▲ 01 / 12
44°N
06°E
4,810m
WGS-84
IFMGA / UIAGM · Martigny · CH
SUM·MIT
We guide the line between ambition and humility. A cooperative of twelve IFMGA-certified mountain guides running technical ascents, ski traverses and ice routes across the Western Alps since 2011.
Mont Blanc
3,400m
18 km/h
Stable
MOD
04:20 → 09:40
UIAGM · 12
Full-certified guides in-cooperative. No subcontractors.
§ 01 · ManifestoWhy we
Why we
move slowly.
Routes reviewed / yr412
Guides active12
Client / guide ratio2.1 : 1
Average acclim+48h
The mountain is not an adversary and it is not a stage. It is a system with weather, rock, ice, time and bodies, and the guide's work is to read the system — then to refuse, reshape, or accept its offer. We sell the refusal as much as the acceptance.
Every route in this catalog has been repeated dozens of times by our guides under every imaginable condition. Our slow pace is a technical choice: 48 hours more acclimatization, one extra hut night, a rest afternoon before summit day. The numbers show what slowness buys — an incident rate at 0.04% versus an industry average of 0.31%, and a summit rate 18 points higher than the valley average despite climbing the same objectives.
We are organized as a worker-owned cooperative, not an agency. There is no sales team. The same guide who plans your route climbs it with you and writes the debrief. Decisions are made through a weekly board, and the full schedule — including cancelled objectives and why — is archived and available to every client in their after-action file.
SIGNEDRuedi Lanter · secretary of the board· 12.11.2011 — Martigny, Valais
§ 02 · Route catalogSix routes.
Six routes.
One season book.
Sorted by commitment, not by price. Each line is a complete field file — grade, altitude, rope team, acclimatization days, and the bailout protocol. The catalog is frozen at the start of each season and re-issued in August.
- R-01Mont BlancGoûter ridge · normal routeAD4,810m2 days1 guide · 2 clients
- R-02Eiger · MittellegiEast ridge · Bernese OberlandD+3,970m2 days1 guide · 1 client
- R-03Haute RouteChamonix → Zermatt · ski traversePD3,789m (col)6 days1 guide · 4 clients
- R-04MatterhornHörnli ridge · Swiss sideAD+4,478m1 day1 guide · 1 client
- R-05Dent du GéantSW face · fixed-rope pitchesD4,013m1 day1 guide · 2 clients
- R-06Technical Ice IntroCogne icefalls · waterfall iceWI31,850m base2 days1 guide · 2 clients
§ 03 · Grades legend
The six letters every roped climber must read.
The IFAS alpine system grades the overall seriousness of a route, combining rock, ice, exposure and commitment. Summit publishes every client's pre-climb grade expectation in writing.
F
Facile
Snow slopes below 35°. Few objective hazards. Glacier travel with rope.
PD
Peu Difficile
Steeper snow, short ice sections, moderate rock up to III. Crevasse risk.
AD
Assez Difficile
Sustained ice/snow above 45°, rock III–IV, committing ridge traverses.
D
Difficile
Sustained technical rock IV–V, steep ice WI3, long exposure, serac threat.
TD
Très Difficile
Technical rock V+, mixed M4, sustained exposure, serious bail decisions.
ED
Extrêmement Difficile
The Grandes Jorasses north face territory. Reserved. Not a client route.
§ 04 · Guide rosterFour of twelve.
Four of twelve.
The rotation you meet.
Every guide is UIAGM/IFMGA-certified. Ownership of the cooperative is distributed equally. Below: the four senior guides most likely to hold your rope on a western-Alps file.
▲ 02 / 12
▲ 03 / 12
▲ 04 / 12
§ 05 · Gear manifestEight items.
Eight items.
Eighty per cent of the work.
A cross-referenced pre-climb checklist. Every client receives this as a PDF with supplier links, sizing, and a rental option for any item. Items carried by the guide are marked as such.
Thermometer
Compass
Snowflake
Pentagon
- 01HarnessPetzl Sama · adjustable legs360gClient-owned or rental
- 02HelmetPetzl Sirocco · EN 12492170gRequired above 3,000m
- 03CramponsG-22 Plus · horizontal 12-point960g / pairSemi-auto · C2 rated boots
- 04Ice axe60cm · CEN-B rated445gSingle walking axe · dolomitic shaft
- 05Double ropes2 × 60m · 8.5mm dry-treated3.1kg / pairCarried by guide
- 06Bivy setup1.1kg bag · 30g ground sheet1.13kgEmergency only · guide carries
- 07Insulation850-fill hydrophobic down380gBelow-freezing hut approach
- 08Screwgate binersHMS wide-gate · 4 per client76g ea.Belay & rescue configuration
Total pack weight (client) · 6.4 kg dry · 7.8 kg wetDownload manifest PDF
§ 06 · Schedule7-day acclim
7-day acclim
for a 4,810m objective.
A model week for a Mont Blanc expedition. Altitude, task, and physiological load are pre-computed; guides adjust in 4-hour blocks based on morning oximetry.
D-01
1,035m (Chamonix)
Medical intake · gear audit · rope team assignment
D-02
2,317m (Plan de l'Aiguille)
Crampon technique · short-rope protocol · crevasse rescue drill
D-03
3,613m (Aiguille du Midi)
Altitude exposure · arête traverse · fixed-rope practice
D-04
3,167m (Cosmiques hut)
Approach · early dinner · 02:30 alarm
D-05
4,248m (summit push A)
Glacier roped travel · mixed pitch · descent to hut
D-06
3,817m (Goûter hut)
Rest morning · gear dry-out · weather re-assessment
D-07
4,810m (Summit)
Pre-dawn departure · summit window · descent to valley
1,035 → 4,810
§ 07 · Field manualFive rules.
Five rules.
No exceptions.
The field manual is re-ratified every January at the cooperative assembly. A single vote of the twelve guides can add, remove or rewrite a rule. This is the 2026 edition.
v.14.2 · amended 12.2025 · Martigny
01
The mountain writes the schedule.
Weather, freeze level and snowpack set the turnaround. Your schedule does not.
02
Turn around is not failure.
Eighty percent of incidents happen on descent. A bailed summit is a completed climb.
03
Cooperative, not hierarchy.
Guides share decisions through a daily board. No single person owns a route call.
04
The slow way is the fast way.
We acclimatize 48h longer than competitors. Our summit rate is 18 points higher.
05
Leave the line better.
We clean a pitch every rotation. Old tat, fixed slings, and forgotten gear come home with us.
§ 08 · The ledgerNumbers we publish.
Numbers we publish.
Numbers we answer for.
3,814
Cooperative-wide · since 2011
87.2%
Weather-window adjusted
0.04%
Industry avg 0.31%
19h 42m
Eiger NF · client-led 2023
§ 09 · EnquiriesBefore
Before
you tie in.
The questions we answer most often, in writing so we can match the wording each time. If yours is missing, write directly to the secretary of the board.
For PD and below, a week of basic mountaineering and reasonable aerobic fitness is sufficient — we will refine rope and crampon technique in a dedicated D-02 skills day. For AD and above we require documented prior ascents at the grade below and a video submission of your ice and rock technique. Not gatekeeping; it is our obligation under the cooperative's risk protocol.
§ 10 · EnquireOpen a file.
Open a file.
Start a season.
Tell us the objective, the window, and any documented prior ascents. A guide from the relevant region replies within 48 hours with either an open slot, a proposed alternative, or a candid no.
Rue du Rhône 18
1920 Martigny, VS
+41 27 555 11 40
board@summit.coop