Cathy & Mike in Italy 2011: August 2011

Day 16 - Trek 12 Chabod To Refugio Sella

Gran Paradiso National Park

Monday, 29 August 2011

Ibex!!!!!

A long and challenging but extremely satisfying day

We got off to a fairly leisurely start, after all the climbers had departed. As we walked up,and out of the Rifugio towards Col Neyron we could see a small line of black dots making their way slowly up the glacier theriomorphic way to the top of Gran Paradiso.

We came across several groups of chamois as we walked and spent quite some time taking photos when suddenly they all took off down the valley in fright as a huge bird swooped in over the ridge. It perched high on a rock face ahead, and with the aid of the telephoto lens on the camera we could make out that it was a Lammergeier - a vulture, and the largest land bird in Northern Europe. It watched us and we watched it, before it flew off.

We continued climbing up a relatively good path under the overhanging bluff, and suddenly Mel stopped dead in his tracks - there was an ibex on the path ahead!! We started snapping away with the camera, and then I noticed a mother and kid just below us, quietly feeding. They took absolutely no notice of us at all and we were able to watch them for some time. However, just around the corner we came across a large majestic male sitting sunning himself on a flat rock - almost is if he had been carefully positioned there n the night by Mel. Once again he ignored Mike and Rob as they got closer and closer with the cameras.

Then we reached the top of Col Gran Neyron Ovest(3295m). This was the highest we had been all trip and we had magnificent views back towards Gran Paradiso and the valley below, and over the other side into the next valley with it's receding glacier.

There was still quite q bit of ice on the other side, and this was why Mel had been in no hurry to get there - too much ice and we would have had to backtrack. However, after inspection her declared that it would be safe to descend.

This was our most technical descent so far - a series of chains leading down a sheer rock face, and then a ladder fixed into the last stretch down to a scree slope above the glacier. Mel let us down by rope one by one, in stages, so that we were perched on a ledge as the others came down. Even although there were only four if us, it took one hour to complete this part of the descent,, and then we stopped of a quick lunch, before slipping and sliding down a mixture of scree and ice to reach the foot of the glacier. After that there was some rock ing and a glacial moraine ridge to negotiate before finally dropping down into the next grassy valley, with a welcome stream to refill our water bladders.

We continued to descend into the valley, right down to about 2600m when we rejoined the main track and started the second big climb up to our last col. Just before this point, over a rise, we came across a lovely group of large male ibexes (stambecco in Italian), relaxing in the late afternoon sun. They too, seemed unconcerned at our presence, amd allowed some more great photo opportunities.

It was getting quite late in the day, as we commenced the long slog up a good but seemingly endless series of zigzags to Col de Lauson (3296m) - now the highest point of the whole trek. From there again we could look back at Gran Paradiso for the last time, but could also see into the valley that we had climbed up on our first day, which seemed a lifetime away. Mike, Rob and I climbed up a few meters more so that we could have our photo taken at 3300 m. It was a great sense of achievement to have made it this far, over some reasonably challenging terrain.

One and a half hours of brisk down hill into the valley and then we reached Rifugio Sella (2584m) - our last night in a Rifugio! A night for celebration - a lovely bottle of Barolo (after we successfully returned the first corked bottle), and then more Genopy with our after dinner coffee. We were the last to leave the dining room - driven out by the staff clattering the breakfast dishes nonadjacent tables.

	Chamois suckling [Map]		Climbers on Gran Paradiso [Map]
	Chamois [Map]		Chamois [Map]
	Chamois [Map]		Chamois [Map]
	Lammergeier in flight [Map]		Lammergeier on rock [Map]
	The first ibex photo [Map]		Ibex kid [Map]
	Ibex male [Map]		Ibex male [Map]
	Gran Paradiso [Map]		View from Col Neyron [Map]
	Gran Paradiso [Map]		View from Col Neyron [Map]
	Descending from the col [Map]		The glacier below the col [Map]
	On the way down [Map]		On the way down [Map]
	Our descent route [Map]		The glacier [Map]
	Down the moraine [Map]		The valley below the col [Map]
	Ibex male [Map]		Ibex scratching [Map]
	Gran Paradiso [Map]		Up to Col de Lauson [Map]
	Continuing up [Map]		The valley walls [Map]
	Still some way to the top [Map]		Looking down at the route [Map]
	The valley down [Map]		At 3300m [Map]
	On Col de Lauson [Map]		On the col [Map]
	Looking back down the valley [Map]		At the top of Col de Lauson [Map]
	The beginning of the trek [Map]		Coming down from the last col [Map]
	Rifugio Sella [Map]

Sent from my iPad by My Vacation HD app (www.myvacationapp.com)

Day 15 - Trek 11 Chivasso To Refugio Chabod

Gran Paradiso National Park

Sunday, 28 August 2011

Another fantastic day in Gran Paradiso - but still no ibex!!!

The six of us set of from Chivasso on a lovely fine but brisk morning. The wind had cleared. Ut it was still quite cold as we set off down the valley towards Pont. It was a lovely gentle walk down the Piani di Rossetti valley with lots of marmots and one ermine. The views and the light were fantastic.

As we approached the end of the valley the small stream that we had been following turned into a dramatic water fall dropping down into the valley, with the small hamlet of Pont appearing in the distance. Across the other side of the valley we had wonderful views over to Gran Paradiso and could just make out a few black dots of climbers descending form the summit.

Suddenly there seemed to be people everywhere - slogging up,the hill from the car park below, as we strolled effortlessly down and down and down.

Arrived in Pont at about 11.45, bought some panini for lunch, and then wandered down to the hotel where Chris and John and Shirley were spending the next two nights. We ate our lunch in the sun, while we waited for Shirley to arrive and then set off to climb up to Rifugio Chabod.

And then there were 4.......

The reduced party (Mel, Rob, Mike and I), crossed the river and climbed up a nicely graded but long zigzag path to Rifugio Vittorio Emanuele. Again there were throngs of people descending along the same path - some who had obviously climbed to the summit of Gran Paradiso (Italy's highest mountain) that morning, and others who were just out for a day walk.

Just below the Rifugio we tuned off and then did a lovely long balcon walk along the top of the valley to Rifugio Chabod. We were skirting along the bottom of Gran Paradiso, and across the valley above Pont we could see the valley from which we hah descended in the morning. This part of the walk was almost deserted compared to the previous part, and we enjoyed the peace and the wonderful scenery. There were a couple of dramatic waterfalls to cross (with slightly dubious bridges), and great slabs of rock face, interspersed with alpine tussock and scree.

We arrived at the Rifugio Chabod(2750m) at about 5pm and after showering and washing our socks(!) we relaxed in the sun until dinner. Above us towered the majestic bulk of Gran Paradiso, which looked close enough to touch. All around us were French, Italians, Dutch, Germans and even a Canadian family. Most were there to climb Gran Paradsio the following day and so had a early night, while sewers much less serious.

There was a moment of excitement when I spied a herd of animals grazing across the slope, but closer inspection with the zoom lens of the camera revealed them to be chamois only.

	Morning view from Chivasso [Map]		Looking back at Chivasso [Map]
	Lake below Chivasso [Map]		Marmot [Map]
	Marmot [Map]		In the valley [Map]
	On the way down the valley [Map]		Down the valley [Map]
	Down the path [Map]		Valley above Pont [Map]
	On the path up [Map]		Across the side of the valley [Map]
	On the way to Chabod [Map]		View from Chabod [Map]