a commercial trip otherwise factor in the cost and book early.
Hotel in Stafal – Hotel Nordend.
At 13,323 ft (4,061 m) in height, Gran Paradiso is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful but also one of the “easiest” 4000ers of the Alps. The peak lies within the beautiful National Park of Gran Paradiso. It was first climbed in September of 1860 by an Englishman named John Cowell. The mountain is regarded as the highest mountain wholly within Italy and it had been on my personal radar for several years.
The main route up the mountain is graded F+, so if you’re looking for a big peak that is technically and relatively straightforward then Gran Paradiso ticks all the boxes and that was exactly what I was looking for.
Up and awake early we left for Italy. After about a two hour drive we arrived at the commune of Valsavarenche in the Aosta Valley, our starting point. From here we started to hike up to the Rifugio Vittorio Emmanuel Hut.
A true alpine start awaited us the following morning as we left well before daybreak to embark on our climb. The weather was already looking pretty grim from the moment we awoke and steadily deteriorated yet further as the morning progressed. 
We ate as much pasta as we could stomach then hit the dormitory bunks and slept solidly until dinner at 7pm that evening. We were spent forces mentally and physically and needed to recuperate to try again for the peak.
We roped up. The glacier is an intricate maze of crevasses which we now carefully wound our way through, all the time ascending slowly. The moon shone down on the cold ice which glistened under the crunch of our crampons. 
The final 100 metres of climbing were indeed an exciting and exposed scramble and eventually after a few tricky moves with crampons scratching across rock we found that we’d arrived at the exposed tiny summit, we had it all to ourselves (learning later that we were been the first team from the north-west side to reach the the top that day).
The views were sublime particularly of the Mont Blanc Massif with the Matterhorn far away in the distance. Just visible Verona flickered in the morning sun many miles away.
Alas, and all too soon we had to start our descent. Happily I was allowed to lead the team back down as I’d been last on the rope during our ascent. Now in glorious sunshine we yomped back down the glacier following our own footsteps that we had left on the way up only a few hours earlier.
Satisfied and fulfilled I finally flopped down outside the Chabod Hut back at a staggeringly early time of 10.30am. Collapsed on a wooden bench drenched in the morning sunshine and looking back up the glacier to the picture perfect summit of Gran Paradiso I promptly ordered myself a beer and some yummy cake with whipped cream on top for good measure.
Luckily for me I had a week booked in July to go to Italy where I’d be doing some hiking and mountain walking based in Corvara in the Sud Tyrol, so while I was out there I booked myself onto a VF day on a one-to-one basis with a local Mountain Guide. 
JAMES HANDLON 