Trekking Mont Blanc

The Trek

This eight day hike circled around the famous Mont Blanc, the highest peak in the Alps. The trail is known as the TMB, Tour du Mont Blanc. We kicked off in Chamonix, France and hiked the loop through France, Italy and Switzerland and back to Chamonix. This was my third time traveling with G-Adventures, after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and traveling through South East Asia the past few summers. G-adventures is a travel company that does tours around the world. I like traveling with them because of their emphasis on local businesses and their support for local non-profits.

The Team

Our G-adventures leader, Becki, was an expert mountain guide and knew every twist and turn of the trail from her many trips around the TMB. She was filled with knowledge of the flora and fauna, the various refuges around the trek, the routes and variations of the trail, and even took amazing photos of our group. She had a way of notifying us throughout the hike that we’d soon be encountering a “gentle climb” which we came to know really meant a significant mountain.

My six fellow hikers came from around the world, and included Mattie and Joy, friends from Vermont; Matt, an ER doctor from the DC area; Laura and Tristan; a couple from New Zealand traveling for the next year; and Christina, a nurse and mom from Norway. I was so appreciative to share the hike with this team. They were hilarious, intelligent and supportive. What good luck to take this trip with this crew.

The Arrival

I arrived on a Flixbus from Zurich in the midafternoon of our meeting day for the hike. Stepping off the bus, I looked up and saw the massive Mont Blanc in front of me. The peek was covered in snow and the Alps sprawled in all directions. Wow! We’re going to hike this?

I dropped my bag in the Hotel Gustavia in Chamonix, France and wandered around town. The place was clearly in its summer high season for tourists and the streets were bustling. There were serious climbers with ropes, harnesses and ice axes attached to their bags; backpackers and day hikers sweaty and dusty from the day; and others in fashionable street clothes that weren’t walking further than from the base of the cable car to the fancy restaurants. The diverse crowd strolled the pedestrian only streets; filled water bottles in the fountains, ate gelato and browsed souvenirs in the many stores.

The evening before the hike, our group met together for the first time. Becki, our leader, introduced herself and went over the route and the plans. She talked over the gear, the weather, the safety, and accommodations along the way. We each shared a bit about ourselves and then together walked to a dinner out in Chamonix. On the way I picked up a new pair of rain pants, knowing full well that crossing my fingers to ward off rain wouldn’t work forever.  

The First Hike

We hiked out of Chamonix and took a bus to our starting point in Les Houches. From the highway we kicked off the adventure with a cable car up and into the Alps. I was awestruck with the far-reaching views and the seemingly endless ups and downs of the mountains.

The first stretch of path rounded the mountain through tall pine trees. One side of the path curved up the side of the mountain, while the other sloped down grassy and wildflower covered hills. Most of the path was wide enough for comfort but a few edgy bits had me nervous.

We had several stunning views of the famous Mont Blanc, the tallest peak in the European Alps and our center point for this trek. After a few zig zags around the face of this mountain, we crossed to the next hill over a suspension bridge. Below the bridge, the water raging over the boulders was a beautiful azure blue. Coming down over the ridge we descended into a green valley. The busy bumble bees buzzed around the purples flowers on the sides of the path.

We had a lunch break at the “Refuge de Miage” on an outdoor patio with a view of the mountains across the valley. A waterfall came down from the glacier and spilled into the stream that curved around a pasture of cows grazing. I fueled up with a cheese omelet and cup of coffee to continue the rest of the hike in the afternoon; another 12 km or so until our lodging for the night.

After lunch, we had another significant ascent and descent to reach the town of Les Contamine – Montjoie. Walking through the old village, first established in the 1700s, and now a summer and winter recreational area, my feet were getting tired of wearing boots and my toes were done with the downhill. Just past the main camping area, I popped my head into the old church, Notre-Dame-de-la-Gorge built from 1699-1707. Just past the church, the road ended and the path continued up the river and then up the mountain some more to our first refuge of the trip. Right after I dropped my pack and kicked off my boots, I had a nice glass of wine with a mountain view.

Daily Hikes

Each day we averaged over twenty kilometers on the trek. Everyday had a significant ascent and descent as we rounded the mountains around Mont Blanc.

