The Aiguille du Dru, known as Les Drus, is a striking mountain within the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps. It stands to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley. The name "Aiguille" translates to "needle" in English, which is fitting given the mountain's sharp, needle-like appearance.
The Aiguille du Dru is composed of two main summits - Grande Aiguille du Dru (or the Grand Dru) which is the higher of the two at 3,754m above sea level and the Petite Aiguille du Dru (or the Petit Dru), the lower summit at 3,733m above sea level. These two summits are part of a long ridge connected to the Aiguille Verte and are separated by the Brèche du Dru. The north face of the Petit Dru is renowned as one of the six great north faces of the Alps.
The first ascent of the Grand Dru was on September 12, 1878, by the British alpinists Clinton Thomas Dent and James Walker Hartley, along with guides Alexander Burgener and Kaspar Maurer. They climbed it via the south-east face. The Petit Dru was first ascended the following year, on August 29, 1879, by Jean-Esteril Charlet, Prosper Payot, and F. Follignet via the south face and the south-west ridge.
The Dru are legendary for their stunning beauty and significant mountaineering history. They offer a variety of severe climbing routes, which used to include the “Bonatti Pillar" on the southwest face, named after the great Walter Bonatti who first ascended it. However, the pillar collapsed after repeated landslides between June and September 2005. The mountain's granite composition and the absence of extensive snow fields make it a unique and continuously engaging climb but the melting of the permafrost in the mountain causes parts of the face to collapse.