Mountain landscape - Europe

Aiguilles du Dru

Aiguilles du Dru (Petit Dru and Grand Dru) are two peaks on an iconic mountain in France which I would photograph every single day of the year if I had the chance. Seen here as a single summit but commonly known as ‘Les Drus’, they are located on the south side of the Chamonix valley, rising 3,733m and 3,754m above the village of Les Praz. For this image, I was on the north side of the valley near Lac Blanc, which offers fine views of the big Chamonix peaks - but obviously not when the mountains are covered in afternoon clouds. Memorable for me on this occasion was the fleeting views I had of the summits when the clouds cleared - sometimes for seconds at a time - plus I was spending the night outside and not long after dark, as I was lying in my sleeping bag, a pair of large dogs walked right past me in the gloom. (My immediate thought was wolves - ! - but I quickly dismissed this and I’m imagining they were Patou, or guardian dogs, who live wild and protect the livestock from wolves and other predators. Why they’d be roaming without their flock though I can’t quite imagine , so I’m not quite convinced).