20th – Return home

Being the departure day people quickly left in whatever direction which would take them to their planned destination. I had a pick-up early afternoon so I spent the morning in Chamonix where I bumped into Alex with whom I grabbed lunch. Coming back to the chalet to wait for the pick-up I met one of the three who had been taking care of us when we weren’t out. Gill had been given a cake yesterday for her birthday but hadn’t taken the rest with her, so I was offered a generous piece. Who was I to complain?

The pick-up soon arrived, and the drive to the airport and flight back (this time via Frankfurt) was as uneventful as one could imagine.

Despite things not going as planned, and finding out that my fear of heights can be much more crippling when triggered than I thought, I did enjoy myself. Big thanks to Didier and Sara for being such great guides. Big thanks to Gill, Alex and Jon for being such great company and coping with my… limitations without tossing me off a ledge. Extra thanks to Jon for acting as the extra guide on the way down from Goûter in front – that was a big help! And finally thanks to the staff at the chalet who cared for us while we were there; Charlie the chef (great food!), Sam (I think it was, my memory is already fading) and… the Kiwi. I am sorry, I do not recall your name, I don’t even know if I was ever told. Thanks for the extra cake on the day of my departure and I hope you’ll have a great time climbing in Switzerland. And please don’t ever stop smiling.

A small addendum; After returning home I bought a book about Mont Blanc from Bo Belvedere whom I have mentioned earlier (guide on Ararat and Stok Kangri, part of the group on Aconcagua) which I am looking forward to have time to read. He even signed it...

"Mont Blanc - The road to the top of Europe".
 

Translated; "Dear Jakob, Good luck with your own Mont Blanc project - and happy reading. Bo B. Christensen".
With that kind of comment it's hard not to be stubborn enough to want to try and climb Mont Blanc again - hopefully after learning to get my fear of heights under control.