Chamonix

Anyone with a sufficiently high pain threshold to have reached the alpine galleries will notice that a great many of the shots were taken in Chamonix. This is because in all of my travels in the Alps I have not yet come across a place that is as good. Even from the valley floor the views of the mountains are spectacular, which is not always the case. When you go higher the views open out to panoramas like you will see nowhere else.
The peaks around Chamonix are granite and they don’t produce much scree. This means that the mountains are clean without huge scree fields which can make some areas of the Swiss Alps look a bit ugly. Also the whole chain of Mont Blanc faces west so it is bathed in sensational light every night. An added bonus is that there are lots of cable cars so that access is easy to many parts of the range. True, the town is a bit touristy and in August it is overrun by coachloads of people, but its still not a bad spot and when the weather breaks and it decides to rain for a few days then the pubs will be welcome.
This page is a guide for anyone who is interested in taking photographs in this amazing location. I list my favourite photo taking spots, how to get there, where to stay, etc. It is a place that every photographer should visit at least once. It is addictive though, once you have been there once you will want to go back. It is, in short, a photographers dream. Not just photographers, but artists, poets and dreamers will all find something to feed the spirit here.


Les Aiguilles Rouges
This is the chain of smaller mountains opposite the Mont Blanc chain. Following the maxim that the best way to photograph a mountain is to be halfway up the one opposite you would think that the Aiguilles Rouges would offer the best views of Mont Blanc. And you would be right. The views from these peaks are enormous. There are two main cable ways into the range one of which goes to the summit of a peak opposite Mont Blanc. The massif is criss-crossed with excellent quality footpaths that are well signposted.

Planpraz and Le Brevent.
These two locations are both served by one of the two main cable cars into the Aiguilles Rouges. The first stop is Planpraz at 1990m and a second car takes you on to the summit of le Brevent at 2525m. The views are similar (and amazing) from both locations, and each has its own advantages. Planpraz has trees which make excellent foregeounds and silhouettes. Le Brevent is that bit higher which means that the panorama opens out a bit more.
Camping
Both are superb spots for a night out. Access is directly from the town so you can go wild and have a five star night of it. At Planpraz fresh water is not easy. You can buy it in the restaurant there but get ready for the bill as it is tourist rip off prices. There is a tap on the outside of the restaurant but the water is stored and probably not that good. If you are coming up from town you can bring it with you. At le Brevent there is no water but just down from the summit (in the direction away from Planpraz) are small lakes that are perfect campsites.


Lac Blanc
This is the best place around by a mile. Access is straightforward but it does require a walk in. It is served by the la Flegere cable car. From the cable car it is a walk of about 2 hours but if you are not acclimatised well and have a big bag then allow three hours. Its also possible to take the chair lift from la Flegere to L’Index and walk from there. Its about the same time but has much less height gain and is consequently easier. The la Flegere cable starts in the village of Les Praz de Chamonix which is about 10 mins by car/bus from Cham itself. There is plenty of parking and it is served regularly by the bus.
Camping
This is my favourite campsite anywhere in the world. It defies belief. There are plenty of spots just away from the lake. The water in the lake is perfectly drinkable and the views are amazing. The whole chain of Mont Blanc is there from le Tour to the Bionassay. You look right along the Mer de Glace to the mighty north face of Les Grandes Jorasses and you can even see the Swiss peaks on the horizon. As if it were not perfect enough there is also a small hotel there. If you don’t fancy camping you can book in there for the night and it has a nice terrace for a beer after the pull up from la Flegere.

Les Cheserys
These small lakes are just down from Lac Blanc. They are excellent but they have two major disadvantages. The first is that they are in shallow dips in the land and from the lakeside the view onto the peaks is blocked. You only need to climb twenty feet up from the water to get the view but you can’t get the reflection. The other, perhaps more serious, issue is that there is nowhere to buy beer.



The Mont Blanc Chain
There are numerous photo viewpoints in the main massif of Mont Blanc. They do not have the overall perspective of the views from les Aiguilles Rouges but they are in spectacular locations and their views are correspondingly impressive.

