Large Jorasses

Large Jorasses are a top of the the Alps in the Massif of Mont Blanc, between France (Haute-Savoie) and Italy (Vallée of Aoste).

Large Jorasses are a East-West directed ridge edge long of approximately a kilometer and on which successively six points are detached:

Point Young (3996 m)
Point Marguerite (4066 m)
Point Helene (4045 m)
Point Croz (4110 m)
Point Whymper (4184 m)
Point Walker (4208 m, culminating point)

This edge marks the border between the France and the Italy. It dominates, on the French, the glacier of Leschaux, tributary side of the Mer of ice, the Italian side the valley Ferret and the valley of Courmayeur.

These six points are framed by the collar of the Swallows (3 480 m), with the North-East, and the collar of Large Jorasses (3 825 m), in the west, on which one finds the Canzio refuge-bivouac.

The northern face (French slope) is the one of largest granitic faces of the the Alps: 1.200 m in height on nearly one kilometer length.

Rises

1865 - First rise of the Whymper point the June 24th by Edward Whymper, Michel Croz, Christian Almer and Franz Biner. Edward Whymper wanted to then have a panorama on the Green Aiguille in order to climb it. Arrived at the top, he realizes that it is not the case and thus does not go until the top of the Walker point.

1868 - First rise of the Walker point the June 30th by Horace Walker, with Nickel silver Anderegg, Johann Jaun and Julien Barn.

History of the northern face

The rise of the northern face was regarded as one of the " major problems of Alpes" until the first in 1935.

Conquest

After a hard competition between mountaineers of several countries, the northern face was climbed for the first time by the route of the spur Croz (Martin Meier and Rudolf Peters, June 28th and 29th 1935). The culminating point, the Walker point, will be reached by his northern spur three years later, from August 4th to 6th 1938, making known three Italian mountaineers: Ricardo Cassin, Luigi Esposito and Ugo Tizzoni which arrived at the top at 14:00. This route remains most famous and more traversed face.

The fame of the northern face of Large Jorasses was going thereafter to attract all the high level mountaineers, so much so that today it comprises a very great number of lines of rises, rock, glacial or mixed, climbed in all seasons and sometimes as a recluse.

After the rise of the points Walker and Croz by their spurs north, the mountaineers will be interested in the northern slope of the other points: point Marguerite in 1958 (Rene Desmaison and Jean Couzy), point Young the same year (Cavalieri and Mellano), Whymper point in 1964 (Walter Bonatti and Michel Vaucher), Helene point in 1970 by a Polish cord.

The stiff slope of ice located on the left Walker point was baptized “the Shroud”. Rene Desmaison, definitely very attracted by the Northern face of Jorasses, fact equips with Robert Flematti and engages on the slope in winter, to reduce the risks of stone falls. Climbing with the old technique of the cramps ten more points and the sizes of steps, they will be taken by the bad weather and will spend nine days to climb the 800 meters of ice (17 January 25th 1968). Having carried with them walkie-talkies, they could communicate with the media lasting all their rise, another first…

The first eight rises of the northern face

August 6th, 1938: Ricardo Cassin, Luigi Esposito, Ugo Tizzoni (top with 14:00)

July 17th, 1945: Edouard Frendo, Gaston Rébuffat (top at midday)

August 5th, 1946: Pierre Allain, Rene Peel, Jacques Poincenot, Guy Chicken

August 11th, 1946: Lionel Terray, Louis Lachenal

1947: Malet, Karékine Gurékian, Revel

1949: Mr. Bianchi, Walter Bonatti, Andrea Oggioni, E. Villa

July 29th, 1950: Hermann Buhl, Kuno To groove (top with 16:30)

August 5th, 1951: Anderl Heckmair, Hermann Köllensperger

Direct and directissimes

The imagination of climbing being without limits, from new challenges were going to mark in particular the Sixties and Seventies: to trace the most direct possible “line” of the base at the top of the mountain. It is the concept of direct… and the directissimes (even more direct if that is possible).

