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The Bréche Puiseux, Couloir Marbrées, and Aiguille d'Argentiere

2012-03-05T06:56:00Z

Kurt S., an ex-mogul champion from Tahoe now living in Vermont, just joined me for a few days of steep Chamonix off-piste. He dove-tailed his ski vacation nicely with a bit of business in Paris.

Kurt doesn't crush the moguls like he did back in the day, although his 9-year-old daughter apparently does, and Kurt can crush me.

On our first day we skied up the Glacier Periades to the Breche Puiseaux. Kurt wanted to work on his "Base Training" for the upcombing road-biking season. There was a significant block of time where Kurt was moving at a steady 2500 ft/hr pace. Keep in mind, he was skinning in Lange race boots and Marker Dukes on 190cm K2 Coombas.

There was a small que at the Bréche, and we had a leisurely lunch on the Mallet Glacier after the rappels (the ropes are fixed by the way - as of March 4, 2012). Then skies the Mallet, finding good, untracked, wind-buffed snow at skiers right closer to the base of the Grandes Jorasses. I never took any photos because Kurt is such a fast skier, he was always catching up to me.

We did the 6km glide down the Lescheux Glacier to the Mer de Glace, then fought our way through afternoon traffic on the Buvette (the "James Bond Run").

Kurt on the Leschaux Glacier - Petite Jorasses in the background. During the four days Kurt and I were skiing, Chamonix was blasted by the beginnings of what is becoming a significant and unseasonably warm heat wave. The powder is gone in all but the highest and most northerly wind-protected aspects. But the spring snow cycle is starting to get good.

On day two I chose to take Kurt on a tour of one of the most famous (and sometimes intimidating) ski descents on the Mont Blanc Massif - the Couloir des Marbrées. This couloir starts just behind the Aiguilles Marbrées, almost in the Col de Rochefort. The entrance is steep, and a fall here would not be wise. On a nice, spring morning, when the sun has been hitting the entrance for a few hours, the snow softens up to a solid and easily carvable inch or so of corn. In spring conditions, timing is everything... Kurt and I dropped in at 10:45 am. Rocks are starting to show on the entrance traverse, which makes things a little tricker, but once you're locked into your bindings, the confidence goes way up.

The upper and mid couloir skied quite well. The glacier below was soft and good, but below the glacier terminus the snow was trending to isothermal slop with poor stability. We were still early enough not to be in the red-flag zone of wet slides, as we skied below some steeper slopes and down into the safety of lower angled slopes and dense trees.

Kurt at the Marbrées entrance - the Vallée Blanche in the background. Looking into the Marbrées from the entrance.

Kurt easing into the Marbrées entrance. 40-45° terrain for about 3000 feet. Looking back up towards the Marbrées Couloir from the glacier. Kurt is the black dot just left of the icefall

When we finally made it to the car park in La Palud, the lower elevation snow was complete crap, but there was still just enough time to squeak in a lap of the Toule Glacier. We hopped back on the Funivie Monte Bianco and took it back up to Point Hellbronner, and side-stepped over to the couloirs entering the Toule Glacier (One can walk down the stairs if the entrance couloirs don't look good).

The couloir entrance is as steep as it looks. It bottlenecks down below too. We skied spring snow and schmoo down to the Panoramic restaraunt at the Hellbronner mid-station, choosing to eat Italian food and download on the lift rather than tear our ACL's and/or get buried by wet, loose, isothermal crap snow on the lower 2000 feet.

The Aiguille d'Argentier was our last objective before Kurt was to head off to Paris. Ideally, we'd be able to drop into the Couloir Barbey, but the Chamonix winter of 2012 has been a windy one at high elevations. Ergo, I've been more cautious than normal when evaluating the committing no-fall-zone-entrances of famous ski descents at higher elevations; they have been firm and icy on some aspects.

