BIO. 
Date of birth : 17/11/1970
Lives in : Servoz, Haute-Savoie, France
Finest achievement : Solo ascent of the north face of Les Droites, via the Tournier Spur (1,100m, TD+), Haute-Savoie, in 1993.
Favourite spot : For ski touring: Iran and Greenland.
For climbing: the Dolomites.
For mountaineering: the Alps!!! from Menton to Vienna, with a weakness for the Italian side of Mont Blanc.
For high altitude, any summit is beautiful as long as it’s wild. Afghanistan for its unique and mysterious quality, Tibet for its incredible contrasts, and Nepal because it’s my second home.
A guide for 22 years, he also teaches guiding at France’s National Skiing and Mountaineering School (ENSA) in Chamonix.
Career highlights
In recent years, I’ve had the chance to go:
- ski-crossing in Greenland
- ski-touring in Iran, Lebanon, Mongolia, Argentina and Canada
- climbing in the Yukon (Lotus Flower Tower), Jordan and Oman
- exploring the high peaks of Sezchuan province, Kula Kangri in Tibet, and Langtang Ri in Nepal.
Interview
What are your three finest achievements in the mountains?
I don’t think any of them is really the finest, but it’s true that my experiences on Mount Kamet (7,756m) in India, ski-touring in the Zagros range in Iran, and climbing the Lotus Flower Tower in the Yukon were truly magical.
Who do you prefer practising alpinism with?
Taking people to the four corners of the world means agreeing to climb with different people. But I particularly like heading off with Simon Destombes and Matthieu “Mamat” Berlioz, who are also high-mountain guides.
What do you like doing when you’re not in the mountains?
Dreaming about future projects. Reading.
What’s your involvement with the Millet Design Centre and in product development generally?
On each trip, I depart with products undergoing development. It’s interesting to use these trips to align products’ technical profile with field requirements – for example, to help evolve the new Everest high-altitude boot.
How do you see your discipline evolving in the next few years?
What I really like is discovering summits and places. The highest and hardest don’t interest me. There’s something alienating about being first or fastest. The guiding principle of my expeditions is to keep opening my eyes to go where few people have been.
equipment