The ascents were intense, gaining almost a vertical kilometer every day. The switchbacks crossed the mountainside to reduce the incline and making the trek posible. Theses ascents were quite challenging, despite considering myself physically fit. I was huffing and puffing all the way up those hills. Most ascents climbed from the valley floor up to the col, the saddle where two mountains meet. One particularly intense ascent took us from low valley up and over the Italian-Swiss border. I took two longer rest stops on the way and just sat to take in the view of the valley stretching below me. It’s worth it to slow down and soak in these views.

The great part of the descents is the amazing views are right in front of you; but you also have to watch the path too. The descents were painful in a different way. On the downhill, the knees and ankles took a beating and for a while, I thought I’d lose my big toenail from the impact inside my boot. Using hiking poles helped with the stability and to reduce the impact.

My favorite afternoon descent was from the our 2400m lunch spot at the Bonhomme Refuge down almost a vertical kilometer to the refuge for the night. We were chilly on the windy patio of the lunch spot as we laced up our boots. Over the next several hours we would carefully trek down the trail around the rolling hills and the mountain streams as they tumbled down into the valleys.  

I appreciated the occasional flat stretches across the valleys. Here we caught up with sheep grazing and heard the clanking of cow bells. Looking out ahead we could see the next rise of the mountains in our future.

In a few stretches we encountered some snow that had persisted into late summer. This happened especially between higher mountain areas that didn’t receive many hours of sun. We hiked right across these snowy areas because our guide knew they were on solid ground. Dangerous situations could occur if the snow gave away and there wasn’t ground underneath. Thankfully, however, most of the snow that we saw on the trek was looking up at the snow covered peaks and the glaciers sliding down the mountain sides.

Throughout all the daily hikes, my pace was a bit slower than the rest of the group. I considered myself in fairly good condition but this group was speedy. While in the back, I took my time turning around to see the view in all directions and to snap lots of pictures of the landscape and the flowers. Our group was kind, waiting for me and sometimes hanging back to support a slower hiker. Really I was in great spirits back there and enjoying the whole journey.

Over the course of eight days, this hike looped around three countries; France, Italy, Switzerland and back to France. Because these countries are all in the Schengen area, there’s no passport or visa check when crossing from one to the other. Plus, what officials would want to hike up to the col, between the mountains, to stamp all those passports? We encountered one Italian official just before the climb up to the col, but he only checked our guide’s credentials as a trail leader.

Between our nightly refuges, we stopped for lunch in some pretty amazing places. Sometimes we packed a sandwich and ate our lunch with amazing views of the mountains. We stopped for a hot lunch at the chilly Refuge de la Croix de Bonhomme for some warm lentil and veggie soup with “tomme,” or cheese. Here it was smart to get out of the cold wind for a bit before continuing the hike. My favorite lunch stop was the sixth day at the “Bovine,” way up on the top of the mountain. A dozen cows sat on the grassy ridge to greet the hikers. This refuge received all their supplies by helicopter because there wasn’t a road up there. Even so they made the most delicious “rosti au fromage,” cheesy potato hash browns.

Mostly we had delightful weather, but one morning we had a bit of a thunderstorm scare. With the mountains the weather is challenging to predict so Becki used three different weather apps. After leaving Courmayeur we knew that a potential thunderstorm was likely coming through. While taking a quick coffee break at the Refuge Bertone, we had our rain gear ready and our group decided to change our intended route for a lower wrap around the mountain, rather than up and over. When the rain hit, we threw on the raingear under the cover of some pine trees. We picked up the pace through the open stretches as the lightning was a little too close for comfort. Fortunately, we were spared and the brunt of the storm crossed over to the other valley. My new rain pants also did the trick and I stayed very dry. We reached the Bonatti Tut early because of the storm and I enjoyed the extra time at the refuge to journal, read and sip of glass of wine.

The Lodging

Upon arriving at each of our nightly lodges, I took a warm shower and had a glass of wine. Sitting down and enjoying the view was a great way to celebrate the day’s successful hike.

Each refuge had a special room for everyone’s stinky, dirty hiking books. After hiking, we swapped our smelly, heavy boots for a pair of clean, lightweight crocs to wear around the lodge. You can imagine how the boot room smelled after a while.