After stepping out of the Grands Montets cable car station we descended past the Rognon towards the Argentiere Glacier on snow snow firm I think a few fillings fell out. Kurt and I skinned up the Milieu Glacier at a blistering pace (Now Kurt was acclimated to 3000m so I stood no chance at keeping up). We crossed the bergschrund and booted up to the summit, which was a very social experience. About a dozen fellow ski-tourers were snacking on the summit and admiring the views. Two tracks entered the Barbey but I held firm to my choice not to ski it. The Mileu would do just fine, and offers 40° degree terrain through a narrow couloir anyway. The crux is negotiating skier-vs-climber 2-way traffic in the Couloir - I'm glad I wore my helmet on the way up.

Cumulus clouds that had formed during our ascent kept the snow firm for yet another tooth-rattling descent. No matter: within an hour we were drinking beer at Les Marmottons.

Kurt on the Aiguille d'Argentiere summit on a social Chamonix Saturday!The summit of the Aiguille d"Argentiere. The Couloir Barbey starts just over the cornice from the highest group of skiers you can ski. Otherwise the Milieu Glacier route descends down and left. Kurt on the Glacier d'Argentiere

Is ice season over already? Getting drippy in Cogne, Italy

2012-03-01T16:35:00Z

I guided a couple days in Cogne, Italy for Dream Guides over the weekend. Cogne is the center of Alps ice climbing in this region. Chamonix has a lot of ice, but it's much more dependent on good conditions.

While in Cogne during this mid-winter heat wave, we watched some routes start to fall apart for the season. The cascade du lillaz was climbable four days ago. Today it's gone (the Goulotte de Lillaz will be good for a few more weeks).

On the final day of our three-day course I took my two guests to Patri (WI4) and Acheronte (WI3)- they're almost always in condition - and almost always crowded. It takes 1.5 hours of flat walking to get to the base of the routes.

Patri was in great shape, and with a little flexibility, it was easy to avoid falling ice from parties above. There are lots of ledges and lots of snow piles to capture falling shards. One can never be too cautious though.

Patri. A guy in yellow can be seen leading the final WI4 pitch at top left. The right finish of Patri (WI5) is in good shape, still. A bit drippy right now though. The next day, I went back to Cogne with Geoff Unger. We wanted to climb Stella Artice (WI5) but the bottom looked too warm, wet, and rotten. So we climbed Cold Couloir (WI4) instead. How Ironic, nowhere on the route were we cold. We were obliged to pass a team of friendly (but slow) Brits on the second pitch, as we wanted to top the thing out, and that involves about 700-900 meters of ascent through 7-8 pitches of ice and a lot of snow slogging at the top. The descent was trickier than we though. I'd like to bring my paraglider next time to save my knees.

Stella Artice could be out for the season unless it gets colder soon. Geoff Unger passing the British team on pitch 2 of Cold CouloirGeoff on top of the last pitch we roped up for - 600 meters above the valley bottomUpon finishing the route, one must still go up, up, up...

Basically the best beta is to veer up and right after the ice ends, keep traversing, looking for a ridge of snow/rock/grass that descends back down to the valley bottom below you. Follow goat trails down exposed grassy ledges when you can, and the terrain will funnel you into a snow gully with two pitches of ice (rap with v-threads) at the bottom. Then a flat walk takes you back to your car.

Courmayeur and Vallée Blanche

2012-02-09T16:00:00Z

I Just guided the Vallée Blanche today, and some Courmayeur off piste yesterday. It was part of a little bit of work for Smart Mountain Guides, run by my friends and colleagues, Miles and Liz Smart.

Conditions in Courmayeur were OK, and we noodled around and found some decent powder in the Val d'Arp, and skied from the summit of the Arp down into the Val Veny via a wonderful, chalky couloir.

Walking through the old village of Dolonne, below the Courmayeur ski areaMy crew of guests descending a fine, chalky couloir that took us from the top of the Arp lift to the bottom of Val Veny.

Today, the conditions in the Vallée Blanche were "adventurous". High winds following the last few storm systems seem to keep wrecking our higher elevation powder and turning it into a field of thought provoking Sastrugi fields. Bring your "variable conditions" skis!

The good news with any adventure, though, is that it doesn't have to be "all about the skiing". A 20km ski descent down the Vallée Blanche will often have some difficult conditions in it somewhere. That's just the fact of ski mountaineering. On the plus side, the ski trail from the Buvette to Chamonix is in great shape and will be for some time to come.

