1. 2012

Vallee Blanche in April

For years I've been searching for the elusive European yeti, Gigantopithecus modernis yetii. My first expeditions to the alps (see here and here) yielded important clues about likely yeti habitats, but no actual sightings (a big furry beast located on a mountain ledge one night turned out to be a misplaced hiker named Jacques see 'In search of the yeti Part II'). However, I'd had my suspicions about the remote Vallee Blanche for years. Skiers regularly disappear without trace here, and the numerous deep crevasses provide ample shelter. Surely if the yetis were out there it would be an ideal place to find them. So when surgery to repair an old arm fracture prevented me from working, I seized the opportunity to go searching... Don't miss the published story of this adventure!
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    This Japanese woman in my team had a kamikaze style of skiing. She would wizz by shouting 'Eeeeiii!' only to stack it shortly thereafter. She was completely fearless. The tiny dots at bottom left are skiers ahead of us. We have to descend the seracs of the lower Geant Glacier to reach them.
    The path was narrow and the way steep (at least, for me), and crevasses were the penalty for failure. Unfortunately I was once again distracted from examining this ideal yeti habitat more closely by the now routine fear of death.
    Finally we reached the base of the seracs.