Skier Joe Collinson on The Challenges of 'The Mallory Route' of the Aiguille du Midi

There's a reason some of the gutsiest steep skiers in the world call Chamonix, France, home. In the center of town stands the bottom terminal of the Aiguille du Midi cable car. The engineering marvel is often billed as a sightseeing tool—it deposits tourists and their ilk atop the 12,600-foot Aiguille du Midi, providing killer views—but it's also deeply popular amongst those who like their skiing with a side of mountaineering.

From the Aiguille du Midi, countless high-consequence lines are accessible. Despite the tourist-packed cable car soaring overhead, this terrain is uncontrolled, un-groomed, and wickedly steep, making it desirable for skiers looking to test their limits with the added benefit of resort-tier accessibility.

Amongst the adventurous crowd this spring was skier and mountaineer Joe Collinson , who recently shared a video trip report from his journey down the Mallory Route, an imposing line that zig-zags below the Aiguille du Midi cable car.

The Fatmap description of the Mallory Route opens with zero-bulls**t: "VERY EXTREME skiing. Danger of death." Check out his line in the embedded YouTube video below.

To learn more about tackling the Mallory Route—and the allure of the Aiguille du Midi—we caught up with Collinson for a quick chat via email. Thanks, Joe!

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

For the uninitiated, can you explain what it's like skiing off the Aiguille du Midi?

"The Midi is pretty unique, really; there's nothing else quite like it in the world for accessing steep skiing. In 20 minutes, it takes you from the center of Chamonix up to over 3800m to the top of an exposed rock pinnacle perched on top of the North face of the Aiguille du Midi. From here, you can access a lifetime of ski mountaineering!

Skiing the north face, the cable car is constantly whirring up and down over your head, often filled with sightseers taking pictures, which gives an unreal quality to it—some of the most technical exposed skiing mountaineering in the world but feeling like you're in a ski resort. And then you finish the line at the mid-station—either jump on the lift for another lap or hit the bar on the terrace for a beer!"

The Mallory Route falls firmly in "no fall zone" territory. How did you remain composed while you took this one on?

"For sure the Mallory is very exposed, and for significant parts of it really steep. Keeping your composure is so important on these lines. If you start to doubt yourself, you enter a kind of downward spiral where your physical and mental ability becomes impaired, and you start to make little mistakes, which further feed into self-doubt, impairing you even further, and the small mistakes can start turning into big mistakes.

For me, I deal with this by having a brutally honest review of the line and myself way before I head up there—what are the complexities and difficulties with this line, how does it compare with lines I've skied before, is this too much of a step up in terms of difficulty, where am I with my fitness currently? By breaking down each part of the line, you can make a realistic assessment of whether or not it's within your ability or if it's too much of a step up.

I think that if you ever feel scared on a descent, that's a sign you've pushed it too far and have misjudged that process and need to rein it in a little. It also means turning down lines—if you're looking up at it the day before and get filled with a growing sense of dread, that's not a good mental place to be in…rain check, do some other less complex lines, and come back in a couple of years.

What skills are required to ski the Mallory Route and similar lines in Chamonix?

"The first thing is being able to plan when it's the right time to strike. The high north faces are covered in glacier ice, and for the majority of the year, the line is either bare ice or, for most of winter, covered in cold snow that doesn't stick to the ice and will slide right off. Spring typically brings warm storms with snow that will stick to the ice and create skiable conditions, which is why this is 'steep skiing season.'"

[You have to be] always looking ahead and constantly evaluating the conditions ahead of you, deciding if this is a section you can ski quickly through on good snow or make slow side steps with your ice axe out—there is generally no room for error!"

What draws you to skiing high-consequence lines?

"For me, it's the most satisfying thing in the world! I love the whole process—the endless planning (sometimes over years!), thinking about when and how you can make a line work, what conditions you need and when they are likely to come about, exchanging photos with friends.

And then the 'locked in' feeling when you're actually on the route where everyone is so dialed in and focused. The high consequence forces you into engaging 100% and being totally committed to this process in a way that you wouldn't with a more mellow line, and for me means the reward when it all comes together is unmatched."

Related: Sun Valley Named Host of 2025 FIS World Cup Finals

Don't miss another headline from POWDER! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of skiing.

We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting and engaging ski-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional or just an amateur, we want to see your best footage and help you share it with the world. Submit your video for a chance to be featured on POWDER and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality ski videos.