French village Chamonix is dominated by the white majestic dome of Mont Blanc, at 4,810m the highest mountain in western Europe.

Every year the summit of Mont Blanc becomes the ultimate objective for mountaineers the world over, all striving to stand on top of the roof of Europe and look down on all of the major summits of the Alps.

To climb Mont Blanc from Chamonix, people normally chose one of the two most common routes. Slightly more technical, the route from the Aiguille du Midi, over Mont Blanc du Tacul and Mont Maudit is generally quieter, and highly dependent on conditions.