Chamonix New Routes

Topo for Sector Highlands
It started way back at the beginning of January, Bullock and I were at a loose end so we roped Jon Griffith to take some pictures while we climbed at the Rive Gauche. We hoped to do a short route called Home Wet Home, first climbed years ago by Thierry Renault.
We set the abseil rope up and I disappeared over the edge first, by the time I reached the end of the rope it was clear that we where in the wrong place, phoning Nick at the top I stated this, adding that the climb above my head looked loose, hard and dangerous. What I had forgotten is that is exactly what Bullock likes in his climbing.
Some three hours later we had a new route under our belts....Homeward Bound is probably not going to be come a classic but it opened the flood gates of new routes on the Rive Gauche. The only bummer to all of this is that I had to go to America on a speaking engagement so I missed most of the fun.
The main team down there was Nick Bullock and Pete (Piggy) Benson, between them they climbed all the new routes with various partners. The names of all these new routes all where linked to the original route of 'Home Wet Home', so such things as 'Bringing Home the Bacon' and 'Happy House' came into being. Kenton in action on pitch one
When I came back from the States I was faced with a lots of work so there was no chance of returning to add any other routes, but finally last Monday I got my chance. Nick and I met Piggy at 8.30 we caught the cable car to the mid station at the Grand Montet and started the hike in, its not far, but it was funny when Nick found out he had left his skins for his skis behind.
Both Nick and Pete had their eye on a thing crack line that appeared on some photographs right of a previous route they had climbed. As Nick rapped over the edge you could see his eyes light up in the knowledge that we had found a line that was going to be climbable.
Piggy had pitch one, which consisted of a thinly iced slab into a delightful step crack, with an extra 1 cm of ice it would have been easy, instead we were left with very insecure climbing which had a nasty snow mushroom which knocked him off when he tried to clear it away.
Pitch two was mine, a wonderful wall with a steep crack on the left was followed by a second chimney and then some delicate slab climbing to reach a small snow patch and a belay. Bullock giving it stacks on the headwall crack
The final pitch was always going to be the crux and so it proved. An epic battle by Nick yielded some of the best climbing I've done in ages....a thin steep crack with little in the way of foot holds, the protection only just enough. It was so nearly an on sight but a popped tool denied Nick of the glory. Following the pitch there was blood all over the top section, the brutally cold conditions we were climbing in meant every-time Nick put something metal in his mouth it ripped his lips when he took it out again. Despite the fall it was one of the best displays of climbing I've ever seen. The Head Wall Crack
Gaining the top of the crag there was a certain satisfaction among all 3 of us....it had been a great day, although incredibly cold. Nick and Pete thought it represented the last of the good lines left to be climbed on the crag, and hence the name "Encore une Fois" Beautiful way to finish the day off