Between mother and daughter on the Glacier Blanc

Home My desire to My desire for the mountains Between mother and daughter on the Glacier Blanc

My mother, in her youth, accompanied my father on mountain races, whether climbing or mountaineering, between the Dolomites and Chamonix. Between the sea and the mountains, my parents gave me a taste for adventure, discovery and surpassing oneself.

Dogs don’t make cats. I’m also addicted to snow-capped peaks, the verticality of the walls, the solitude and appeasement you feel at these altitudes, the nights spent in a refuge with friends and the pink sunrises at the beginning of the day.

In Vallouise for three months as part of my internship, my mother visited me last weekend. She knows very little about the Massif des Écrins. It was then an opportunity to introduce her to the area and to make her fall back into her memories by bringing her to meet the Glacier Blanc. She hadn’t put on a harness and crampons for a long time. It had been a long time since she had set an alarm clock so early to go to the mountains.

First day

It is at 4 am that we arrive at Madame Carle’s Pré. We are alone, we have been alone for a good part of the day. On the program, no time trial, no big difficulties, our goal was to spend a privileged moment, mother and daughter, and to make my mother re-discover the pleasures of the high mountains.

It’s a perfect morning. The sun rises and gently colours the surrounding peaks with a pretty orange tone. Around 6 a.m., the marmots wake up and play hide-and-seek between the scree. As we walk along the tongue of the glacier, bluish chunks of ice let us imagine the immensity and fragility of what lies beneath our feet. At the Écrins refuge, the immaculate expanse of white seems perfectly smooth and unreal, and the snow-plastered Barre des Écrins blends perfectly with the azure blue of the sky.

This day in the mountains is for me one of the most beautiful for two reasons. The first because we both shared a precious moment and we were able to bring together past memories and present moment for this reunion in the mountains. The second, because I was able to take my mom up there alone and share with her why I like to be at these altitudes.

Do not hesitate to call on our professionals, high mountain guides. To book a mountain guide, we invite you to consult the list of guides who are partners of the Tourist Office.

Margaux Claude, GEOTREK Intern