This couloir, which doesn’t exactly start from l’Aiguille des Saint Pères, doesn’t benefit from the same notoriety as the Y-couloirs.

Access is a little longer along the arête with an easy section among the rocks.
For this reason, it is very rarely skied, but because of its wider, easier slope, it should attract those who would like to discover the sector in a progressive manner.
The Third Couloir is definitely worth a visit.

More funnel-shaped up top, this couloir is technically more accessible. A little less elegant than the other one, this branch is sometimes the only one feasible in lean snow conditions. What’s more, if there is enough snow, a variant exists which, if rarely skied, remarks very interesting.

The steepest and most esthetic (a good 50 degrees for the first 100 m and 2-3 m wide for the first 30 m) and slightly S-shaped the end of the slope is hidden, when watched from above, crating quite an atmosphere, an atmosphere reinforced by l’Arête des Saint Pères which, blocking the sun, maintains the couloir in the shade almost throughout the entire day and season.

It’s a very impressive route, although not actually extreme, only for top-level skiers. It must be tackled in good snow conditions. Be the first one there, as it is becomming more and more popular and some people tend to step down it, imprinting steps which then make any turn very dangerous. In some places it is only 2 to 3 meters wide – depending on the snow cover – and it is very steep 😀