Day 2: Damn windy pass again!
I remember last year a storm was approaching the pass when we made it up and so we were greeted by a crazy wind. This year the weather was perfect and on the pass it was… still super windy.
Day 1: Glad to be back
Imagine walking through a quiet forest, which occasionally opens the views of majestic mountains surrounding you. You know that tomorrow you’ll have those views all the time, but today you are teased by the trail.
Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB)
Tour du Mont Blanc (also known as TMB) is a circular trek around Massif of iconic Mont Blanc taking you through three countries: France, Italy and Switzerland. Pretty nice, right? It was indeed a spectacular hike.
TMB day 9: Never ending descents
Our final day! Mixed feelings about it as the prospect of ditching the backpack and sleeping in a nice comfy bed was very tempting, but I also started already missing the views I’ve been surrounded with in the past 8 days.
TMB day 8: The highest refuge on the trail
Only two days left! Originally this stage ends in Refuge La Flegere, which also supposedly allows camping next to it. It was closed this year, so we had to figure out an alternative. While in Tre-le-Champ I called Refuge Du Lac Blanc to see if they have some space and they did, so our itinerary was approved.
TMB day 7: Take the alternative and the terror hill
Today we decided to take the alternative route via Refuge Les Grands as it seemed to be more scenic and less crowded. It turned out to be absolutely true. We met only a few people (3 to be precise), walked with a view of at least two glaciers and had lunch in a super cute refuge.
TMB day 6: Very modest corner of Switzerland
After a guide from one of the private groups also told us that Fenetre d’Arpette is a definite no no, especially since we are carrying big backpacks, we chose the regular route.
TMB day 5: Getting lost once in a while
Today is the last day of combining two TMB stages into one and so the last relatively long day. We said goodbye to the spectacular views at Rifugio Elena and moved on towards Grand Col Ferret (2537m).
TMB day 4: Our first stay in a rifugio
Today we finally got to experience what it is like to stay in a mountain hut: rooms with +30 fellow hikers, bunk beds and a hearty dinner with everyone.
TMB day 3: Best food on the trail
The morning started on a fun note with hikers sharing survival experiences with the fellow “lucky” ones camping. We did not sleep a lot but could not linger too much as a long day was waiting ahead. Today we are combining two stages from the original Cicerone itinerary.
TMB day 2: It’s so beautiful here & hold the tent!
This was one of my favourite sections of the whole hike. Our backs recovered from yesterday and we were ready to conquer the trail again. We were getting used to the weight and the hiking sticks turned into best trail friends. We might actually be able to pull this off.
TMB day 1: A better alternative & my poor back
Here we go! It’s 6:30 AM and we are ready to kick off the TMB, which officially starts in the centre of Les Houches (yes, it actually has a starting point). We walked there all the way from the parking lot to find out that we missed a turn in the trail and needed to go back…