We were now into the home stretch of the hike. We had one more view of the spectacular Trient glacier as we headed up the mountain - snow and cold weather awaited us. Back in France tonight.
Hiking - Day Eight
Trient to Argentiere
Distance - 16kms
Height Gain - 665m
Height Loss - 841m
High Point - Col de Balme (2,191m - 7,200ft)
Notes - The weather was changing and cold air was moving in. You could see the snow on the top of the mountains. We would soon be hiking in snow and mud as we climbed to the top of the Col de Balme.
Hiking - Day Nine
Argentiere to Chamonix
Distance - 16kms
Height Gain - 525m
Height Loss 350m
High Point - Refuge La Flegere (1,875m - 6,800ft)
Notes - Hiking threw forests along the top of the valley. Chamonix in the distance. Climbing over the top of the pass using a serious of ladders and ropes, a bit scary....
There were two routes to get to our next destination. One route involved scaling the pass in a series of ladders that were attached to the rock face. They were pretty secure, but the bottom line was if you slipped - you were probably going to be seriously hurt or worse.
You meet all kinds of people hiking the Tour du Mont Blanc. We met this hiker at the top of the pass, could this be Santa Claus ?
Hiking - Day Ten
Chamonix to Les Houches
Distance - 12kms
Height Gain - 640m
Height Loss 350m
High Point - Parc Merlet (1,700m - 5,600ft)
Notes - Snow and high winds at the top forced us to complete the hike to Les Houches on the lower trail - Petit Balcon.
We started our TMB hike in Les Houches which is just outside Chamonix. To complete the TMB, we needed to finish our hike in Les Houches. With the weather forecast saying gale force winds and heavy precipitation at the top, we were forced to complete our hike in the lower valley. The trail we followed was called the Petit Balcon. The 12kms of trails we hiked were made much more challenging by strong winds and a steady rain. We finished exhausted and totally wet - but relieved that we had actually completed the Tour du Mont Blanc.
I had said in a previous blog "This trip is about enjoying the magnificent views of the Mount Blanc massif - and a fair bit of survival". The scenery and magnificent views were totally amazing - but the only way to see these views was to accept the challenge of each day's hike. Hiking 185kms (115miles) in the Alps with varying weather and trail conditions - was a challenge. Yes, at times it seemed like I was just trying to make it over the next pass and survive - but the incredible views and the support we all showed each other kept all of us going. Looking for a challenging hike in the mountains - the Tour du Mont Blanc would be a worthy choice.....
Thanks for following me. Up next - Antarctica and the Easter Islands.
Lance