Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 8 - Relais d'Arpette to Hotel Col de la Forclaz

Distance: 12km, with a 1000m climb
Time: 9 hours
Cost: 63 CHF (room and board at Gîte d'alpage de La Peule)

We were told this is the hardest stretch on the Tour de Mont Blanc, and it did turn out to be pretty difficult. The gentle climb that started just after we left Relais d'Arpette became steeper and steeper until we were scrambling over loose boulders and up what felt like 45 degree banks to reach the Fenêtre d'Arpette.

Our climb was complicated by inconsistent weather conditions that in turn delivered rain, fog, wind and rare glimpses of blue sky to urge us onward. When we finally arrived at the fenêtre we were greeted by cold winds and rain. Though the view was surprisingly lovely, given the weather, we decided not to linger there long.

The 1000m descent took us 5 hours, most of it under unexpectedly sunny skies. We took our time to descend safely and stopped often to enjoy views of the impressive Trient Glacier.

We arrived at the Hotel Col de la Forclaz just before the thunderstorms started. The hotel is a sprawling maze of dorms and stairwells and seems to not have been renovated since the 70s. Though it's busier than I would prefer - it's located just up the hill from the bustling village of Trient - it seems quiet and cozy enough. And of course it feels good to be inside and out of the rain.

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 7: Gîte d'alpage de La Peule to Relais d'Arpette

Distance: 24km
Time: 8 hours
Cost: 67 CHF (room and board at Relais d'Arpette)

After stopping short of a full leg the day before, we made up for the difference the next day. We completed the full leg for day 7 in our Tour de Mont Blanc guidebook and hiked an additional couple of kilometers to Relais d'Arpette.

Having enjoyed 6 straight days of glorious sunshine, we finally encountered our first bout of rain this day (which, happily enough, turned out to the the only rain we endured on the trail for the entire hike). It began just after we left La Peule and continued in a steady downpour until we reached la Fouly an hour and a half later. Thankfully the rain dried up just as we were hiking out of La Fouly and the sun came out. It remained fairly sunny for the rest of our extra-long hike - though it did begin raining again just after we checked into Relais d'Arpette.

As things go, it wasn't a bad day to deal with rain, most of the day we descended into the valley on wide paths, and there weren't any vistas to take in. We did pass many pretty, clear bubbling streams, shady forested stretches and picturesque Swiss Villages. We had a very nice stay at Relais d'Arpette where we were served a dinner of vegetable soup, beef stew, and dessert.

 

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 6 - Rifugio Bonatti to Gîte d'alpage de La Peule

Distance: 13km
Time: 5.5 hours
Cost: 62 CHF (room and board at Gîte d'alpage de La Peule)

Our sixth day on the Tour de Mont Blanc was a pretty short day, though the 13km we covered included a bit of a grind of a climb from Val Ferret to Grand Col Ferret (1784m to 2537m) where we crossed into Switzerland.

 

We stayed the night at the Gîte d'alpage de La Peule. While it at first seemed comparatively small and rustic compared to the other refuges we'd encountered, it quickly found a place in my heart and became my second favourite refuge of the hike. It had the requisite lovely view, was quiet and comfortable and the dorms were roomy and airy (most of the dorms we stayed in were a bit on the stuffy side). As the gîte is located on a working dairy farm, the food, which featured their own milk and cheeses, was extra fresh and delicious. For dinner we had salad, croque madame and fruit salad and the breakfast they served in the morning was hands-down the best breakfast of the hike.

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 5: Rifugio Bertone to Rifugio Bonatti (via Mont de la Saxe option)

Distance: ?
Time: 6 hours
Cost: 48 euros (room and board at Rifugio Bonatti)

On our fifth day on the Tour de Mont Blanc, we took one of the optional routes and gained an extra 500m of elevation so that we could take in an amazing panoramic view from Tête de la Tranche of the south wall of the Mont Blanc range from Col de la Seigne to the Grand Col Ferret.

We stayed the night at Rifugio Bonatti which had a spectacular and relatively close-up view of the mountains across the valley. They served us a humongous dinner of salad, soup with cheese and croutons, meatballs with peppers, mashed potatoes and chocolate tart.

