Due to an illness in Switzerland, we have to build a new team quickly, so that we can still tackle the 4,634 metre-high Dufour Mountain. We start for the summit at midday, along with our Finnish mountain guide from Chamonix. The cable-railway takes us as far as Aiguille du Midi, 3,800 metres up. From there, we want to get out of the glacier, and find a place for the night, so that we can crack on first thing tomorrow.
One thing is clear: The peak of Mont Blanc (4,810m) is, despite the radiant sunshine, not within reach. The snowfall over the past week has lead to a heightened danger of an avalanche. Only on Monday did three mountain climbers die as they were covered in a descending mountain-side of snow. Alongside the dead resulting from the avalanche disaster in August, an attempt to climb the highest mountain in the Alps has cost eleven people their lives. We certainly do no want become part of this statistic. We want to show a symbol, we do not want to become heroes. This symbol will be shown, however – and the place for this will be on the slopes of Mont Blanc. Where the Italian and French borders meet; tomorrow, this is where our Banner with HIV and AIDS estimated number of unknown cases will flutter in the wind.
