The sweltering, dry conditions in the European Alps have turned glacier areas and classic routes into deadly traps.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on Explorersweb.
While it’s virtually impossible to ban climbers from pursuing a summit, authorities and guides have had to make some tough recent decisions in the European Alps.
Headlines worldwide describe “closed mountains” this week as temperatures in the country soar, even at altitude. Officials have closed refuges, canceled guided trips, and strongly recommended that climbers don’t go on their own.
Classics Out of Reach
“Conditions are changing fast and not in a good way,” the High Mountain Office of Chamonix reported on July 20. Back then, most guiding companies refused to take clients up Mont Blanc. Meanwhile, because of open crevasses and constant rockfall, climbers turned around on dozens of other famous ascents, from the Aiguille Verte to the Grandes Jorasses.
Even the bergschrund at the base of the Aiguille du Midi opens wider daily. Although local conditions change almost daily, high temperatures have given no respite to an already-scorched Europe.
Last week, guides working on the Matterhorn (Cervino) between Switzerland and Italy and the Jungfrau at the Swiss Oberland decided to stop guiding these classic peaks as well, Barrabes.com reported.

Guided trips canceled include those to the following:
- Refuge Gouter on the normal route to Mont Blanc from France
- The Dente del Gigante (Dent du Géant or Giant’s Tooth)
- The Matterhorn, either via the Hornli or Lion’s Ridges (the normal routes from Switzerland and Italy)
- The Castor to Pollux traverse
Looking for Alternatives
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