Identifier: mysummerinalps1900will (find matches)
Title: My summer in the Alps, 1913
Year: 1914 (1910s)
Authors: Williams, William, 1862-
Subjects: Mountaineering
Publisher: New York, Priv. print.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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tea, my personal prefer-ence being for the former. Leaving Chamonix we passed through the village of Argen-tine and then ascended a steep path to a small mountain inn atLognon, high up on the Glacier dArgentiere, where we spentthe night. We started next morning at 1.30, the moon lightingthe way. Mountaineering is the only pastime I know of inwhich the hours between midnight and five oclock, when naturemay be at her loveliest, are regularly used for out-of-door ex-ercise. It goes without saying that very hard work cannot bedone either on rocks or snow while reliance must be placed onmoonlight or lantern light, but the approach, lasting from two tofive hours, to that part of the climb which is to test ones powersis not as a rule difficult. On the contrary, it will often be acrossa smooth glacier, or over snowfields with an easy incline, andalmost always one is surrounded by and coming nearer to peakswhich lose nothing of their magnificence as seen on a clear night.(10) in O ■< D8 i
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And when, in addition, it happens that the splendid snow moun-tains of these regions are bathed in moonlight, I doubt whetherthere exists a more beautiful scene in nature, or a form of ex-ercise more fascinating and exhilarating than that of walking atsuch a time and in such a place. Substantially these conditions existed at the beginning of thewalk we were taking on this occasion. On our right was thepicturesque Aiguille Verte with its splendid, rugged ridges knownas Les Droites and Les Courtes, on our left the Aiguille duChardonnet; and as we proceeded up the Glacier dArgentierethere came into view its wonderful amphitheatre which vies inbeauty with the scenery at the end of the Mer de Glace. As weapproached the junction of the Glacier du Chardonnet and theGlacier dArgentiere we crossed the latter to the left and, ascend-ing the moraine of the former, stopped at 4.30 for a light break-fast, starting again at 5 up snowfields which led us near to thefoot of our peak. At 7.15 we believ

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