The Mont-Blanc range is not an extended one. It is fairly compact, which means that the distances are not very large. You won't have very long approaches. On the other hand, it is steep, has relatively high altitudes (there are a lot of climbs close to or above 4000m), and also large elevation differences. Thus, although the approaches are short, the climbs are rather long. You have to get used to this scale.

The highest mountain in Western Europe was first climbed on the 8th of August 1786 by a local crystal hunter, Jacques Balmat and a local doctor, Michel Gabriel Paccard. They claimed the prize money that Horace Benedict de Saussure had offered in 1760.

People had been trying for years but the breakthrough didn't come until the June of 1786 when Jacques Balmat was trapped out overnight on the glacier, AND SURVIVED; thereby destroying local myths and proving that a 2-day ascent was feasible.

Nowadays, in summer, their exploit is repeated by as many as 200 people a day. The speed record is held by the Swiss P.A. Gobet. He ran from the centre of Chamonix to the summit and back in 5hr 10min ! Most mortals take 2 days and use lifts and trains to cheat for the first few thousand metres !