THE TOUR OF MONT BLANC - X-RATED ARTICLE
There are gory bits which may put you off your next meal - and even the one after that - you have been warned!
It was hard to get any sleep as the coach from London Victoria vibrated along on the 19 hour journey to Chamonix. We, that is Karen, Lorna, Gareth and myself, left an overcast London to arrive to a sunny afternoon and clear views of the Alps. A trunderling train delivered us from Chamonix to Les Houches - the start of our 120 mile trek around Mont Blanc.
From Les Houches we climbed, rising through Alpine meadows with a plethora of wild flowers, we crossed cloudy melt water streams, met the toe of a glacier and eventually reached a Col. The path wound down to a small hamlet before rising over a valley side and down to Contamines. The sky turned dark and sheet lightning flashed across the valley as we walked to the Alpine Club Refuge. Here we were presented with sandals to wear - foot torture sandals designed to ensure that no one will walk away with them, not that we could have managed the extra weight - a courtesy shampoo sachet or mini bar of soap would have been too much.
That morning we breakfasted at a "patisserie", the nearest thing to a tea shop. We left at 12 noon having got through just a few pastries. Now Contamines is in a valley, as were most of the places we stayed on the trek. The problem is that the route is not a valley walk. It in fact involves over 33 000 feet of climb. Now Everest is only 29 000 feet high. Even Mont Blanc is less than 16 000 feet. We don't even reach the summit of the White Mountain on the trek, just go up, go down, go up and so on. That day we walked up to the Col de Bon Homme and a mountain refuge. A dreadlocked host greeted us with glasses of something alcoholic. As evening fell, mist filled the mountainscape (Karen thought she had had too steamy a shower). As morning came, the mist slowly cleared to reveal the surrounding peaks. We took a high route up to a Col and down a wide snow filled gully. Here the survival bag proved its worth. Stuffed with a rucksack, it makes an excellent sledge!
A zigzag path leads up the opposite side of the valley to the border with Italy and our first view of Mont Blanc. That night, we stayed at the Elizabetta Hut, where provisions are brought up in a trolley on a steel hauser and the water supply is variable. A useful tip is to try the taps first before brushing your teeth. I ended up with a foaming mouth and having to drink from the animal trough outside.
The next day was a day of drizzle, medium dense rain, and heavy rain. In fact, a vast amount of wetness. Lorna did the sensible thing and go a lift to Courmayeur where we stayed at Pensione Venezia. The following day Lorna took a high level route with Gareth. I walked with Karen along the valley road, we were due to meet up between 4.00 pm and 5.00 pm. At just after 4.00 pm I saw Gareth running - Lorna had cut here finger and damaged her right knee when leaping over a stream. A rock she had landed on had rolled and she fell against the rocks on the other side. She had dislocated a finger bone, but popped in back in place and folded back the skin, which was cut nearly three quarters the way around. Gareth bandaged her finger and carried her rucksack most of the way down the mountain. Lorna saw a doctor at Courmayeur and went to hospital at Aoste for an X-ray. Lorna was told that she could not continue the walk and returned to Chamonix, where she stopped at the Youth Hostel for a few days before returning home. We decided to carry on. Lorna seemed in good spirits and was coping well. There was little we could do.
The following day was one of those vast amounts of wetness days. We dried our clothes in front of a generator at the Refuge Helena before crossing the border to Switzerland. We stayed the night at Hotel des Glaciers (well, in their dortoir, the hotel was a touch expensive). Now in France and Italy breakfasts are continental, but in Switzerland you can get cornflakes!
Stoked up with complex carbohydrates we set off in the snow - yes this was June and we had snow. The trek led through villages rich in wood smoke. Mist rose from the valley floor separating the tree covered valley slopes from the rugged peaks above. At midday, the weather improved and we arrived at Champex in blazing sunshine. We munched ice creams by an ice cool lake. The weather held good on the following day too. From Champex we walked to Le Peuty and from Le Peuty to La Flegere, meeting the odd group and person who had news of Lorna on the way. The route up to La Flegere involved climbing steel ladders bolted to the rock face and staircases of logs spiked in place. From La Flegere we walked down and back to Les Houches. It was a bright clear day. We gained spectacular views of Mont Blanc and other rock massifs. It was a great relief to finish, and rest a day before returning home. In all the walk took us 10 days. The record is 17 hours.
Chris Hawkins