DREAM LINE: SKIING THE COSMIQUES COULOIR
It doesn’t get any more classic than this. Cosmiques Couloir, Chamonix, March 2024.
The Cosmiques Couloir, nestled in the heart of the Mont Blanc Massif, is renowned among skiers for its challenging pitch and breathtaking views. With its entrance rappels, steep slopes, and a glaciated exit, it presents an exhilarating yet formidable descent that demands precision and skill. Skiers who make the pilgrimage to Chamonix almost always want to test their nerve and technique on this benchmark of ski-mountaineering history. And it lives up to the hype.
Waiting for the arrival of second stage of the Aiguille du Midi Cable Car.
Located just minutes away from the top of the Aiguille du Midi Cable Car, the Cosmiques Couloir drops off the backside of the flat glacial plateau of the Vallée Blanche. A short 500-foot descent on skis from the Aiguille du Midi ridgeline is followed by a quick 5-minute walk to the notch at the top of the couloir, where the rappels begin. The Cosmiques is one of the most accessible pieces of steep, technical ski mountaineering in the world, offering 2600 vertical feet of steep skiing to the glacier below. Of course, this proximity also means popularity. It’s important to snag reservations for one of the first cable car departures of the morning to arrive at the top of the couloir before other groups.
Rappelling in to the Cosmiques Couloir with Mont Blanc in the background. April 2024
There are a few anchor options at the top of the couloir, and all require at least 30 meters of rappelling length (2x 30m ropes needed, but most skiers bring 2x 40m ropes). Most of the time, 2 or 3 rappels are needed to reach the skiable snow below the notch. There are anchors all over the place, so locating the next anchor while on rappel shouldn’t be a problem. After reaching the snow below the rappels, the roped portion of the descent is over, but the excitement only ramps up once you pull your ropes and start skiing.
The first pitch is the steepest, and usually the most firm from constant sluffing and wind. I’d estimate the angle here to be in the low 40s, perhaps approaching 45 degrees. The panorama below your ski tips is impressive, with the north face of Mont Blanc staring at you and the broken Glacier des Bossons looming below. If the snow looks firm, belaying the first skier while they make turns is a good idea, just to get an idea of snow conditions.
Below these top 200 feet, the angle eases to around 40 degrees, where it remains sustained for the rest of the couloir. The wide slopes allow you to open it up and freeride if the snow is soft. Often, there is an icy runnel from sluff debris in the middle of the fall line, so playing around on the sides of the couloir is a good idea. A rocky reef is usually present about halfway down the couloir, forcing you to ski the left side for a pitch.
Boottop powder in the Cosmiques Couloir. March 2024
These are the money pitches, steep enough to demand respect, but gentle enough to ski faster, and they just keep going and going. The views are awe-inspiring in every direction, from the glacier-covered Mont Blanc to the cliff walls of the Aiguille du Goûter and the town of Chamonix in the valley, almost 9,000 vertical feet below. The skiing here is great, but the experience also transcends the line itself. It brings out memories from your entire life as a skier that brought you to this point. From learning to ski, to your first turns in the backcountry, and then becoming a steep skier and ski mountaineer, the history of this line makes the experience of skiing it a watershed moment for anyone who loves the sport.
Dreams becoming reality in the Cosmiques. April 2024
As the main couloir opens up, a spine forms in the center, and two options present themselves for the exit pitch. The skier’s right exit is longer and more sustained, steepening again into a lower tube that is often filled with deep, soft debris from the upper couloir’s sluff. The left exit is shorter and deposits you onto the Glacier des Bossons sooner, but it is often less tracked. I like going right for the classic Cosmiques experience. Just above the apron, a couloir converges from the skiers right. This is the exit couloir from the Glacier Rond descent, so it’s worth looking over your shoulder to make sure nobody is skiing down above you here. After a few more turns, you’ll reach the bergschrund, which demands a careful crossing.
Below the bergshrund of the Cosmiques Couloir.
Below the bergshrund, the descent becomes more relaxed. Cruising out the Glacier des Bossons, watch out for crevasses and be sure to hit the high traverse back around to the Plan de l’Aiguille and the mid-station for the Aiguille du Midi cable car. It’s easy to ski too low here, which will lead you down to the forested slopes above town. Never follow tracks in the Alps, and especially here, because you might be following the tracks of paragliders who plan on skiing down to the snowline and then flying back down to town. That said, if coverage is good, the descent to town follows some cool chutes and gullies. However, this descent is rarely possible in recent years.
Celebrating the descent with apple pie and Orangina on the deck at the mid-station. April 2024
From the Plan (mid-station), grab a coffee and a pastry before deciding your next move. If it’s before 13:00, head back up to the Aiguille du Midi and finish the day by skiing the Vallée Blanche. If it’s later than that, call it a day and head back to town to celebrate one of the most classic ski descents in the world. Skiing the Cosmiques is a right of passage for anyone who dreams of following in the tracks of the heroes of the sport. It’s a line that you’ll never forget.