Historians have questioned Duhamel's remarks about his ski trials in 1878 because he only claimed to have conducted them in late 1908, when skiing reached its first peak of popularity. The first winter ascent of the Croix de Belledonne in snowshoes cannot be attributed to Henry Duhamel. Photographic evidence exists that the first such ascent was conducted by Maurice Allotte of la Fuye on 23 February 1890.