Our journey down the ski run took us through a cloud cap near the Aiguille du Midi, around the Gross Rognon (where we finally found a little powder!) and down across the Salle de Manger, where we found ourselves to be some of the only skiers to ski the Vallée Blanche today!

Looking back up from the junction of the Lescheaux Glacier and Mer de Glace was spectacular. Plumes of wind-blown snow stretched away from the tip of every exposed terrain feature.

Our group (and one other french group) making their way down the side of the Gross Rognon. Sastrugi MinefieldMonica skiing in high winds above the final icefall before the Salle a MangerLooking back up at the Vallée Blanche descent from the Mer de Glace

Col de Bel Oiseau and Col de Fenestral

2012-02-06T15:25:00Z

Adam George, Mike Bromberg, and I drove up to Finhaut, Switzerland on a guide's day off. Our goal was to do about 2000m of touring. I was just getting over the flu, so I hardly took the camera out of the bag - especially on the uphill battles. Adam has been training for the Patroulle des Glaciers - the Zermatt-to-Verbier mother of all ski-rando races. There was no way I was going to try and keep up.

Without incedent, we arrived at the Col de Bel Oiseau at 2553 meters, and enjoyed a nice 600 meter powder descent back into the Bessons drainage. We then skied up and over the Col de Fenestral, which was ruined by a nasty sun-crust and a lot of ugly tracks. We descended a contrived and overly steep entrance couloir into the Comba Rossa drainage but this could have been easily avoided by just climbing to the tip-top summit of the Dent de Fenestral and descending the North East face. Once past the crusty, 45-50° entrance gulley, we enjoyed good powder pretty much all the way to Finhaut. Of course there was some pesky bushwhacking at the bottom, but it was all in good fun.

Mike Bromberg side-slipping a 185cm couloir with his 180cm skis. Lucky him. descending into Comba RossaWe didn't get first tracks, but we were able to get 18th, 19th, and 20th tracks, respectively. Mr Bromberg finding first tracks not far above FinhautAdam George finding good, cold, powder snowMike probably thinks tree skiing is fun. With the light getting low, it's time to find our way back to Finhaut

Afternoon tour to the Beaugeant - where's that col?

2012-02-03T15:00:00Z

You pay a hefty price when you begin an early February tour at the Brevent at 1:00pm. Mike Bromberg, Ben Mitchell, and I suffered from a morning session of extreme Admin (or was it just malaise?) and finally hit the lift after lunch. Our goal was the Col de Beaugeant - or perhaps the North face of the Encrenaz? We traversed from plan-praz to the Index via the Cornu and Liasion Brevent-Flegere. We passed the Refuge de Lac Blanc at about 2:45 pm with another 600 meters to ascend, a rappel or two to figure out, and 2000 meters to ski into Buet. We followed a fresh skin track up the Beaugeant, but then the french skiers who came back down told us they had chosen the wrong col, and were going home. It turns out they had actually chosen the right col, but the wrong length of rope. We followed their advice and went to the wrong col ourselves. It was late, and headlamps would not be a fun way to arrive in La Buet. We turned tail and skied back from whence we had come. At least the snow was pretty good.

Fellow crack-of-noon club members, Ben Mitchell and Mike Bromberg. A nice skin track on the south flanks of the Beaugeant.Oops. We missed the col. But the skiing back down was pretty good. Here's Ben Mitchell, making the first turns.

Col du Belvédère: flat light, steep snow.

2012-01-27T17:22:00Z

Fresh snow overnight meant we couldn't rest while powder sat undisturbed. Given that it was a weekday, we had no lift lines to fear either. The thick fog and light rain outside my window was almost enough to dissuade us from going outdoors. At the early hour of noon, Ben and I (almost reluctantly) headed up Le Flegere lift. We hopped on the Index and téléski de la Floria to a high point in the fog before traversing around crusty, south facing slopes towards Lac Blanc Refuge.

I had wanted to ski some of the steeper lines in the Aiguille Rouges, but haven't yet had the time off and the right snow pack. Now that we have decent stability and good powder, it seemed like a decent lousy-weather ski option. The rocky buttresses on the descent would provide enough contrast so that we wouldn't get vertigo on our ski down.

