FIVE STAR BASE CAMP 2020

CURSED COMBE – MONT-BLANC – 2020

The greatest mountaineers and climbers in the world, gathered in the Samaya® Family, meet in the Mont-Blanc massif for an extraordinary experience with French chef Jean Sulpice, twice Michelin-starred and Chef of the Year 2018 at Gault & Millau.

Embark on the Samaya® FIVE STAR BASE CAMP.

At the Col du Géant, at the exit of the Helbronner cable car, a dozen mountaineers, all members of the Samaya® Family, are busy around a large blue trunk. Loaded as for a Himalayan expedition, they try to fix as many bulky bags as possible on this imposing chest and on a narrow pulka. Tied up by meters of rope, the two boats stagger, drift and sometimes turn around, escaping from the track at the first opportunity. Little by little, a swarm of ropes and mountaineers get organized to hold back, tow and push the two rough sledges as best they can.

But where are these mountaineers going and what do they plan to do with so many of them and with so much equipment?

This is the question that shines in the eyes of those they meet, but that few finally dare to ask them. Some recognize themselves and know that these climbers are more accustomed to the alpine style, to light and rapid ascents with 40-litre backpacks than to sarcophagi with enigmatic contents… especially in the Mont-Blanc massif!
The object of this burst of energy stems from a somewhat crazy inspiration: to recreate in the Combe Maudite a real altitude base camp in Himalayan colors, with the best French and international mountaineers gathered around the Samaya® brand, herself at the origin of the project.

It would have been possible to request the reinforcement of a helicopter to carry the hundreds of kilos of material and food necessary for the realization of such a bet. But the value of the journey, the effort and the complicity necessary to reach the goal ultimately contribute just as much to the success of the whole. That of a “by fair means” approach, so dear to Samaya®, through which the end does not justify the means. The help of the cable car having already largely fulfilled the mechanical part of a voluntarily meritorious adventure, it's time to sweat.

A micro-community arises and comes to animate a landscape with monochrome colors.

Cahin-caha, the caravan of mountaineers passes in front of some of the most beautiful monoliths of the massif. These rock sentinels who watch over the tranquility of the Combe Maudite are attractive and frightening at the same time. The members of the Samaya® Family have sparkling eyes. Accustomed to peaks that are three times the height of the surrounding peaks, it is not anxiety that we see dawning on their faces but greed. Planted on icy gums, sharpened like stone canines, they attract the eye and command respect.

It is in this setting, both close and accessible, as well as exotic and wild, that the location of the base camp is determined. The setting must be breathtaking, the surface flat and the crevices discreet to limit the risks and ensure the safety of all the protagonists. In the center of the glacial tongue of this combe, cursed for some, blessed for others, a probe is planted. After a few bites on the frozen epidermis of the glacier dispensed by a sharp probe, the signal is launched. The terrain seems free of sneaky traps.

In a few minutes, an ephemeral micro-community emerges from the ground. Born from a blank page, its layout is at the discretion of its creators. On the surface of a sea of ​​ice several hundred meters deep, the Samaya® BASECAMP of the 8K range is born to serve as a “mess tent”. She will be the heart of this small society which is just coming to life. Around, domes, as if tinted by magic with the colors of the ALPINE, 8K and ULTRA ranges of Samaya®, bloom on the snow, illuminating and animating a landscape of monochrome colors as they pass.

Luxury is not always where you expect it.

For Samaya®, this gathering is a celebration, that of mountaineers and Himalayans who associate their advice and their image with a company of enthusiasts. Accustomed to carting their own tent and making do with freeze-dried meals, few of them suspect the surprise that awaits them at base camp. This time and in an environment that is nevertheless familiar to them, Samaya® has thought of everything so that they retain only five-star memories of this bivouac! Like them, Samaya® is convinced that luxury is not always where it is expected and that nature, especially in the high mountains, can offer priceless experiences.
For this exceptional event, taking place in an exceptional setting at an altitude of 3,400 meters and designed for exceptional guests, Samaya® offered chef Jean Sulpice the opportunity to join the Samaya® Family. Double-starred by the Michelin guide and elected best chef by Gault & Millau in 2018, he shares with all the members of the Samaya® Family the passion for the mountains and honored all the guests with his presence and his service. at the top !

In this improvised gastronomic restaurant, the ground of which has been largely dug, snow benches have been fitted out and covered with insulating mats. All around this famous blue trunk, which empties to the rhythm of the tasting, are thus comfortably seated mountaineers and Himalayan climbers from the Samaya® Family who come from all over Europe and even beyond the Atlantic, and whose Chamonix often becomes the main residence. All talk about their last or next expeditions. Side by side, Hélias Millerioux, Symon Welfringer, Lise Billon, Matteo Della Bordella, Jordi Noguere are on the same wavelength.

Both ambitious and modest, they are among those who do very serious things without really taking themselves seriously. Most work as a guide to subsist and self-finance their projects. No star shines brighter than the others, but the constellation formed by this happy team is impressive.

Magnum corks pop at the same time as the first delicious pies appear, majestically followed by rabbit ravioli al Plin with capers and lemon, long-aged cheeses and finally sweets and other sweets whose memory is still vivid today. today. This base camp meal is like an hallucination. Bio-dynamic wines set things on fire and do not help with clairvoyance. Tasting such nectars in stemmed glasses against the backdrop of the south face of Mont Blanc is a unique experience that leaves a lasting impression. Accentuated by the contrast of heights, it is the dinner of all superlatives. The smile that lights up on the weathered faces of each of the guests is the same as at the top of a remarkable ascent: unfailing. At dessert, the American Colin Haley and the Englishman Tom Linvingstone emerge by surprise. Hands still full of magnesia, they arrive from the Grand Capucin which they have just climbed. Neither of them expects such a welcome, nor such a feast!

A strong act that sustainably nourishes the complicity of the Samaya® Family.

If the evenings are lively, the days are even more so. Along new ropes, formed for the occasion, several ascents are made on the stone obelisks that line the glacier. For angry lions that the Samaya® tents can no longer contain, the Combe Maudite is a profusion of granita delicacies. Choices have to be made: they won't be able to taste everything. Some, in the same day, treat themselves to ridge runs at sunrise, long routes for lunch and even a third ascent for a snack. Some climbing times are halved or even tripled and it is only the arrival of the storm that puts an end to the climb. From the top of the routes, each of the parties nevertheless takes the time to contemplate the mandala formed by each of the ten tents which, together, contribute to a harmonious design. The rock in this corner of the massif, a compact red protogine with perfect cracks, is one of the most beautiful on the vertical planet. The accessibility of the place, the beauty of the setting and the quality of the lines offered make it an essential destination.

This altitude base camp is also the perfect opportunity for Samaya® to present its new finalized models to its athletes in the continuity of the reflections and tests carried out in close collaboration with them on the prototyped versions. Life-size tests that are no longer there when the elements are unleashed and lightning and lightning get involved. A nocturnal sound and light show in the form of a final bouquet animates the last night and closes an event that definitely cannot be compared to any other.

This type of event could, like mountaineering, raise questions. What good is all this energy spent on activities that some would call useless? The vision carried by Samaya® is that bringing together, with particular attention, exceptional beings in flesh and blood in order to celebrate the relationship with the mountains at altitude is a strong act that sustainably nourishes the complicity of the Samaya® Family. . It is this proximity that makes it possible to push ever further the excellence of Samaya® and its products, and thereby the intensity of each of the experiences associated with them.
Long live this type of celebration whose ingredients are now known, but whose proportions Samaya® will keep, for a while yet, the secret!