Noah (Oregon) - Jan 10, 2006 12:16 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report Comment
It must come as a great relief to have cell phone reception in those mountains. I can't even get reception on most of Hood, let alone Challenger...
Good trip report - Good luck.
John Climber - Jan 10, 2006 11:56 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report Comment
Thanks for your comment, Noah.
The Alps are 'old' mountains, where people are living very long ago and there are few 'wild' places, so there are many huts with a telephone. In the case of Refuge du Promontoire and Refuge du Chatelleret there were emergency telephones. Our mobiel telephones were not working. The telephones of the cabins were only working when phoning the emergency services (Mountain Rescue France).
Pretty cool report. I got some cell reception from OJI but when clouds rolled in, nothing.
I got cell activity from Borah when I got to a point where the phone could look over the east side of the mountain. I have a friend who several years ago climbed Mt. Whitney and he got a phone connection to Sacramento using a big old-fashioned clunky analog phone where as the smart set with the digital phones were having no success
John Climber - Jan 11, 2006 11:51 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report Comment
desainme,
Thanks for your comment.
We were having some kind of cell reception, but it was very frustrating to find out that it wasn't enough to phone. With the bad weather was the cell reception reduced to zero.
Anyway, this lack of reception is part of the adventure side of mountaineering. Nevertheless, I don't want to think about how long we would have must to wait to go out of there without fixed telephone line with the rescue team.
It's a luck the telephone in the Alps. Some years ago in the Pyrenees many free huts had radio, specially in France, but somethings in Spain as well...in the last years many are damaged that nobody repairs. Some free refuge of the Spanish part even have broken windows or the ceiling destroyed. The mountains seems that they do not worry to our government. In Pyrenees of France there are some very good free refuge with radio that still works like the Russell in Ardiden or Baysellance in Vignemale, an very good free refuge in Spain it's the hut of Armeña in Cotiella's massifs but even so many times the unworkable radio is found in these refuges. The maintenance of these good refuge is on the part of club of mountaineers of the zone, not on the part of the government.
John Climber - Jan 16, 2006 9:23 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report Comment
Rafa,
Thanks for your comment and your info about telephoning possibilities in the Spanish huts. It is a pitty that the situation is so bad in Spain. Thelephone line in these huts is not a luxe but something very useful. In this story the telephone 'saved' us from a long wait in a precarious situation.
Gripping reading! Winter climbing is so hazardous. You made smart decisions, and it was good you spoke up about your fears. You need either a lot of winter experience or dangerous lack of imagination to feel comfortable on a IV ridge in that season! :-).
John Climber - Mar 24, 2006 9:56 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Great story
mvs,
Thank you very much for your comments! Indeed a wise decision, thanks to it I am now here! Greetings
account. Very well written - one can actually share the sentiments.
All the more since the Promontoire hut was my first place over 3000m (in summer), so I have a special relationship with it.
Thanks for posting!
John Climber - Sep 12, 2007 8:54 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Very impressive
Thank you for readind and comment. Promontoire hut is, despite all, a very beautiful place to be... I'll be back ready to try La Meije again!!
I guess you learned a lot from your adventure. Heavy and fresh snowfall can turn AD into ED.
I like the passage, where you point out what´s been going around in your head. It´s true, most times it´s our brain, that blocks our body. I know those moments.
John Climber - Sep 12, 2007 8:59 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Interesting report
Nikman, I guess you know about those thoughts at those moments because you have been living similar experiences. Definitively, the psique is, many times in our sport, the limit of our capacities... Thanks for reading and for posting your comment.
Noah (Oregon) - Jan 10, 2006 12:16 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report CommentIt must come as a great relief to have cell phone reception in those mountains. I can't even get reception on most of Hood, let alone Challenger...
Good trip report - Good luck.
John Climber - Jan 10, 2006 11:56 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report CommentThanks for your comment, Noah.
The Alps are 'old' mountains, where people are living very long ago and there are few 'wild' places, so there are many huts with a telephone. In the case of Refuge du Promontoire and Refuge du Chatelleret there were emergency telephones. Our mobiel telephones were not working. The telephones of the cabins were only working when phoning the emergency services (Mountain Rescue France).
desainme - Jan 10, 2006 11:39 pm - Hasn't voted
Trip Report CommentPretty cool report. I got some cell reception from OJI but when clouds rolled in, nothing.
I got cell activity from Borah when I got to a point where the phone could look over the east side of the mountain. I have a friend who several years ago climbed Mt. Whitney and he got a phone connection to Sacramento using a big old-fashioned clunky analog phone where as the smart set with the digital phones were having no success
John Climber - Jan 11, 2006 11:51 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report Commentdesainme,
Thanks for your comment.
We were having some kind of cell reception, but it was very frustrating to find out that it wasn't enough to phone. With the bad weather was the cell reception reduced to zero.
Anyway, this lack of reception is part of the adventure side of mountaineering. Nevertheless, I don't want to think about how long we would have must to wait to go out of there without fixed telephone line with the rescue team.
Rafa Bartolome - Jan 15, 2006 3:56 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report CommentJohn, amazing history. Thanks for posting.
It's a luck the telephone in the Alps. Some years ago in the Pyrenees many free huts had radio, specially in France, but somethings in Spain as well...in the last years many are damaged that nobody repairs. Some free refuge of the Spanish part even have broken windows or the ceiling destroyed. The mountains seems that they do not worry to our government. In Pyrenees of France there are some very good free refuge with radio that still works like the Russell in Ardiden or Baysellance in Vignemale, an very good free refuge in Spain it's the hut of Armeña in Cotiella's massifs but even so many times the unworkable radio is found in these refuges. The maintenance of these good refuge is on the part of club of mountaineers of the zone, not on the part of the government.
John Climber - Jan 16, 2006 9:23 am - Hasn't voted
Trip Report CommentRafa,
Thanks for your comment and your info about telephoning possibilities in the Spanish huts. It is a pitty that the situation is so bad in Spain. Thelephone line in these huts is not a luxe but something very useful. In this story the telephone 'saved' us from a long wait in a precarious situation.
mvs - Mar 23, 2006 10:14 am - Voted 10/10
Great storyGripping reading! Winter climbing is so hazardous. You made smart decisions, and it was good you spoke up about your fears. You need either a lot of winter experience or dangerous lack of imagination to feel comfortable on a IV ridge in that season! :-).
John Climber - Mar 24, 2006 9:56 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Great storymvs,
Thank you very much for your comments! Indeed a wise decision, thanks to it I am now here! Greetings
reinhard2 - Jul 10, 2007 2:57 pm - Voted 10/10
Very impressiveaccount. Very well written - one can actually share the sentiments.
All the more since the Promontoire hut was my first place over 3000m (in summer), so I have a special relationship with it.
Thanks for posting!
John Climber - Sep 12, 2007 8:54 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Very impressiveThank you for readind and comment. Promontoire hut is, despite all, a very beautiful place to be... I'll be back ready to try La Meije again!!
Nikman - Jul 10, 2007 3:36 pm - Voted 10/10
Interesting reportI guess you learned a lot from your adventure. Heavy and fresh snowfall can turn AD into ED.
I like the passage, where you point out what´s been going around in your head. It´s true, most times it´s our brain, that blocks our body. I know those moments.
John Climber - Sep 12, 2007 8:59 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Interesting reportNikman, I guess you know about those thoughts at those moments because you have been living similar experiences. Definitively, the psique is, many times in our sport, the limit of our capacities... Thanks for reading and for posting your comment.