It only took us an hour and a half to get to the Col du Belvédère. From there, Ben skied the 50° entrance and I rappelled it. The conditions were nice - not too firm.

We skied several thousand feet of north-facing powder down to La Buet, where we walked over to the train station and met two Swiss girls holding beers in one hand and skis in the other. They were nursing their frustrations - they had skied south facing crust in the fog all day, and were sure the conditions sucked everywhere.

And now for a few photos...

Ben following the crest of the Crochues on our way over to the Col du Belvédère.We didn't see a soul all day. Ben at the Col du Belvédère. The ski descent goes down and left, at 45°-50°. If you look closely you can see a rappel anchor in the rocks ten feet left of Ben.

And thus it begins... another powder run...

Ben three turns into the steep entrance.

Chamonix powder! Grand Envers and Cosmiques Couloir

2012-01-27T14:21:00Z

"You first?"..."No YOU go!"

I don't have the best record of skiing powder in Chamonix. In the past few seasons, a prevailing dry climate has robbed the alps of good powder skiing during month-long spells - usually the times I am actually here. In late 2011, storm after storm slammed into the alps, mantling the range in a snow pack ranging from 150-180% of normal. While that was happening I was sipping Mai Thai's on the beach in Thailand. An early 2012 storm came in hard, and went out with a sudden heat pulse - driving the rain line up to 2200 meters. Slush anyone?

What the hell was going on?

Finally cold temps and sunshine followed a decent dump. Ben Mitchell, David Rosenbarger and I somehow made it onto first bin of the Aiguille du Midi - despite Ben's jet lag and my procrastination. A million tiny ants exited the top bin, walked out of the ice tunnel, and clogged their way down the fixed lines in their earnest efforts to claim glory and first tracks in the Vallee Blanche. Ben, David and I stayed high, skied out the Midi-Plan ridge, and looked down the first 40°+ rollover to the Grand Envers. No tracks, and full of powder...

Ben and David looking into the start of the Grand Envers run in the Vallee BlancheBen, first tracks, Grand EnversDavid on roll over #2 of the Grand Envers.In case you haven't noticed, bright colored pants are in this season. Somewhere inside this powder cloud, David Rosenbarger is looking for the exit sign.

Ben, with 2000 feet to go to the Mer de Glace.

We skied untracked powder to the traverse above the the Requin hut, then shared the exit couloirs with three others. We double-polled down the Mer de Glace to the Buvet, booted up, and skied James Bond-style to the bottom. I was ready to throw my BD Zealots in the garbage - they can't handle variable weird snow at all.

Les Drus, the Aiguille Vert, and more rocky terrain from the Mer de Glace.

We rushed over to the Midi, thinking we could get another decent shot (albeit tracked up heavily). Fellow guide Miles Smart sent me a text: "Cosmiques - 1st tracks... Unreal..." followed immediately by "...no tracks behind us". Our minds were changed. In my previous experiences, skiing the Couloir de Cosmiques was fun, but always in a bittersweet way when one must ski laboriously down firm, tracked-out chalky "cooler" snow.

We arrived at the top of the Midi, wove delicately through crowds down the ridge, dove down to the plateau, and side-stepped quickly up to the heavily rimed Cosmiques entrance. It was a beautiful landscape this morning.

"Hey - couldn't this guy to my right have picked a different color jacket to wear today?"David rapping into the Cosmiques.

Ben Mitchell, mid-rap. Normally there is a lot of rock fall hazard in this entrance.The rime helps. Ben Mitchell - smiling before turn #1. First turns of the Cosmiques.One of my favorite shots of the day: Ben went out to skiers right where the freshest snow was. Les Bossons Glaicer and Les Houches down below.

David and Ben arced wide, gracefull, GS turns down a swath of untracked snow on skiers' right. I did my best to follow with my weak Thailand sport-climbing legs. The snow was powder all the way. We skied the Glacier des Bossons to the Mont Blanc tunnel, then I went home, ate lunch, and stretched the lactic acid out of my legs from just two ski runs (but 18,000 vertical feet).

