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Ulysses Trust Expedition - Cockney Gran Paradiso

Mountaineering, 'Cockney Gran Paradiso', Italy, Gran Paradiso, Jul 2011, ID 1130

41 Princess Louise

From 14 – 24 July 11, soldiers and officers from 38 Signal Regiment undertook Exercise Cockney Paradiso, led by 41(Princess Louise’s Kensington) Signal Squadron. It consisted of two elements: the summiting of Gran Paradiso (4061m), the highest mountain in the Italian Alps, and the traverse of sections of the nearby Alta Via 2 high level mountain walk. Participants were divided into a summit team and walking party for these elements respectively. All soldiers would experience something new to test their physical endurance and – for some especially – their fortitude.

On Sunday 17th, after a long journey from the UK to the picturesque base camp at Valsavarenche, briefings were given and final kit preparation completed. The walking party conducted a shake-out walk locally and the summit team ascended to the refuge Victor Emmanuelle II, prepared not to return for another six days.

The walking party spent the remainder of the week traversing sections of the Alta Via, staying in mountain refuges and reaching a high point of 3299m at Col de Loson. For those unfamiliar with them these refuges, reached by walking above the tree line, provide minimal accommodation as a base for climbing higher into the mountains. Those we visited were busy and cheerful, kept supplied by pack-mules, somehow serving superb food, and full of the vitality of guests from grizzled climbers to youth groups. Each, amid often breathtaking scenery, was an arresting place to stay and they seemed to capture the essence of the trip. When the walking party joined the summit team at Victor Emmanuelle at the end of the week, we shared stories, laughter and the traditional ‘Aosta Valley friendship cup’ in a rustic wooden bar that spills onto a terrace overlooking a glacial lake.

What follows is edited from records kept by the summit team:

The ascent to Victor Emmanuelle, from a car park in Pont, was at 1960m: already higher above sea level than some of the group had ever been. We walked under the clouds in sparse rain and humid air, then broke through the first layer of clouds swarming the valley and into blistering hot sun. We’d been warned in the medical brief before we left that, when at altitude where the atmosphere is less dense, the sun’s ultra-violet rays penetrate more easily because there aren’t as many particles to refract the light.

The refuge is a strange looking building, with a slight resemblance to an old WW2 air raid shelter. By far the most spectacular thing is the view. Everywhere you look is packed full of jaw-dropping scenery. There is the gaping valley, the clear blue sky and of course the snow covered peaks which we’d be embracing over the next few days.

Wednesday: three of us had been picked to summit a 3609m peak, La Tracenta. The weather had come in badly overnight and the Commanding Officer had decided “if when we leave we can’t see the top we won’t summit, because it will be too dangerous”. At 0400hrs when we departed we could see the top roughly in the darkness, so we set out across the boulder field with head torches fixed. At 0530hrs we had made good time and the sun was just starting to rise behind surrounding mountains, plunging us into a gloomy backdrop.

We began our ascent up the steep slope, the fresh snow making it near impossible to get a proper footing, even with the jagged spikes of our crampons. A few hundred metres into our near vertical climb we could hardly see where we were going. The wind had picked up to 50mph and the temperature had dropped to -20C, small chunks of ice thrown upwards cutting our faces like knives. I felt the air was getting thin, my muscles had given up, only determination was pushing me forward. It really was a case of “nothing else matters. Pain is irrelevant, time is irrelevant, focus is everything.” I remember having to tell myself “left foot, right foot, ice axe.”

The weather was so harsh we were travelling very slowly. I remember hearing water running beneath our feet and seeing bits of ice flaking away and rolling down the mountain. Twice, when I put my ice axe in for support it split all the way through, hitting nothing beneath, but I just shut my eyes, took a deep breath and carried on. I remember vividly when the CO turned to us and simply sliced his hand across his neck to signal for us to turn back. If we had continued we might not have made it back down before the glacier started to melt too much.

Thursday: summit day, Gran Paradiso: the main effort. The weather was perfect when five of us and a guide left at 0430hrs. By the time we reached the base of the glacier I was exhausted and couldn’t carry on without jeopardising the team’s effort. Another member of the group became exhausted at around 3600m and returned with the guide. The final three reached the summit in good time despite the challenging climb up. Happily, the weather was good enough to take a picture of our squadron flag, at the highest point in Italy.

Monday and Tuesday: time to venture onto the ice. Looking back over the whole expedition this was the most fun. We reached a total height of 3000m above sea level at Ghiacciaio di Moncorve, the glacier sloping off the south west side of Ciarforon, one of the peaks seen from the refuge. Here we practised the ice axe arrest, hurling ourselves down the glacier as fast as we could, throwing ourselves to the floor so we began to slide and finally stopping ourselves with an ice axe. We were roped in for safety because below there were a number of painful looking boulders, but the thought of the danger added to the excitement. We also practised crevasse rescues. These were complex and demanded much thought and effort, doubly hard because of freezing temperatures and reduced oxygen.

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Cockney Gran Paradiso/Some of the walking party on the way to Col de Loson Cockney Gran Paradiso/Victor Emmanuelle refuge with the 41 Sqn flag flying Cockney Gran Paradiso/Practising ice axe arrests Cockney Gran Paradiso/The summit team Cockney Gran Paradiso/The Princess Louises Kensington Squadron flag at the summit of Gran Paradiso