Refuge Albert Premier
The Chamonix valley ends at the tiny hamlet of le Tour. Above le Tour is the mountain hut Albert Premier. It is in a great spot, above the huge Glacier le Tour with its icefall and with views onto the elegant Aiguille de Chardonnet. This glacier bay faces west and the light here in the evening is as good as it gets. The sun sets behind the Aiguilles Rouges for great sunset shots. Its easy to scramble around on the rocks behind the hut and there are all sorts of interesting rocks and boulders for foregrounds. Access is straightforward. You can get there as a walk from the village of le Tour but this is really for masochists only. It is a long and relentlessly steep slog up a dusty track that cunningly avoids all the best views. Much better is to take the cable car and chairlift to Col de Balme. The walk from there is pleasant and not steep (except the last 20 mins) and the views keep getting better and better. The hut is at 2700m so if you are not acclimatised you will find the going hard. Allow 3hrs from Col de Balme if you are fit and used to the altitude, allow 4 if you are not.
Camping
There are a few bivouac spots around the hut but in high season and at weekends these are snapped up early. The ground round the hut is rocky so finding a spot is not easy if these bivouac rings are taken. A better bet here is the hut which is not expensive and you are guaranteed a decent place to sleep. If you do decide to use the hut then you must reserve in advance or risk being turned away.

Montanvers
This is probably one of the most visited spots in the Alps. Its in a superb location above the Mer de Glace with the Aiguille de Grepon and the spire of the Aiguille de Republique above, the huge north face of les Grandes Jorasses at the end of the valley and towering above you, the Dru. In the day it is a surging sea of sunburnt tourists and souvenir hunters but as soon as the last train is gone then tranquility descends and you can relax, lose the urge to kill and appreciate where you are. The valley faces west so the peaks are all beautifully lit at sunset. Another great spot about 40 min uphill is Signal Forbes with great views everywhere and loads of interesting lichen covered rocks for foregrounds.
Camping
This is a great campsite. Access is on the funicular railway and there are camping spots all over the place. Water is from the tap on the outside of the station. I have always drunk it with no problem. Its another place with a two minute walk from the train to the camping spots so you can go deluxe and bring up the single malts.

Aiguille de Midi
Seen from Chamonix town centre the Midi seems to be the highest peak as the big mountains are set back a bit. The cable goes from just south of the town at Chamonix Sud to the summit at 3850m in two huge sweeps of cable. The second stage is excellent as it crawls seemingly vertically up the north face of the Midi and if you are lucky you will see a party of climbers on the Frendo Spur. Once on the summit the views all round and down are like nothing you’ll see anywhere else. It’s a way for the non climber to enter the high altitude world of eternal ice and snow. Mont Blanc is close enough to touch and the Matterhorn, fully 50 miles away, is clearly visible. Be sure to get the earliest cable up to get shots of the climbers on the ridge. From here you take the cable car to Pointe Helbronner in Italy. The cable car are tiny, they only take four people, and you are dangling a thousand feet above the glacier in this little bubble. The views on to the huge south eastern face of Mont Blanc de Tacul and Mont Maudit are superb. Look out also for tiny figures weaving among huge crevasses as the cross the icefield on foot. Be warned though. The cable whisks you from the heat and the thick air of town to the cold thin air of an alpine top in half an hour. Take plenty of warm clothing and water and be sure to walk slowly. I have often seen people go up the stairs at a brisk trot only to be gasping and wheezing halfway up. The air is thin up there and unless you are fully acclimatised to 4000m you will be short of breath.
Camping
Sadly there is not much possibility of this. Officially you are not allowed to camp in the station complex. We did once and were OK but others have told me stories of being unceremoniously evicted. You are allowed to doss on the platform at the top of the ridge but unless you have a top quality sleeping bag it will be cold. The only accommodation in the area is either to camp on the snowfield down below or to use the Cosmiques refuge (also down below). Both these involve descending the ridge which is absolutely not to be tried without rope, axe, crampons, etc. If you are not a climber then your only option is to take your camping stuff and try your luck staying in the tunnel. If you are booted out you will have your kit to make the night outside bearable.