Happy South Pole Anniversary, Robert F Scott...

2012-01-16T19:56:21Z

South Pole, January 2008"The Pole. Yes, but under very different circumstances from those expected ... Great God! This is an awful place and terrible enough for us to have laboured to it without the reward of priority." - from the journal of R.F. Scott

On January 17th, 1912, Robert F. Scott, Edgar Evans, Lawrence Oates, Henry Bowers, and Dr Edward Wilson stood at the Geographical South Pole.

They were staring, disappointed, at the flag and tent left behind by Norwegians Roald Amundsen, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, Oscar Wisting, and Olaf Bjaaland - who had arrived at the pole one month earlier.

One month later (February 17, 1912) Scott's team would all be dead - their last miserable days spent starving and frostbitten, lying in a tent only 11 miles from One-Ton camp - ostensibly their salvation had they made it there.

If you want to read about their journey, you should.

I recommend Apsley Cherry-Garrards' "Worst Journey in the World". It took me four years to read it. I began it in October of 2008, and put it down several weeks later, finding it dry and un-exciting (but still possessing a useful historical summary of Antarctic exploration during the late 19th century and early into the 20th century). I picked it back up again this past October, when I found I could get it for free on my Amazon Kindle. I polished it off in a Herculean effort in the Churchill and Holyoake Ranges this past season: When I wasn't up on a ridge of Cambrian limestone looking for trilobite with Lars Holmer the members of the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat "Hot fossils in a cold land" expedition, I was safely ensconced in a -40° down bag in my Scott Tent, soaking up Cherry-Garrards horrific narrative as fast as I could tap the "next page" button.

The first time I stood at the South Pole was January of 2009. I arrived there in an LC-130 in three and a half hours from McMurdo Station. It was -35°C and the hairs in my nose were frozen within minutes of stepping out of the airplane. We stood at the ceremonial pole for 10 or 15 minutes, taking photos of each other, and of the south pole station, lurking 100m away to... our... North?...

The new South Pole Stationthe Geographic "true" South Pole marker, with the old dome in the background.

I hardly thought about Scott, Amundsen, or Cherry-Garrard's book that was gathering dust back in my dorm room in McMurdo. I just snapped photos of the pole marker, the stilt-supported station, the decomissioned dome, and lots of hulking yellow heavy equipment pushing snow and cargo around. The steady, loud whine of four turbine engines on a revved up LC-130 was always there in the background to remind me that I only had 30 minutes to take some photos, run up the "Beer Can" enclosed starewell into the station, and buy a T-shirt, bottle of booze, and/or postcard before slowly sprinting (The South Pole is nearly 3000 meters above sea level, so no one sprints that fast) down the stairs and back to the waiting airplane for my three and a half hour return flight to McMurdo.

Inside the new station. En route over the Beardmore in an LC-130

Our flying route took us down the Beardmore Glacier, the same route used by Ernest Shackleton and his polar party on the Nimrod Expedition of 1907-1909, as well as by R.F. Scott on his ill-fated southern journey in 1911/1912.

Cherry-Garrard described the frightening difficulties of traveling up (and down) the Beardmore glacier with sledges and ancient equipment. My bird's eye view of their route impressed me but certainly did not make me ever wish to attempt a similar feat - especially without todays luxurious equipment and navigational aids like GPS.

Cherry-Gerrard was part of the first "return party" of the Terra Nova expedition. He and three others turned back - per Scott's orders - from the top of the Beardmore Glacier, near Buckley Island. Buckley Island is not far from the Dominion Range, where I spent a couple of days searching for Precambrian basement rocks with Dr John Googe et al - when we were based at the CTAM camp in 2010/2011.

