And here we were, the last day of the trek and the weather was very much not cooperating. The forecast? Clouds, wind, rain. I did not see that little sun icon on my phone. Ah, so what. What’s another rainy hike up 5,000 feet? The day was pretty basic: we had a big climb …
Continue reading Mont Blanc 2.0: Day 4. Rain, fog, wind and then. . . Italy!
This was a big day. The trek would take us 13 miles over terrain that wasn’t much like the horrible, terrible descent from day two. It was more undulating and wide open. At the end, our accommodations for the night were at a refuge with no wi-fi and barely any cell service. That’s a lot …
I don’t think I can express the joy of seeing the sun shining on our second day. But there it was, peeking out from behind a mountain peak. Itinerary for the day was an eight-mile trek, which included two big climbs. But part of it was also a stop on a ridge, the Col de …
Continue reading Mont Blanc 2.0 – Day 2: Sushine and 360-degree views on a ridge
Welcome back to Mont Blanc. In 2023, I hiked the valleys around the eastern façade of this beautiful Mont Blanc mountain range. The trek: two nights in Italy, two nights in Switzerland, two nights in France amidst bucolic villages with waterfalls, steep climbs, panoramas of snow-capped mountains. You get the idea. Read all about it …
The last day of this fabulous adventure arrived. We had one more big climb, one more day looking at some of the most breathtaking and spectacular scenery I’ve ever seen. And the weather was perfect. This was the best day - warm and sunny and we hiked along a balcony path that paralleled several Mont …
Continue reading Mont Blanc Trek: Day 6. We end in Chamonix on a beautiful, sunny day
Today we left Switzerland and hiked to France. And it was a doozy. We hiked straight up to Col du Balme, a high mountain pass that sits on the border of Switzerland and France. We were up about 7,200 feet. We left charming Trient on a relatively warm morning. But, as anyone who hikes mountainous regions …
Continue reading Mont Blanc Trek – Day 5. Hiking from Switzerland to France way up high!
The fourth day of the trek brought us to a beautiful little village called Trient, still in Switzerland. We hiked 12 miles and it was a great day. A highlight was lunch at the Auberge Bovine. “Auberge” means :small inn” in France. This place was in the middle of a pasture, up 6,500 feet, and …
Continue reading Mont Blanc Trek: Day 4. Lunch in a pasture and a stop in Trient, Switzerland
The third day of our fabulous Mont Blanc trek brought the best news yet: no more rain. It was cold that Tuesday morning. But it wasn’t raining. Nor sleeting. Nor snowing. We left La Fouly, Switzerland, and hiked to Champex-Lac, still in Switzerland, 11 miles away. The morning after the stormy day, getting ready to …
Continue reading Mont Blanc Trek – Day 3: A walk through Swiss villages and a night at the lake
The second day of the trek turned into a day without much trekking. Our guide Neil told us the night before that the weather was going to be bad today. I thought “Hmm, that’s OK. I’ve got my layers, I’ve got a good rain jacket…” What I didn’t bring were rain pants nor a pair …
Continue reading Mont Blanc Trek: Day 2. A cold, rainy, snowy morning upends plans.
Did you ever go on a vacation and then come home and start looking at photos and think, “What? Did we really do that?” That’s pretty much what I’ve been doing since I got back from trekking around Mont Blanc, the massive mountain range with parts in France, Italy and Switzerland. Its highest point is …
Continue reading Trekking around Mont Blanc: Six days of Spectacular Views, Challenging Climbs
1cannolo, 2cannoli 