No bus transfer to the trailhead for us this morning! Instead, we started with a mile hike on the road outside of Les Contamines and rejoined the trail in La Chapelle. The climbing began from there through the trees. Once we reached the junction at Le Chosal though, our guide selected an alternative route than planned which featured less elevation up and down (rather than heading up to Col de Tricot). At first, I was a little disappointed since climbing is my strength, but I later appreciated the change because my right quad was quite angry on any slight downhill section – I don’t know that I could have handled another long, steep mountain descent at that point.
So, we changed course to hike across the mountain on a narrow trail through pastures just above a couple of small towns, including La Gruvaz, Le Champel, and Bionnassay (we didn’t see any other people here – only cows and sheep). Then, we hit a technical uphill stretch with lots of step ups through large rocks and tree roots. Just as I was about to climb a metal ladder near the end of this section, my left boot caught on a rock and the upper exterior lining ripped straight across (the exact same thing happened while I was hiking in Patagonia when my boot caught a sharp tree branch on the ground). Thankfully, this happened on Day 6 instead of Day 1!
We finally made it through this technical section when we reached Passerelle du Glacier (5,643 feet). Le sigh, now it was time to descend. Soon, we crossed the suspension bridge at the foot of the Bionnassay glacier and then found a shady spot for our last picnic lunch with a view by the Mont Blanc tramway.
We didn’t have much hiking left after lunch, but as Kurt noted, the trail never gets easier.
After my boot-scoot-boogie down the rocks, we were surprised to find several horses blocking the path on quite a narrow section of trail. Ron nearly got kicked by one of the horses, and I stepped uphill off the trail with the intention of not moving until the horses cleared the trail. Thankfully, our guide was eventually able to shoo them along so that we could proceed with the final stretch of our hike (allez, allez!).
Once we emerged from the trail to the tramway, I knew the end was just a few meters over the hill. I could finally breathe a sigh of relief and appreciate our journey. Today’s hike was approximately 14k with an elevation gain/loss of +3,089 feet/-1,007 feet.
We stopped at La Chalette refuge (5,906 feet) for celebratory drinks before taking the cable car down to Les Houches. I’ve decided that my preferred hike is to climb uphill and take a gondola down.
From Les Houches, we took a public bus to Chamonix. And, we were reunited with all of our bags back at our original hotel from when we arrived over a week earlier.
We quickly showered, caught up on UTMB live race coverage, and then went to watch top finishers coming in. It was very much a Tour de France like atmosphere with large crowds lining the final section of the race course into the finishing chute, race announcers, music, and large TV screens. Spanish athlete, Kilian Jornet, finished a couple of hours earlier, setting a new course record in the process. However, we were able to watch the top female, Katie Schide (USA), come through the finish.
We said goodbye to our tour guide and fellow hikers over dinner back at the hotel. Some were returning home, while others were continuing on with their travels. Tomorrow, we head to Africa!
You guys look so professional! Stay well, stay safe. Love, Dad and Julie
It’s been an awesome trip so far.
Hoping Africa is just as wonderful.