My second trip to the South Pole was only days after the visit to the Dominion Range and I was of course accompanied by Dr John Goodge, Dr Jeff Vervoort, Dr Mark Fanning, Tanya Dreyer, and CTAM camp guru Bija Sass. We actually visited the pole twice that day. The first visit was 20 minutes long (long enough to put 600lbs of jet fuel in a Ken Borek Twin Otter). We spent the day searching for samples near Mt. Howe (the southernmost piece of exposed bed rock in the world). The late John Rees was our pilot, and he returned us to the South Pole in early evening - with just a bit of reserve in the gas tank. We were all tired, so we ate dinner in the South Pole cafeteria. I remember having pasta with shrimp with a side of broccoli and cauliflower, washed town with a tall glass of pulpy orange juice. I was wearing a T-shirt. The windows in the galley offered a good view of the Ceremonial pole (the one surrounded with flags) and the true geographical pole a hundred meter behind. The outside temperature was between -35°C and -40°C. I imagine neither Scott nor Amundsen dined as well as we did when they were each sitting in the same spot. Amundsen probably ate fresh dog. When I finished my dinner, I filled a bowl with three scoops of real ice cream. I washed it down with a cup of hot cocoa, before wandering back outside to the South Pole marker with Bija to get a "hero shot". If you don't know what that is then you'll just have to go down there to find out. When I finally got my boots laced back up and my jacket re-zipped, Bija and I stumbled back to our waiting Twin Otter to join the rest of the crew for a two-hour flight back to CTAM. Our flight route took us past the Dominion Range, Buckley Island, and of course a low pass of the Beardmore Glacier. Isn't it spectacular?

The Beardmore from a CTAM-bound Twin Otter. We are looking north, down-glacier, past places that Apsley Cherry-Garrard described as places where each team got lost.

The South Pole station is run by the United States Antarctic Program, and exists to serve and support scientific research. The primary research projects happening at the South Pole are related to atmospheric science (the air is clean and more similar to pre-industrial revolution air than anywhere else in the world), Geomagnetic field research, and astronomy ( in particular - researching Cosmic Microwave background radiation - left over radiation from the Big Bang). Without a doubt, the most impressive, famous, and expensive science effort at the pole is IceCube. IceCube is a gigantic neutrino detector - encompassing a cubic kilometer of polar ice. It is capturing and studying neutrinos released from the galaxy's more catastrophic events (supernovas, collisions, etc...).

View of the station a tourist sees before they are refused access.
Given that the South Pole is an objective to be reached by all of those who follow in Amundsen and Scott's footsteps, tourists frequently arrive at the station by foot or by Twin Otter. ALE (Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions) runs trips to Vinson and the South Pole and elsewhere every year. I imagine this year - the hundredth anniversary - is exceedingly busy. I have mixed feelings about the location of the South Pole Station. Anyone who chooses to arrive at the South Pole outside of the "realm of science" is greeted harshly by the USAP - as in an unwelcome guest. I imagine the stark, austere landscape that Amundsen and Scott each beheld, and now when you stand in that exact same place you are surrounded by semi-permanent buildings, red and green flags, and big yellow vehicles with loud reverse beepers. The location chosen by the USAP is bviously a political. Atmospheric science, geophysics, astronomy, and other forms of research could just as easily be done 15km away - just over the horizon. But alas, the big station, with its' airfield, vehicles, and endless strips of "retro gear" (another term for "trash too expensive to remove right now) will be on the south pole for quite some time: drifting to the north at about 20 feet per year.

Self portrait - with John Goodge and company in the background.

2012 paragliding season begins...

2012-01-16T16:09:05Z

Paragliding is a great way to get some perspective on where the snow is.

I suppose it began 15 days ago for anyone who was in Chamonix to enjoy the warm, almost spring-like weather that I missed while I was lying on a beach in Thailand...

But today it began for me, and the best part about it is... I only went today because I had declared today as an "office day" despite the beautiful blue skies, and crisp winter tempertures that frosted every windshield in town this morning. I can make it from my couch to the brevent lift - paraglider on my back - in about 7.5 minutes...

I launched from typical spot one launches from when they've got limited time: The Plan Praz launch.

Plan Praz launch: complete with nice, firm snow one can run on.

The afternoon air was cool, crisp, and blowing gently downhill at the standard winter landing field tucked within a grove of trees between the Brevent base station and les Moettieux.

Having never landed there I was a bit nervous wiggling the wing in between the rows of trees - a sloppy final approach here will put a pilot in a tree - or worse, a tree will snag the edge of a wing, forcing an assymetric collapse.

