Moment French skier falls into massive crevasse in French Alps

Heart-pounding footage shows the moment an experienced skier fell into a crevasse that suddenly formed while he was skiing in the French Alps - before wedging his skis into the side of the seemingly bottomless sinkhole to escape certain death. 

Filmed in the first-person by the anonymous member of French skiing group Les Powtos, the truly terrifying video was posted on Tuesday, and has already garnered hundreds of thousands of views.

It shows how while traversing an adept path on the famously difficult Meije mountain, the veteran skier - who asked to remain anonymous - happens upon the hole, and within seconds finds himself plummeting toward total darkness.

It begins with him gliding down the steep slope of the 13,000-foot mountain while taking in the surrounding scenery - before the hole suddenly forms from underneath him.

Thankfully, the unnamed skier - who 'has a lot of experience and who has practiced mountaineering and ski mountaineering for a long time' - survived, and had a GoPro mounted that captured the ordeal. Onlookers are remarking how lucky he is to have escaped with his life.

The clip begins as does dozens of others posted by the seasoned French skier - with him gliding down the slope of the 13,000-foot mountain while taking in the surrounding scenery

However, within seconds, the hole suddenly forms in snow directly under the Frenchman - who had a GoPro mounted that captured the ensuing ordeal, and how he wedges skis into the side of the seemingly bottomless sinkhole  to escape certain death

'Fortunately,' wrote the group's Instagram page Tuesday of how he was pulled out by his friends with a rope and harness, 'we were all well equipped.'

The group recounted the painstaking lengths they took to rescue him - using crampons, pick axes, and shovels, to 'help him get out completely.'

The operation reportedly took hours, but thankfully saw the skier pulled to safety - and out of the glacier's icy depths. 

But the footage left countless commenters online speechless, and is likely to leave others hesitant to trust the structural integrity of snow ever again.

Lasting just 22 seconds, the footage starts relatively peacefully, offering first-person, panoramic views of the surrounding mountains.

At fist skiing unhindered, the anonymous man comes upon the deceptive hole in a matter of seconds, with the crevasse materializing out of nowhere and completely enveloping the veteran skiier.

But as the snow and solid land crumbles around him, the Frenchman manages to keep his cool - calmly using his skis to slow his fall as he slides down a near-vertical slope into what appears to be an endless pit.

'Oh le con!' he can be heard shouting as he slides down the steep glacier, a phrase that in English roughly translates to, 'I'm an idiot'.

Lasting just 22 seconds, the footage starts with Powtos skiing unhindered, before coming upon the deceptive hole in a matter of seconds

The crevasse materials seemingly out of nowhere, completely enveloping the veteran skier

However, as the snow and solid land crumbles around him, the Frenchman somehow managed to keep his cool, the video shows

He survived by calmly using his skis to slow his fall as he slides down a near-vertical slope - into what appears to be an endless pit

The truly terrifying video was posted this past Tuesday, and has already garnered hundreds of thousands of views

As the video shows, his strategy to slow his fall somehow works - leaving him barely able to find his footing on a thin ledge.

At that point, after wedging his skis into a small crevice, he is able to slow to a complete stop.  

The skier then peers over into the pit that came so close to claiming his life, and into the darkness below. 

With the help of his companions, the group told DailyMail.com Friday, the skier was able to use pickaxes and crampons to climb out – thankfully having the tools in his backpack.

Talk about a close call.