UKH

I'll be in Chamonix for a day or two skiing next month. Does anybody know of somebody who can help with a Mer de Glace descent ?

What do you mean by 'help'. If you are a half competent skier (can control direction and speed on moderate terrain without there being a risk of you spannering it up ever so often) you can just follow the motorway tracks down, as long as you follow the tracks. (crevasse risk outside of them being significant)

If you want to do more interesting stuff, or have incompetent skiers in your party then yes, 'help' would be a good idea. 

You may indeed want help if you are feeling your age. I used to nip down the VB at 3pm after the crowds in the old days and I've even done it three times in a day. But I got bored with it after the year 2000. until a couple of years ago aged 82 a friend from the PGHM and his wife suggested doing it with them. Alain insisted on carrying my skis down the arête which allowed me to concentrate on the short cut, after which we had a leisurely pleasurable descent looking at all the climbs. But then came getting off. The climb back up the steps to the little cable cars to Montenvers is a horror and my protest at his carrying my skis was pretty nominal. The skiing, as remarked by the above reply, is a piece of piss, if you'll excuse the vulgarity, but the return: be warned!

I find those steps demotivating age 28 - I can only hope I'm fit and capable enough to tackle them age 82! Especially as they'll probably be twice as long by then...and we may not need to carry skis up them.

So, to answer your question, you can hire a guide in Cham. There will be many to choose from so perhaps seek out a British one for a little cultural empathy but it isn't really that important.

If you decide to go for it yourself you might want to consider a rope and crampons to get you and your party down the ridge and because you should have some means of crevasse rescue.

As others have said, you can just follow everyone else but here is a warning; not everyone is going to the same place so be careful which tracks you follow. 

The skiing itself is relatively easy with the exception of one steep crevassed section and the fact that you are off-piste and may have a fairly heavy pack to carry (rope and crampons etc.)

As a second warning, NEVER take off your skis as there are hidden crevasses that you can go through in a heartbeat without your skis on.

Well, thanks everybody for the info. I was aware how relatively easy the ski descent can be. What I was hoping to avoid, if conditions were right, was the need to be hiring and carrying crampons and rope and avalanche gear when there is no avalanche risk, maybe just to tag along with somebody who knows the way. I guess the crevasse rescue stuff is unavoidable then.

Its one of those tough ones where the chances of a problem are fairly low but the consequences of a problem may be catastrophic if unprepared. 

There is only no (actually very low) avalanche risk when the posted level is Level 1 which is very unlikely to be the case

...but there's very little terrain on the classic Vallée Blanche that's actually steep enough to slide.

.......which ignores the fact that there is plenty of ground either side that is.

My experience of one descent with my mate and his two teenage boys on boards.

pick day when: avalanche risk no more than 2, clear sunny day (whole point of the thing is the view - the skiing is ‘average’), a few days of good weather before will ensure it’s tracked out and easy to follow.

Go to the top of the Midi anyway ignoring all the people with guides, ropes, crampons etc(it’s worth it!). If you are not happy enjoy the view and go down. If you are completely happy go on.

We found that the arête was two troughs full of skiers that you could not possibly fall out of, complete with hand rails and Pisteuers (sp) making sure nobody was silly. Skis on on the plateau and away we go. Traverse across to the hut for a coffee and enjoy the view/one of the best days of your life ????. Only tricky bit is getting past the Geant glacier. For us this involved a short wait for our turn to side slip down. Don’t go outside tracked piste, don’t take your skis off (except, perhaps, at the hut????). This was our experience on one day in a high mountain environment - it could all be different. If all this seems crazy - book a guide.

Somewhat contradicted by my mate’s GoPro footage from a fortnight ago - abs deployed, the lot (although thankfully no injuries, and something of an overreaction).

I've learnt one thing from the PGHM, everyone should always a harness. 

Wear a harness and put a lanyard on your belay loop and clip the end to your rucksack strap. That way if you should fall into a crevasse and end up wedged, the rescue team can get something attached to you to pull you out.