SAMAYA x ARTHUR POINDEFERT

 

 

In February 2023, all the conditions were met for Arthur Poindefert and Kilian Moni to realize another dream: climbing the Direct North Couloir of the Drus, in the Mont-Blanc Massif. Through this interview, Arthur shares their experience, feelings, and emotions.

 

“We set off on this route because, for me, it had been a long-standing project. When I was in high school, I would watch the PETZL promotional videos filmed in the Direct North Couloir with Ueli Steck and Matthieu Maynadier. When I saw that, I told myself they were crazy and that I would never go on that kind of route. At the same time, I wondered what it was like to climb things like that.

 

Years passed, I did more and more mountaineering and gained experience. This couloir resurfaced in the back of my mind. I had to go see what it was like. Conditions are not easy to manage, you never really know, it's a bit far, lost on that direct north couloir.

 

Last year, I went down into it to take a look. I have friends who had been there via the Pierre Alain and had sent me photos, and others who had attempted it the week before without success, but who assured us that it was doable. It’s just that there was snow and conditions were more difficult than usual.

 

We had a window of good weather and we wanted to try it.

 

We left on a Friday to reach the Couloir des Poubelles, where we crossed paths with ski patrollers preparing for the Trace des Grands. We used their rope and arrived at the bivouac at 1 p.m. There were people in the Drus, but we were the only ones on the North Direct.

 

We had a great night, with an incredible sunset. We were warm in the Samaya2.0 and very comfortable with the vestibule. We got up at 3 a.m. for a 4 a.m. start. At 4:30 a.m., we were at the start of the climb. The section was a bit complicated: conditions were unusual, with inconsistent snow that forced us to give each other a boost to get over a step that had become too high.

 

We quickly found ourselves in the difficulties. It took us an hour and 15 minutes to climb 300 meters. Kilian led the first M7 pitch and climbed it free. I met up with him, after a nice little bouldering move to warm up. Kilian did it at night, while it was starting to get light when I passed through. Then, I tackled the M5+ / M6 pitches, which turned out to be much more technical than expected. The rock was dry, lacking ice, crumbly, so overall not great.

 

It’s really a huge overhanging crack, like gravel, that forces you to stay on unstable flakes and be extra vigilant when placing protection.

 

We had made good progress and Kilian started the M7+ pitch, a 60-meter lead. Arriving 5 or 6 meters below the belay, he didn't feel like continuing as he had no more protection to place. He set up an intermediate belay, I joined him free, and I continued to the actual belay.

 

I launched into the next pitch, the M8/M8+ crux. It was a legendary pitch: an overhanging ice plug for 10 meters, with an equally overhanging corner of 30 or 35 meters. I spent a good 40 minutes deciphering the passage. It was a great fight, but very manageable and very interesting to climb because I learned a lot of things. Even after watching Ueli's videos, I didn't climb it like him at all: at the time, they had good conditions, allowing them to make real ice placements.

 

We lost a little time because the pitches were long. Kilian finally joined me free, managing to send this difficult pitch. The last 300 meters are supposed to be quite easy until the notch. We didn't yet realize that we weren't at the end of our troubles.

 

We still had to pass two quite committing mixed pitches, between M6 and M7, in inconsistent snow and not mentioned in the guidebook. We were supposed to exit around 2 p.m., but it took us 6 hours more, alternating in mixed terrain without ice, black ice that couldn't be protected, and sketchy belays. But then again, sketchy belays are normal!

 

We had friends on the Pierre Alain who we hoped to meet at the summit, which motivated us and helped us push through.

 

We finally arrived around 8 p.m. at the summit and descended quietly at night to reach our bivouac. We thought we had a headlamp problem that indicated one bar of battery remaining, but it held up for all our rappels. We got the rope stuck twice, forcing Kilian to climb up one pitch, to finally find our Samaya2.0 at 1 a.m., in which we were able to get some well-deserved rest!

 

I think that, in the massif, it is unique to see overhanging pitches like these. When you are in them and you are psychologically and physically ready, doing such pitches is just great; it’s good for morale.

 

What stays with you are the concepts of commitment and risk-taking. They evolve over time and with experience.

 

In high school, it seemed completely unattainable. For me, you either had to have a margin of error or be completely crazy to go there! Ultimately, this decision-making process happens naturally when you are climbing, depending on whether you can protect, what you can do technically—leaving aside the external risk factors that you cannot control.

 

Often, we see performances from the outside through communication that catches the eye and makes it difficult to understand the commitment: is it measured, or do you have to do the route at all costs? Personally, I don't go to the mountains to take such risks, but to do routes that make me dream, while being clear with myself about the commitment I am willing to give.

 

It's a perpetual questioning, because the more I climb, the more my level improves, the more I perform, and the more my degree of commitment increases. It’s in those moments that you have to be careful about overconfidence; you have to remain humble and think after each run about what you did well, what you did poorly, what you could do better next time, to return to the mountains with an even more expert eye.

 

With Kilian, we had already completed a first repeat together on the Dent du Géant last year, which went very well. We told ourselves that we absolutely had to do it again. I knew I could trust him in mountaineering and mixed climbing. If I had a low moment, he could take over and lead the key pitches.”

 

©Photographs by Kilian Moni @kilian_moni