Tourists walk in the ice cave of the 'Mer de Glace' glacier, at the Montenvers station in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)
CHAMONIX, France (AP) — Tourists visit France’s shrinking Mer de Glace glacier, where tarps slow melting as record summer heat thaws Alpine permafrost, triggers rockfalls and makes routes up Mont Blanc increasingly dangerous.
Tourists look at the Mont-Blanc massif mountains and the ‘Mer de Glace’ glacier at the Montenvers station in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)A tourist enjoys the view on the Mont-Blanc massif mountains from the Aiguille du Midi, in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)Tourists reflected in glass view the Mont-Blanc massif mountains from the Aiguille du Midi, in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)People travel in the Montenvers cable cars over the ‘Mer de glace’ glacier, in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)An Alpine chough sits on a roof at the Aiguille du Midi, in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)Tarpaulins cover the ice cave of the ‘Mer de Glace’ glacier to prevent it from melting, at the Montenvers station in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)The Mont-Blanc massif mountains are seen from the Aiguille du Midi in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)The Mont-Blanc massif mountains are seen from the Aiguille du Midi in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)A tourist enjoys the view on the Mont-Blanc massif mountains from the Aiguille du Midi, in Chamonix, France, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)
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