FIVE STAR BASE CAMP 2021
ROCHEFORT PASS - SEPTEMBER 2021
Once again, Samaya is back in the high mountains for the second edition of the Samaya Five Star Base Camp, once again in the magical Mont-Blanc massif, and once again with some exceptional guests. Tonight, over twenty people will gather at an altitude of 3,385 metres to marvel at this mystical theater of granite towers, the Vallée Blanche and Mont Blanc itself. The group - journalists, athlete-guides and members of the Samaya team - is a mix of novices, insiders and experts. As autumn approaches, an anticyclone will allow them to enter this environment, hostile though it may be, with an air of gentleness...
It all begins at first light, when part of the Samaya team sets off to prepare for this unique event, led by Samaya Family athlete-guides who know the glacier like the back of their hand.
Via the Courmayeur Skyway and Pointe Helbronner, the first roped parties reach the Col de Rochefort, located between the Dent du Géant and the Aiguilles Marbrées. Once there, Léo Billon probes the terrain to ensure that the camp will be located outside a crevasse zone. Once everything is secure, the Samaya team gets down to setting up the camp under a blazing sun: optimizing the terrain, organizing the living tents (mess and kitchen), making snow tables and benches...
From scratch, a comfortable and welcoming place to live is created in the middle of the glacier. The stemware is placed on one of the snow tables and the cooks begin to work behind the stove to prepare an exceptional dinner at high altitude. Now all that remains is to welcome the guests.
In the distance on the glacier, new roped parties can be seen approaching: ten journalists, accompanied by athlete-guides and members of the Samaya team, are heading for the camp. As they get closer, the guests marvel at the camp and gradually get to know the place. This type of setting rarely leaves anyone indifferent.
Everyone chooses their room with a view, arranges their belongings and familiarises themselves with their cocoon for the night. It is soon time to gather around the snow table prepared for the aperitif. The hostilities can begin!
In the midst of this mythical site, Ghislain Pipers and Arthur Jallas, co-founders of Samaya, open the ball by presenting the unusual concept of the " Samaya Five Star Base Camp", which allows guests to experience a new vision of luxury according to Samaya. Authenticity is the name of the game. The brand's mission statement takes on its full meaning: "For exceptional bivouac moments, Samaya reinvents the lightness of your expeditions". Discussions and product presentations follow. The clinking of glasses officially launches the second edition of Samaya Five Star Base Camp.
As the sun disappears over the peaks, Samaya takes on its full meaning. The sky has now taken on a rosy hue, and the whole massif is ablaze: from Mont Blanc to the Dent du Géant, via the granite towers of Tacul, the Aiguille du Midi, the Aiguilles de Chamonix and the Grépon, the panorama is sumptuous. The oppressive heat of the afternoon gradually gives way to the biting cold that characterizes this environment. These sharp temperature gradients from one minute to the next may come as a surprise to those less familiar with high-mountain adventures. The intensity of the moment is palpable. Everyone bundles up in their expedition gear. It's time to head for the mess tent, where we're sheltered from the elements and treated to a gourmet dinner at an altitude of over 3,000 meters.
After taking a seat on the benches, the hostilities continue and the dishes fly from the kitchen tent to the mess tent. Everyone enjoys these moments and the evening is in full swing. Night has fallen on the camp and a magnificent starry sky devoid of any light pollution is offered as a spectacle to our guests. The moon illuminates Mont Blanc and the surrounding peaks like a divine light, revealing a whole new landscape full of mystery, in which we even notice a few beams of light from climbers approaching the summit of Mont Blanc. Such images, sometimes accompanied by showers of shooting stars that seem to belong to another world, leave unforgettable memories every time, whether you are there for the first or the thousandth time.
While some finish their hot drinks before heading to their rooms, others still have a glass of wine in hand. With Samaya Family athlete-guides Léo Billon, Michel Lanne and Hélias Millerioux, anecdotes, expedition tales and mountain stories never cease to enliven the mess tent. The atmosphere is just right. With body, heart and mind enriched by the sharing, everyone finally returns to their rooms to find their cozy cocoon for the night.
In the morning, everyone is amazed to discover the raw beauty of the place as breakfast is served on the snow table. After a night on the glacier, the sweetness of the morning has no equal and is savoured with even more intensity than in the valley. The mountain never ceases to reveal itself in unrealistic light. In front of this exceptional panorama, everyone listens attentively to Hélias Millerioux who leads the briefing and the reminder of the safety rules on the glacier. Once the groups have been divided between glacier trekking and ridge running, everyone dons their harness, crampons and ice axe. The rope parties set off into the distance and the sun warms up the atmosphere in the camp at dismantling time.
Three roped parties led by Léo Billon, Michel Lanne and Julien Ravanello set off for the Aiguilles Marbrées for a rock climbing course on the magnificent granite of the massif. For some, this was their first mountaineering race. When the summit is reached at an altitude of 3,535m after a north-south crossing, the emotion is there. This is followed by a descent along the south ridge, accompanied by abseils to the glacier. During this time, the two other roped parties, led by Lise Billon and Hélias Millerioux, experienced a hike on the Géant glacier and a summit ascent.
Back in the gondola, the eyes catch a glimpse of the joy of the magic of a high mountain bivouac. Everyone comes back down amazed and somewhat transformed by the timeless moments of plenitude experienced up there. We look forward to the third edition...
Photo credits: Antoine Mesnage / Samaya
