leo-ghezza-summer-24

LEO GHEZZA – SUMMER 2024

If I had to describe the past summer, only one word comes to mind: intense. It was a summer filled with unusual weather conditions. There was a lot of snow that drastically shortened the season and freezing temps at high altitudes (from late July to the end of August) made some climbs very dangerous. I decided to spend the summer months in the Mont Blanc area: one of my favorite places that I haven’t been back to since my solo ascent of the Central Pillar in 2020. The main goal set in the spring was to improve aerobically and build leg strength, without losing ground on climbing. A rather difficult goal because the more you push in one area, the more you automatically lose in the other. It’s a very fine balance.

THE SUPER INTEGRALE DE PEUTEREY

At the beginning of July, I did some reconnaissance on the "Ratti-Vitali" route on the West face of the Aiguille Noire de Peuterey with Luca Ducoli and on the Innominata Ridge with Magda, which leads to the summit of Mont Blanc. The first real weather window I could take advantage of was on July 25-26. My original plans were disrupted and I was now a month behind my schedule and my adventure partner, Luca Ducoli, was sidelined due to an injury. I decided to set out solo for the “Super Integrale,” also known as the Casarotto Trilogy. This is a series of climbs that were first linked together by Renato Casarotto in a solo winter ascent in 1982 over a 15 day span. To this day, no one has repeated it solo. My idea was to do it in two days. I set off at 3:30 AM from the Monzino refuge, and after a 3-hour approach via the Colle dell’Innominato, I reached the glacier at the base of the first climb (Ratti-Vitali), which I completed in 3 hours and 50 minutes, reaching the summit of the Aiguille Noire. I gave a pat on the back to the small statue of the Madonna at the top and began the 18 rappels to return to the base. Then, I set off again on the West face of Pic Gugliermina. Despite some rockfall, I climbed outside the "Gervasutti-Boccalatte" line and emerged onto the Schneider ledges, reaching the summit of the Aiguille Blanche around 5:00 PM. My 15 kg backpack was beginning to take its toll. I bivouacked at the summit, and while preparing for the night, I saw Francois Cazzanelli and Beppi Vidoni coming up the ridge of the Pilier d’Angle after a quick repeat of Divine Providence. We called each other, separated by a kilometer of air, and I already knew this would be one of those moments I’d remember. The next morning, my plan was once again upended, and the final route of the “trilogy,” the “Bonington” on the Central Pillar of Freney, would have to wait. Aaron and Magda, who had set off at night from the Monzino Refuge to do the same route as me, slipped on the snow slope leading to the Freney Glacier. Both were shaken but luckily with no serious injuries. I helped them get to the Col de Peuterey for helicopter evacuation. After the helicopter took off, I reassessed the situation. Two hours had passed, the day was hot, the snow was melting, and my motivation to tackle the Bonington route had significantly dropped after the incident. After some thought, I decided to summit Mont Blanc via the Peuterey Ridge to hopefully reach it quicker. I reached the summit at 11:00 AM and was back in Courmayeur by 3:00 PM.

THE INTEGRAL PEUTEREY RIDGE

Due to the high pressure, I decided to attempt the Integral Peuterey Ridge on August 4, along with Luca Ducoli, who accompanied me for part of the climb. We set off at night from Val Veny, quickly ascending a trail, and in an hour and a half, we were at the base of the south ridge. We climbed the first section with headlamps, and after two long pitches in simul climbing, we reached the summit of the Noire. Here, our paths diverged—he descended via the East Ridge, and I continued alone. I quickly started the 15 rappels that brought me towards the Dames Anglaises. The rock quality was not great, with vertical rockfalls to watch out for, despite the low level of difficulty. I passed several of the 6 roped parties ahead of me, and at the point of the couloir before the bivouac, I decided to veer off the line to the left. The path was clear again, and I made up some time on the Aiguille Blanche, which I reached around 12:30 PM. I downclimbed about a hundred meters and descended to the Col de Peuterey, at which point I started climbing up the Pilier d’Angle towards the Mont Blanc summit. The final 600-meter slope demolished my legs. I had to re-break the old trail, sinking knee-deep in snow as I was the only one to make it to those final 600 meters that day. I reached the summit at 1:00 PM after a total ascent of 4,500 meters, where the very kind Davide Manolino was waiting to support me. Together, we headed down the glacier towards Piton des Italiens on the Italian side, where we found that about halfway down the conditions seemed good for flying. After about 10 minutes, I landed at the campground parking lot where I had set off 15 hours earlier. Magda was waiting for me with dinner ready in the van, wrapping up an almost perfect day. I say “almost” because I would have liked to be faster, but I’m still happy with the result, especially since I didn’t know part of the climb and the final ridge.

THE LONG TRAVERSE FROM RIFUGIO TORINO TO PUNTA WALKER

On August 10, we had several days of stable weather and perfect wind for flying from the summit of the Grandes Jorasses. It was the perfect opportunity to try the long traverse from Rifugio Torino to Punta Walker, which I had never done before. (A very aerial route always on the ridge crest, passing over seven 4000-meter peaks) At the last minute, Pietro Mercuriali joined in, though unfortunately, he knew he would have to descend via the normal route alone but agreed to accompany me nonetheless. We set off at 3:00 AM from Rifugio Torino, chatting along the way, making some ups and downs on the Dome de Rochefort, and reaching the Canzio bivouac, which is roughly halfway through the climb. We continued unroped keeping a good pace, and by 9:50 AM, we were on the summit of Punta Walker. Everything was perfect. In just a few minutes, I set up and opened my paraglider right on the summit. There was a light wind from the south, perfect for takeoff, just as the forecast had predicted. We took a photo together as a memory, and then I took off. I enjoyed the descent, thinking of poor Pietro descending on foot. I landed next to the Skyway just after 10:00 AM, just in time for a coffee. Around 2:00 PM, I went to Val Ferret to pick up Pietro, where we cooled off in the stream and shared a meal to wrap up a beautiful day.

DOLOMITES – ECLIPSE

I concluded my season in Mont Blanc with “Bepi” Vidoni, repeating the “Lecco” route on the Grand Capucin in free climbing, a route up to 8°+ at an altitude of 3,800 meters. The crux pitch consists of an intense bouldery section at the start, followed by a physical crack, so by the time you reach the belay you're gasping for air as though you just sprinted 100 meters. The next day, I decided to “move” to the Dolomites. On my way back, I stopped by home to wash some clothes and check if my cat was still alive. I set off again, parking the van in Pozza di Fassa, where I had an ongoing project: a new route in Vallaccia, which I had started in 2023. Together with Luca Ducoli, (now my regular adventure companion) we assessed the situation and spent the next three days working to bolt all the pitches. The switch from Mont Blanc granite to Dolomite limestone was tricky as the two styles of climbing are completely different. The holds are different, the way you move is different, the feeling with the rock is different, not to mention the trust you need in your gear. In short, after a summer spent at altitude on granite, returning to the Dolomites was a shock. The route is an interesting line on excellent rock, completely independent and not intersecting with other routes. We spent another two days cleaning it to make future repeats more enjoyable. On August 30, we climbed and freed all the pitches of our new route, “Eclipse,” on Torre Mezzaluna, a 280-meter route with a maximum grade of 8a. The route is sport climbing, and a dozen quickdraws are enough for repeating it. Since there are two Rolando Larcher routes nearby, we kept the same style, hoping future climbers would also enjoy it. Opening new routes allows me to savor the adventure. After two intense months of climbing and travelling, I looked back on the moments and feelings I experienced and knew I had made new memories.