I really enjoyed the Grand Combin; nice mountain, good snow conditions, great views and we were only 3 climbers.
South Face of Grand Combin from Mt Vélan (© P. Gatta)
The two others were at skis and made a round trip skiing down the corridor. I skipped the skis this time and opted for a round trip thru the South Face, which means I had to climb Combin de Grafeneire, Combin de Valsorey and Aiguille du Croissant two times (both ways); a good training.
Valsorey valley (© P. Gatta)
The route starts at Bourg-St-Pierre (1,676m) in Switzerland and follows the Valsorey river up to the Valsorey hut (3,030m).
Sunrise on Mont Vélan and Mont Blanc from Grand Combin de Valsorey (© P. Gatta)
From the hut, climb the East slopes to the Plateau du Couloir (3,658m). Climb the South face of Combin de Valsorey (4,184m).
Combin de Grafeneire from Combin de Valsorey (© P. Gatta)
From Combin de Valsorey go down to a 4,124m pass and climb Combin de Grafeneire, the highest peak at 4,314m.
Two climbers on the way down from Combin de Grafeneire (© P. Gatta)
Continue along the ridge to the Aiguille du Croissant (4,260m) and climb down the Mur de la Cote.
Aiguille du Croissant and Combin de Tsessette (© P. Gatta)
From there, climb to gentle slopes to the top of Combin de la Tsessette (4,135m).
Combin de Grafeneire seen from Combin de Tsessette (© P. Gatta)
From Combin de la Tsessette I came back the same way but there are other options Corridor (exposed to the seracs) or the Couloir du Gardien.
