With its nearly 5,000 m of altitude, its glaciers, its walls of red granite, Mont Blanc is one of the most spectacular natural monuments of the Old Continent. Begun during the Age of Enlightenment with the first attempts to climb the 4,810 m peak, the climbing history of this mountain continued with the ascent by Jacques Balmat and Michel-Gabriel Paccard to the top in 1786. It continued with the sagas of Edward Whymper and other great climbers of the mid-19th century, the adventures on rock and ice of the famous Italian, French, and Swiss guides during the years of the Belle Epoque, with the adventurous ascents "without guides" of the 20th century, with the extraordinary open itineraries over rock and ice during the period between the two World Wars. The 1930s saw the race to the "last great walls" by legendary characters such as Riccardo Cassin and Pierre Allain. The period after World War II saw extraordinary climbers such as Walter Bonatti and Rene Desmaison in the limelight. Today, the grand exploits of champions such as Christophe Profit, Michel Piola and Patrick Gabarrou are seen beside the lesser-known adventures of thousands of climbers coming from every corner of the earth. The story and pictures of the ascents of the greatest mountaineers of all times are an exciting encounter for the shrewdest reader-mountaineer, as well as for those approaching the magic of high altitudes for the first time. A description of the seven valleys crowning the giant and an illustrated chronology of over two centuries of undertakings on Mont Blanc complete the book . AUTHOR: Stefano Ardito, hiker, journalist and photographer, author of documentaries and program host for RAI, has written some 50 books on mountains, many of which are dedicated to Mont Blanc and nearby peaks. He is one of the founders of Mountain Wilderness as well as one of the creators of Sentiero Italia, the trekking itinerary that runs through all the Italian mountains. For Edizioni White Star, he has produced the volumes Cime di Gloria, Trekking nelle Alpi, Trekking in Himalaya, and Trekking in Africa. SELLING POINTS: ?Over 130 pages devoted to the ascents of Mont Blanc, climbs that have made mountaineering history. ?386 images, including colour and black-and-white photographs, drawings, images, advertising posters. ?Chronology of the climbs, illustrated by photographs and access itineraries. ?Completely updated edition, with 16 new pages and a new format. ILLUSTRATIONS: 386 colour