Since 1971, Rene Desmaison attacks with Serge Gousseault a direct route in the north-eastern side of the Walker point, choosing in addition the winter season. The company was going unfortunately to be concluded by a drama: the mountaineers remained blocked with little distance from the Walker point after having spent fifteen days in the wall. Serge Gousseault was to find death there. Rene Desmaison told the tragedy in his work 342 hours in Large Jorasses . He turned over two years later in the face to complete his first, in company of Michel Claret and Giorgio Bertone, arriving at the top on January 17th 1973, after seven bivouacs.

Another famous mountaineer, Yannick Lord, illustrated himself in the northern face of the Whymper point, by opening “Direct friendship” with his companions Louis Audoubert, Marc Galy and Michel Feuillarade, in full winter, from January 19th to 27th 1974. They thus solve in an elegant way the layout of a hot line under this point. Two years earlier, an important Japanese team had tried the same objective, without managing to climb the face itself, folding back itself on the large central corridor (19 March 29th 1972).

In 1979, a Czech cord inaugurates a direct way of high difficulty on the spur Walker, the way “Rolling Stones” (24 July 29th). Seven years later, Patrick Gabarrou makes a success of a layout even more rectilinear with the “directissime” than it opens from June 27th to July 1st, 1986 with Herve Bouvard.

Large amateur of beautiful lines, Patrick Gabarrou is also the author:

of one direct with the Marguerite point (with Christian Appertet, 1992),
of a directissime to this same point (way “Heidi”, March 2005, with Philippe Batoux and Christophe Dumarest),
of a route of high difficulty to the point Whymper (way “Alexis”, 1993, with Benoit Robert)
of a way located plumb with an anonymous point near to the Croz point, which he baptizes for the occasion points Magali (way “has Leï”, February 2003, with Benoit Robert and Philippe Batoux).

But it is not all: winter, solitary and solitary winter many exploits were the occasion, like all the ways traced in the face, especially many: at the end of 2004, the northern face of Large Jorasses counted more than 40 distinct routes on its northern slope!

Winter

This northern face is very interesting in winter because the impression of loneliness and insulation is exceptional for the Alps. The reason is that since this face, one can see no inhabited alpine valley, contrary to the northern face of the Cervin or the Eiger for example. The first winter one of the Walker spur was carried out by Walter Bonatti in 1963.

Recluses

This face comprises any easy route, no slip road. Engagement is thus certain. A solo in Large Jorasses by the northern face is reserved to the mountaineers of exception. Let us announce for example, the winter solitary first of the Walker point by Pierre Beghin, the solos of Babanov to the Whymper point or the solo of Slavko Sveticic with opening of a new way to the Croz point.

Winter recluses

As of 1975, the guide Ivano Ghirardini makes a success of the first winter recluse of the Shroud and in 1978, at the time of its trilogy, that of the Croz spur. The guide Tsunéo Hasegawa will make the first winter recluse of the Walker spur in 1979.

Trilogy

The northern face of Large Jorasses, with those of Cervin and Eiger belongs to a triptych " magique". It is the dream of any mountaineer in the Alps. The first solitary winter trilogy was succeeded by Ivano Ghirardini (winter 1977-1978), the second by Tsunéo Hasegawa (1977-1978-1979)

Chutes

They are wonders of approximately a kilometer in height. The average slope of the face is approximately 70% and whose only certain projections are vertical. Environment is always severe in these fine bowels of ice which rise between the spurs precipice. One of most difficult is “Transitory Dream”, opened by Ivano Ghirardini and Slavko Sveticic between the points Marguerite and Young.

Anecdote

In 1974, the singer Pierre Perret gave a certain notoriety to this mountainous site, thanks to two worms of its humoristico-educational song Zizi : “The mountaineer and his beautiful peak with gla-ace, splendid with-of known Large Jora-adzes,”.

See too

Eiger
Cervin
Classification of the tops of the Alps of more than 4000 meters

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