Cogne Ice Climbing

A late blog catch-up for our ice climbing trip to Cogne last week. We stayed at the excellent Ondezana hotel in Lillaz, which is perfectly placed for the walk-in to Valeille and the Lillaz ice climbs. Arriving in Cogne to find lots of fresh snow meant options were limited to start, but a day on the Lillaz Cascade, with a slog up to Loie in the afternoon, made a great warm-up.

Day 2 and another link-up. First, Ibex Gully, a short route with a big approach and a meaty finish in dry conditions! It's just left of the classic Lillaz gully, so we "finished" up that, making a "full" day.

Having walking past it twice, Lau Bij was tempting for day 3. Steep on pitch 1, and "funky" on pitch 2! An Italian couple followed us, giving us a good colloquial Italian lesson on the steep bit!

Yet another link-up on Day 4, tired arms just managing Coyote in the morning sun, before someone suggested doing Tutto Relativo in the afternoon shade...