In reply to francoisecall:
Hi, I was interested to read your comments and just wanted to clear a few things up.
Firstly, the route is very long, features climbing around english HVS and although it would be possible to retreat it would involve descending a very dangerous and rockfall prone gully. I can assure you that it feels like a Grande Course!
I was also interested to see you had retreated from it twice. A judgement on it's status as a Grande Course or otherwise might be better left to those who have done it such as the guide Jon mentions. I have opinions on lots of routes, but I wouldn't go on a forum and tell people what a route is all about ("It is one of those long routes where route finding is the key") until I'd experienced it for myself.
"So says the man who hasn't been there".
Secondly, I didn't wish to sound elitist when talking about Mont Blanc, indeed I loved climbing Mont Blanc both times I've done it. I simply meant that the experience of climbing it by a hard route is diluted by the fact that it is so busy on the summit. "Punters" do have as much right to the mountain as "hardcore climbers" (check out my leading level on my profile - you could argue that I fit the punter category more than the hardcore climber category) and I am not bothered who does what in the mountains, it was just an observation about the difference between 2 summits. Furthermore, I can assure you that the appreciation of other climbers is not sufficient motivation to get me on a dangerous or committing route.
Thirdly, the rockfalls might well be mainly on the West side but there was no shortage of them on the south side, as we discovered.
Hope that clears a few things up,
Yours, not an elitist egomaniac,
Charlie