# X: On the First Passage of the Col de Pilatte explained — Scrambles Amongst the Alps in the Years 1860–69 > Chapter companion for Scrambles Amongst the Alps in the Years 1860–69 by Edward Whymper. ## What happens Whymper and his party attempt a new pass over the Crête des Boeufs Rouges near Les Bans in the Dauphiné Alps. After a restful night at the chalets of Entraigues, they are joined by M. Jean Reynaud. They ascend a steep snow couloir to the summit of the pass, which they name the Col de Pilatte. The descent is hazardous, involving a 54° ice slope and a dramatic jump over a bergschrund, led by Michel Croz with Christian Almer as last man. ## Themes in this chapter ### Exploration and Discovery The chapter details the first passage of the Col de Pilatte, a new route across the Central Dauphiné Alps, based on prior observation and planning. ### Danger and Mortality The descent involves a 54° ice slope and a perilous jump over a bergschrund, with the risk of falling into a crevasse or rolling down the mountain. ### Companionship and Trust The party works together on the rope, with Croz leading and Almer as last man, relying on each other's skill and caution in the mist. ## Character check-ins ### Edward Whymper Narrator and leader of the expedition; describes the planning, ascent, and perilous descent of the Col de Pilatte. ### Jean Reynaud Companion from the Pelvoux ascent; joins the party at midnight, heavily laden with food and instruments, and struggles with the steep terrain. ### Michel Croz Leads the ascent through the glacier and couloir, cuts steps on the steep ice slope, and executes the dangerous jump over the bergschrund. ### Christian Almer Sent up to reconnoitre the route; serves as last man on the rope during the descent, urging caution. ### Horace Walker Untied by Croz to provide rope length for the bergschrund jump. ## Key lines > How pleasant it is for him who is saved to remember his danger. Survivors find pleasure in recalling their past perils. _Opening epigraph from Euripides, setting a reflective tone on the chapter's hazardous adventure._ > We meant the 26th to be a day of rest, but it was little that we found in the cabaret of Claude Giraud, and we fled before the babel of sound which rose in intensity as men descended to a depth which is unattainable by the beasts of the field, and found at the chalets of Entraigues the peace that had been denied to us at Val Louise. Intending to rest on the 26th, they were driven from the noisy cabaret at Val Louise and found quiet hospitality at the chalets of Entraigues. _Contrasts the chaos of the inn with the peaceful welcome at the chalets._ > Croz cut the way with unflagging energy throughout the whole of the ascent, and at 10:45 we stood on the summit of our pass, intending to refresh ourselves with a good halt; but just at that moment a mist, which had been playing about the ridge, swooped down and blotted out the whole of the view on the northern side. Croz tirelessly cut steps until they reached the summit at 10:45, but a sudden mist obscured the northern view, forcing them to descend immediately. _Highlights Croz's endurance and the urgency caused by the weather._ > A downward jump of 15 or 16 feet, and a forward leap of 7 or 8 feet had to be made at the same time. That is not much, you will say. It was not much. It was not the quantity, but it was the quality of the jump which gave to it its particular flavour. The jump required a 15–16 foot drop and a 7–8 foot forward leap; the danger lay not in the distance but in the precise landing on a narrow ice ridge. _Whymper emphasizes the psychological and technical challenge of the bergschrund crossing._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/scrambles_amongst_the_alps_in_the_years_1860_69_se/chapters/x-on-the-first-passage-of-the-col-de-pilatte - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/scrambles_amongst_the_alps_in_the_years_1860_69_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/scrambles_amongst_the_alps_in_the_years_1860_69_se/chapters