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 4: Rifugio Elisabetta to Rifugio Bertone

Distance: 22km
Time: 10 hours (including a leisurely lunch in Courmeyeur)
Cost: 60 euros (room and board at Refuge de Nant Borrant)

The highlight of our fourth day on the Tour de Mont Blanc was the morning hike across Val Veni, which was stunning beautiful in the morning light. A great start to a fairly easy day, though we did tackle 2 climbs. The first was a 400m  climb up from Val Veni to Mont Favre Spur which, though short, was pretty steep. The second was from the resort town of Courmeyeur up to the lovely Rifugio Bertone, my favourite refuge of the all the refuges we stayed at on the TMB.

The climb up to Bertone was very steep, but the well worth it. The views from the patio of the rifugio were out of this world. We also enjoyed having reliable wifi access for the first time on the hike and a topped off the evening with a terrific dinner of pasta, polenta, sausage, ratatouille and creme anglaise.

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 3: Refuge des Mottets to Rifugio Elisabetta

Distance: 9.5
Time: 4 hours
Cost: 55 euros (room and board at Rifugio Elisabetta)

Our third day on the Tour de Mont Blanc started with a 700m climb up from Des Mottets to Col de la Seigne where we crossed into Italy.  It was a bit of a grind, but it was over soon enough. As it was still early in the day, we enjoyed a nice long break at Col de la Seigne, and took a short detour on our descent into Val Veni to view the neighbouring valley.

We arrived at Rifugio Elisabetta early in the day with enough time to do a bit of laundry and have a relaxing afternoon.  We treated ourselves to a pasta and beer lunch - sausage and tagliatelle for me and gnocchi for Amy. It was a big lunch, but we still managed to make room for dinner that evening. Mmmmm, pasta!

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 2: Refuge de Nant Borrant to Refuge des Mottets

Distance: 14km, 1500m elevation gain
Time: 9 hours
Cost: 55 euros (room and board at Refuge des Mottets)

Our second day on the Tour de Mont Blanc was shorter, but man, was it a all buster! We hiked up 3 passes - Col du Bonhomme, Col de la Croix, and Col des Fours - climbed 1500m and descended 700m! The passes were covered in snow (unusual for this time of year) but the temperature still manged to climb to a balmy 30+ degrees under a hot sun. We both got nasty sunburns.

Des Mottets where we're ending our night is isolated but very comfortable and well-serviced. For dinner they served us veggie soup, tomato salad, cheese, beef stew with rice and aubergines and creme caramel for dessert.

Tour de Mont Blanc, Day 1: Les Houches to Refuge de Nant Borrant

Distance: 20km
Time: 6.5 hours
Cost: 41 euros (room and board at Refuge de Nant Borrant)

We had hoped to hit the trail on our first day on the Tour de Mont Blanc much earlier, but my late arrival in Geneva - 1 day later than expected - meant that rather than waking up fresh and rested in Les Houches and starting our hike bright and early, we began the hike at 2pm in the afternoon, as soon as I arrived in Les Houches by shuttle bus after arriving on a red-eye flight that morning.

To cut ourselves some slack, we shortened what would have been a 23km hike to a 20km hike by taking the cable car from Les Houches to Col de Vozza. This also saved us a 600m elevation gain, which made for a much gentler start.

Beginning our hike around Chamonix initially gave us a false sense of what was to be expected in terms of services and amenities on the trail. For the first few kilometres it seemed like there was a restaurant and public restroom around every corner. This petered out as the day went on, by the 2nd day we found it was wise to keep track of potential spots for rest stops. What did continue was the spectacular views and the exceptional condition of the trails.

All-in-all it wasn't too difficult a start to our hike - though I might have felt different if we'd hiked out of Les Houches instead of taking the cable car. We ended the day's journey at Nant Bourrant, which has a lovely view. I was served a dinner of pea soup with cheese, potatoes au gratin, sausage and apple pie and Amy had soup, salad and rice with a piece of fruit for dessert. Delish!