The Story of Mont Blanc (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER VI. THE FIRST ASCENT OP MONT BLANC. TTTE are now approaching the date when, in all human probability, the foot of man was placed, for the first time, upon the crown of Mont Blanc. In the belief that the obstacles which the state of the snows had offered to his progress, were the result only of the advanced season, De Saussure determined to follow up his enterprise, by the same route?that of the Aiguille du Goute?the next year. He therefore engaged Pierre Balmat to build up a stone cabin on one of the shelves of the Aiguille, ready for the attempt; and to watch carefully the state of the snow when the summer came round again. In the execution of this project, Pierre Balmat, Marie Coutet, and another guide, climbed up the Aiguille on the 8th of June, 1786, and reached the top of the Dome du Goute, with great toil and pain, suffering acutely from the rarefaction of the air. Here they fell in with Fraois Paccard, and three otherguides, who had ascended by La Cote?the ridge of mountain that divides the lower part of the Glacier des Bossons from that of Taconnay. This rendezvous had been agreed upon, in order that they might see which road was the most advantageous. The preference was given to La Cote, inasmuch as Paccard's party reached the Dome du. Goute a good hour and a half before the others, with infinitely less danger and fatigue. Uniting their forces, they traversed a large plain of snow, and gained a huge ridge which connected the top of Mont Blanc with the Dome du Goute; but this was so steep and narrow that its passage was impossible. They investigated every portion of the plain, and coming to the conclusion that, as far as this route was concerned, the summit of Mont Blanc appeared more inaccessible than ever, they sulkily returned by La Cote, to Chamo...