In the second decade of July, as every year, we went to Mont Blanc. The group was quite large, six participants took part in the expedition. And among the three leaders there was a well-known mountaineer Adam Ciućka. We were hoping that after the beginning of the season abundant in violent weather phenomena, its end – at the end of July, as a rule, on the Italian road, crevasses open up strongly and the ascents become more and more difficult and dangerous – will be better. Unfortunately, none of this. The weather anomalies of 2021 did not let us forget about themselves this time. In really difficult conditions, we managed to complete an acclimatization trip and overnight stay on Punta Helbronner (approx. 3400m above sea level). The actual summit push, however, ended at the Gonella shelter. The weather left no illusions. The only chance to reach the 4,000th summit on this trip was to change the goal. So after a descent from Gonella hut we moved to Gran Paradiso. It was a good decision: we managed to reach the summit. Moreover, due to the lack of places in the shelters, the ascent has started from the very bottom of the mountain, the village of Pont. Therefore, the participants climbed up to 2,100 meters of upward and downward elevation. And all this just a day after leaving Gonella. This is truly a feat deserving respect!