Les Moettieux: A sloped landing with down-slope breeze, tucked within 20m tall trees... Not the best beginner landing field...

Anyway the flight was nice. I look forward to flying my little cloud spiruline 18 down the Vallee Blanche soon...

Southeast Asia Epilogue: Koh Laoliang - Koh Lipe - Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-15T14:00:00Z

Three days at Koh Laoliang wasn't enough time. I only sent one of my projects (a really steep and fun 7b+).

Jonathan and Rachel had to catch a flight on January 6th, and Jeanna had to get up to Phuket. I had four days to get to Singapore so I could fly home. I decided to hop a tiger-lines ferry to Koh Lipe. If you ever have a choice of boats to take in the Andaman sea, and Tiger lines is one of them - don't bother. It's a poorly run business with lousy customer service, boats that are never on time and never look that sea-worthy and outrageously high prices. It did get me to my destination though.

Koh Lipe. This is what I came here for - I think... If you are a climber, and you go to Koh Lipe, go ahead and take your shoes: there are a few granite (not limestone!) boulders in Turutao National Park.

I arrived at Koh Lipe thinking I could just walk around a nice beach, and find a cheap place to stay. Nope. That was 10 years ago. Good luck now. Koh Lipe is as over-run with tourists as any typical beach destination. The prices are fairly high, so book early to find the best deals.

I found an over-priced very large family-sized room for 1500 Bhat per night, as there wasn't much available on a saturday afternoon.

I went snorkeling with one of the local tour operators in Turutao National Park the next day. It was worth it. Great views, beautiful beaches, and good snorkeling. The only downside was that the closer you look at the "pristine" beaches, the more plastic you will find.

Great beaches in Turutao National Park. Park regulations forbid permanent dwellings (read: "resorts) from being built on these islands. I think that's a good thing... ...This was painful to see: plastic on the most remote beaches of Turutao National Park... Turutao beachesA young local staying cool on a hot day. It doesn't matter how good you look in a swimsuit - there is still no excuse for feeding the monkeys. Koh Lipe is a great spot to go if you want to get tan, get drunk, and spend money. It's also a great spot to base yourself if you are a keen diver and want to explore the underwater portions of Turutao National Park.

On my third day I took a ferry to Langkawi, Malaysia. The ferry was delayed so I had to run through Malaysian border control with a couple of Italians and a Canadian in order to find a taxi to drive us over to the airport, where we were all flying to Kuala Lumpur. Somehow we made it, and that night I was enjoying good Chinese food and good conversation in a downtown night market. I strolled over to the base of the Patronus Towers with a fellow traveler from the Koh Lipe and Langkawi flight. Kuala Lumpur is a modern city with a gritty underbelly. It's a fun city to visit, has great, cheap, transportation, and a sizeable ex-pat population. It didn't really stand out from too many other cities though; sometimes I feel like they're all the same...

Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur. I took this photo with my iphone 4. KL tower from Little India.

On my one full day to enjoy the city, I took a bus to the Batu Caves, where there is a 50-meter-tall statue of the Hindu Deity Murugan stands guard next to the 272 steps ascending into a spectacular example of Karst and chemical weathering of limestone. I took my climbing gear with me (this is western Malaysia's most famous climbing area) but couldn't find anyone to join. So instead I took a few photos, watched monkeys steal food from ignorant tourists, and then returned to Kuala Lumpur downtown on a very cheap train.

The 42 meter statue of Hindu Deity Murugan, and the 272 stairs that ascend to the entrance of the Batu Caves. Inside the Batu CavesIt's as if Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich have already helped Malaysia with their gender related social policy.

A kindle and a cup of hot, spiced, sweet Indian tea - one of my preferred ways of passing a hot afternoon in Kuala Lumpur.
I spent my last evening dining out once again, snapping photos of Kuala Lumpur Tower in the moonlight, and then chatting with fellow travelers at the Back Home Hostel. The next morning, a 5-hour luxurious bus ride (don't take the train, unless you want to only for the "romance") to Singapore. I took a nap at my hotel, then embarked on 20 hours of air travel back to my home in Chamonix. October 22nd to January 11th - a great adventure in the southern hemisphere and the Southeast Asian tropics!