La Dame Blanche

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La Dame Blanche
By Jameson Long
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The Beginning

• The Alps were formed when Africa drifted up into
  Eurasia Pushing the ocean basin upward
• Glaciers eventually sculpted the Alps to the way
  they look today.
• Evidence of the glaciers still exist in the Alps,
  with the second largest (Mer de Glace) located
  right next to Mont Blanc.

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The Beginning

• The glacier is 5.6km long and 200m deep ranking
  it as the second largest glacier in the Alps.
• The glacier moves about 90m a year in the upper
  portions.
• It used to be visible from the nearby town of
  Chamonix but is now barely visible from the
  bottom.

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The Beginning
The Alps extend from tips of Austria to southern
France making it the largest mountain chain in
Europe. Mont Blanc is a bit disputed between
France and Italy. The mountain is located
between Aosta Valley, Italy and Haute-Savoie,
France but depending on what map you look at one
country might include more of the mountain on
their side.
The last official definition of the border was
decided in 1861 by France and Italy dividing the
mountain in half at its highest point. Though
some French maps dont respect this solution.
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Map depicting the French Italian border signed by
Nepolian III and Victor Emmanuel II
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Mont Blanc is the largest mountain in the Alps
4,808m (15,774ft) Up until the 1600th centaury it
was called the cursed mountain, until being
baptized and dubbed Mont Blanc. 1786 was the year
in which the first successful climb up the
mountain. This is said to be the start of the
golden age of mountaineering and also inspiring
the term alpine hiking
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Three main people in the ascent of Mont Blanc
were Jacques Balmat, Dr. Michel Paccard, and
Horace Benedict de Saussure. Though some were
more honorable and important than others all
three were crucial in the first ascent.
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Key People
Horace Benedict de Saussure was the first person
to really push for someone to climb the Mountain.
He offered a cash reward of 2 guineas to the
first person to find a route to the top, but also
he paid a daily fee to anyone whom attempted to
climb the mountain. He kept his word and did so
for 25 years until a route was finally
discovered.
Saussure was careful with his words because his
reward was only for someone that found a route to
the top, hoping most likely that he would be the
first one to reach the summit after the hard work
of finding a trail was complete.
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Key People
Dr. Michel Paccard was well like in the town of
Chamonix, because he was the local hero.
Chamonix being the closest French town to Mont
Blanc was of course hoping that their town would
have the glory of supplying the person that
conquered Mont Blanc. He was described as
Sophisticated, cultivated mountain dweller(27)
though I think it was mostly boasting that gave
him a description like that, because without the
help of Jacques Balmat he would have never found
a route.
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Key People
Jacques Balmat unlike the other two men was not a
man of science or an experienced guide, but yet
he was the first recorded person to find and
climb a route leading to the summit. It took 25
years since Saussure first offered a reward for a
successful ascent for Jacques to finally find a
route up the mountain. After finding a route
Jacques decided he would not do it alone so he
asked Michel Paccard to accompany him to the top.

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Key People
A monument in Chamonix was erected in memory of
August 8 1786 the day that Paccard and Balmat
first reached the summit. Though Saussure didnt
even attempt to climb the mountain for another
two years he is still immortalized in the statue
seemingly towering over Balmat.
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Mountaineering Equipment Past and Present

• Early crampons (Spiked shoes usually made of
  solid metal very heavy.)
• They wore heavy but warm coarse cloth coats.
• Greased wool sweaters.
• Heavy shoes thickly cut from leather.
• Long wooden alpen stock (A long wooden stick used
  for checking foot positioning and balance).
• Gaiters made from felt (This article of clothing
  is wore like leg warmers and is used to keep
  pants dry and prevent the terrain from getting
  into hikers boots).

• Small geology hammers were used for making foot
  holes and balance, it was some times combined
  with the alpen stick giving it a longer shaft.
• Scarf's
• Gloves
• Goggles
• Wool hats
• Multiple pairs of socks
• Small back pack for extra clothing, maps,
  compass, food, and blankets.

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• Early mountaineers had little equipment and
  protection while climbing.
• The use of spiked foot wear known as crampons
  have been known to exist since the 14th century.
• The Geological hammer and alpen stick were later
  replaced by the present day climbing axe. The
  use of ropes and climbing axes were the main
  reason for such a long delay for climbing Mont
  Blanc. The first could have been completed
  quicker if the proper equipment was available.

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Mountaineering Equipment Past and Present

• Six pairs of sock 3 thick, and 3 thin
• Balaclava
• 4 layers of coats upper body long underwear, thin
  fleece, thicker fleece, 2 windproof jackets one
  waterproof, and one outer shell insulated and
  waterproof jacket.
• 2 pairs of gloves one thick one thin
• Telescopic walking sticks
• A harness
• 40 liter ruck sack
• Helmet
• Plastic or high end insulated boots
• Crampons
• And the faithful ice axe

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Mountaineering Equipment Past and Present

• Modern day climbing is not just more advanced it
  is also much easier. Notice that the alpen stick
  and pick axe have been replaced with the more
  efficient climbing axe and telescopic poles.
  More equipment but still is most likely less
  weight then what the first climbers brought with
  them. Everything has been made more efficiently
  to be lighter and warmer than any of the older
  gear. Also the modern day hiker caries less
  equipment because there are now many hotels along
  Mont Blanc the travelers can stay in. These
  hotels provide food and beds for the weary
  travelers making there no need to carry food, a
  sleeping bag, and tent with them.

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Mont Blanc used to cause a long scenic drive
around the mountain for those traveling to Italy
from France until the Mont Blanc tunnel was
constructed. Completed in 1965 the tunnel is
11.6 km long and 8.6 m wide.
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Modern Day Mont Blanc
And for those people that are more interested in
view of the outside of the mountain a train
called The Mont Blanc Tramway goes up a near 75
of the way up.
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There was even a group of people that setup a
Jacuzzi on the summit.
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Modern Day Mont Blanc

• Mont Blanc during an average year attracts around
  40,000 tourists. With all of those people a
  large amount of waste can accumulate. The snow
  on the mountain slowly travels down into the
  surrounding towns, and brings a lot of human
  waste into the drinking water and property near
  it. This is a hard issue for the towns to deal
  with because they cant stop tourist from
  flocking to the Mountain, and even if they could
  it would hurt them severely economically.
  Currently the governments of Italy, France, and
  Switzerland have installed two outhouses along
  the mountain where there is a significant gap
  between huts to minimize the destruction of clean
  water and the alpine vegetation.

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References

• De Beer, Gavin Early Travelers in the Alps, NY
  October House, 1967
• Frison-Roche, Roger A History of Mountain
  Climbing translated by Deke Disinberre, Paris
  NY Flammarion 1996
• Rebuffat, Gaston Between Heaven and Earth by
  Gaston Rebuffat and Pierre Tairraz. Translated
  from French by Eleanor Brockett London N. Vane
  1965
• Tyndall, John The Glaciers of the Alps, and
  Mountaineering in 1861, London, J.M Dent Co.
  NY, E.P. Dutton Co.

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• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vkC1NNyb6K04
  (Paragliding)