![Vivian Bruchez at the Col de Bionnassay. [Photo] Ben Tibbetts](https://i0.wp.com/alpinist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/a69-mpessay-4-1.jpg?resize=930%2C548&ssl=1)
2018: Ultra Royal Traverse of the Mont Blanc Massif
In this Mountain Profile essay from Alpinist 69–which is now available on newsstands and in our online store–Ben Tibbetts writes of completing the Mont Blanc Royal Traverse with Colin Haley in 2018. The 41 kilometer route along the mountain’s main axis was first attempted by Kilian Jornet and Stephane Brosse in 2012, but ended when a cornice collapsed and killed Brosse. In this story, Tibbetts confronts his own setbacks and fears after being involved in two avalanches.