In the early hours of the 28th of August, Mark Parry (school friend) and I set off for Chamonix, France, for two weeks' mountaineering and with an aim to climbing Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in (Western) Europe. 

We had spent many months sorting out kit, practicing rope work, budgeting and generally doing no fitness training! 

After a ferry at one o clock in the morning (we had a rather tight budget, hence the nasty-hours ferry!) we arrived some 8 hours later, exhausted but elated and ready for anything. We had decided to climb two acclimatisation peaks before attempting Mont Blanc, should the weather allow it. This was to ensure that we could iron out any mistakes, and also to allow our bodies to get used to the lower pressures of oxygen found at high altitude.

The following day we checked conditions at the Office Du Haute Montagne (OHM) in Cham, and confirmed our booking with our first mountain hut - L'Albert Premier (2500m). This hut would allow us to attempt the Aigiulle Du Tour, a great first-time mountain that was not too technical but gave us plenty of everything - crampon use, crevasse dangers, glacier travel, a classic early morning start, some scrambling and superb views. We spent the day walking slowly up from the village of Le Tour (1500m) to the hut at (2500m) whilst the rich mountaineers got the chair lift up!

After a basic breakfast, we left the hut at 5.30am and began the slow and steady walk up the glacier. Although a little slower than anticipated, we trudged up the dry glacier, Grivel G12 crampons and Munro ice axe biting well.

Wind and poor visibility were against us, but all cleared when we scrambled to the summit (3500m) some 4 hours later. As promised, the views were spectacular. We could see the Mont Blanc massif rising up in the distance, and the Alps spreading out around us.

We got back to the hut in good time, and continued our descent back down to the valley after a great first day, elated but again exhausted. To celebrate our achievement, we had a Magners and a pasta meal when we reached the campsite, a few miles outside of Chamonix. This was soon to become our staple diet!

The next day, after checking conditions again and packing our Osprey Mutant 38 rucksacks we took the cablecar up to L'Aiguille du Midi. The plan was to spend a night at the Cosmique hut, just below the Midi, and then to attempt Mont Blanc du Tacul (4200m).

At 50Euros a night, this hut is the most expensive but does offer incredible views of Mont Blanc and the surrounding peaks. The typical night spent in a mountain hut includes heavy snorers, someone getting up every 5 minutes and a very early wake up call! 

The next morning, we thought our trip was all over.

After breakfast, Mark had rushed to the bathroom and threw up half his digestive system - not pleasant! We deduced that this was due to a combination of slight altitude sickness, coupled with nerves and a bad cough. We went back to the dorm and rested for half an hour, worried that we could not continue. Mark slowly began to improve and I made the decision to leave the hut, descend some 200 metres and then see how he felt. As we geared up outside the hut,. our headtorches (Petzl Tikka Plus) illuminated our breath in the cold morning air.

We left the hut at about 6am and descended slowly, Mark still looking very ill. However, with every metre we descended, his condition improved and when we got to the start of the route, he felt much better!

We started up Mont Blanc du Tacul, a much more technical mountain with serac (hanging blocks of ice which can drop off at any moment) dangers that have claimed many lives. Our progress was good and a lighter pack helped us to push on. We could see the Mer du Glace from our route. To try and lift Mark's spirit I declared that it was the Sea (Mer) of Ice Cream (Glace)!

After 4 hours walking up 70 degree slopes, we finally started up the summit ridge and topped out at 4248m in brilliant sunshine and amazing views. This had been a wild day, and at times I thought we would never get this far! After our famous summit photos and a quick bite to eat, it was time to descend. Back to the Cosmique to collect our pack, up the knife-edge ridge to the Aiguille du Midi and then down the cablecar in time for lunch!

Once again, our celebratory meal was pasta (different sauce!) and a nice warm Magners (the cool box had given up long ago!)

Now, we were ready for Mont Blanc! Unfortunatley it wasn't ready for us - a storm was coming in fast and the next two days were declared rest days. This gave us a chance to try and book a place for the Gouter hut, as we had previously been unsuccessful in booking two places.

After ringing for about an hour we finally managed to book our places in the hut for the next day.

Our first day of the assult on Mont Blanc consisted of a very slow tram ride to the Nid D' Aigle. From here we walked past the Tete Rousse mountain hut, across the Grande (Super) Couloir and scrambled for some 2 hours to reach the Gouter Hut at 3500m. I managed to amuse myself during the scramble by taking pictures of badly packed foreign rucksacks! The couloir is renowned as one of the most dangerous points on the whole Mont Blanc massif - when the sun melts the couloir during the afternoon, the rocks held in place by the ice are loosed and begin to pelt down the couloir!

A night at the Gouter hut is never pleasant, and ours was no exception. Due to our two rest days, the effects of acclimatisation had worn off slightly and we felt tired and dizzy - not good!

Waking at 2am, we ate breakfast in silence, well aware of the challenge that lay ahead. The summit of Mont Blanc (4808m) is an alpine giant - more of a baby Himalayan mountain than anything. It was some 5 hours walk above us, and our minds were racing.

We left the hut at 3.22am, amongst various other tourist groups and their guides. We had decided to attempt it unguided as we were confident and I had done the same routes last year with my dad.

As we followed the line of headtorches up into the distance and the Dome Du Gouter, the snow crunched hard underfoot. We managed to regulate temperatures by using our leg vents on the side of our mountaineering trousers - Rab Latok Alpine Pants.

As we approached the Vallot refuge (an emergency shelter for those stuck on the mountain) the high winds took up and we began to super-chill! We needed to add an insulation layer (Rab Belay Jacket) and fast. We donned jackets and pressed on up the knife-edge ridge that leads to the summit, the sun rising up to our left.

After two hours of slow trudging, heads down and overtaking numerous guides and clients, we saw the summit. It is not a definitive peak, but a slow and gradual rise.

At exactly 7.22am we reached the summit of Mont Blanc!! After 4 hours of walking, we finally did it! The obligatory summit photos and poses were in order and we congratulated each other after a tremendous achievement. The views were simply breathtaking, a light breeze ensuring that we didn't hang around for long!

We trudged/bum slid/glissaded down to the Gouter hut in 2 and a half hours, our spirits high and the snow perfect beneath us. We later learnt that a man had fallen down a crevasse a few hours after we had got off the mountain and died. This chilling thought reminded us that the mountain only allowed us to get to the top; we did not conquer it. This year (2009) there have been over 60 deaths on the Mont Blanc massif alone, one of the worst years on record.

The celebratory meal was of course pasta with a new sauce and a warm Magners - perfect. A great end to an incredible, successful holiday. I shall never forget the feeling of summiting a mountain like Mont Blanc, and will be back next year!