Our group bunked up together with the bunk beds tucked close together and our packs sprawled out on the floor. Each evening we elevated our feet for the “leg drain” after the long hikes. With the whole group in one bunk room, I was happy that I packed my eye mask and ear plugs.

Dinner and breakfast at the refuges were all included. In the evenings, we ate together family-style with delicious foods over several courses. One evening we had veggie soup with French cheese, sauce and potatoes al gratin, and apple pie. Another dinner in Italy included veggie soup with bread, pork cheek with tomato sauce, local cheese and custard for dessert. At the lodging “La Grande Ourse” in Switzerland we dined on chicken broth soup, chicken curry with rice and panna cotta with berries. Scrumptious.

The Adventures on Our Rest Day

Midway through the hike we had a “zero” day in Courmayeur, Italy. The idea of a rest day is to relax and let your body recover before resuming the hike. Our group wasn’t much for sitting still so we went whitewater rafting by day and a street party in the town by night.

To arrive in Courmayeur, we took a strenuous 25 km hike and went right to the gelato shoppe as we entered, as smelly as we were at that point. I returned again later to sample more the flavors. Yum. We also ate at an Italian restaurant, sharing salads and pizza at our table.

After a full hotel breakfast we grabbed a bus to the whitewater rafting company. Signing the waiver, suiting up in the wet suits and going over the safety measures in case we flip out of the boat freaked me out and I got a bit anxious about the rapids. Once we were on the water, I felt more at ease. The most intense rapids we encountered were III to IV+ and the waves were really manageable. It probably helped that the guide had a set of massive oars in the middle of the boat.

Our time on the river flew by as we paddled our way through the rapids. Full sprays of frigid water stunned by face and I appreciated wearing a full body wetsuit. Even though the weather was warm in July, the river water came from the glacial runoff. Right at the end, I saw our raft approaching a massive drop off and my heart froze. Luckily, the ledge was smooth and the boat floated right over the ledge and into the water below.

In the afternoon, I should have been resting my legs but instead I took a wander around Courmayeur. The town is absolutely picturesque: filled with two, three, four story buildings, painted tan with dark wooden trim, their balconies with window sills overflowing with geraniums. The Alps tower above in all directions. I walked, soaking in all the views, and of course, ate more gelato.

All day, the residents of Courmayeur were gearing up for the town’s annual celebration for San Pantaleone. As a part of the street festival, everyone purchased decorative wooden plates to wear as a necklace while they visited the food stands. In the late afternoon, the streets were filled with joyful energy as hikers, tourists, and locals, many families and children, started to line up for the route. The first stand handed out bubbly glasses of champagne. Next, we queued for bread, cheese and a glass of wine. After, we followed the route down a smaller alley for baked potato and three different types of cheese, with more wine. While at the stand with bowls of risotto with blue cheese, with more wine, I thought ahead to tomorrow’s early morning hike, but sipped it anyway. We continued for minestrone soup, prepared in an enormous vat, and we were served yet another glass of wine. After chicken wings with wine, we went to the tent with polenta and sausage. I tried going for the glass of water but after an unintelligible conversation in Italian with an old man, I was sent off with another glass of wine. That hike tomorrow morning was going to be a tough one! We ended the night with torta, gelato and grappa, a grape-based brandy typical to the region. The town center was filled with people dancing in the street, with traditional bands down the street from the electronic DJs, eurotechno mixing with with traditional polka numbers.

The Last Hike

My body must have known it was our last day of hiking: our final trek down from the mountains. My knee was hurting, my calf was sore and I was certain that a blister was forming on my heel. Our last hike had the most incline of any of the previous days but the last views of the beautiful mountains and valleys were beyond worth it. The hike brought us from Switzerland, up and over the col, and down into the Chamonix, France valley.

We took a different route to include more summit with some final incredible views. We hoofed it over a ridge with valleys on both sides and a full frontal view of Mont Blanc and the glaciers coming down from across the valley. I took it all in as I ate the final ham and cheese sandwich and protein bar of the trip. The final descent was slow to protect those aching knees and to avoid twisting an ankle. Once we hit the main road, we took a bus with a bunch of smelly hikers and climbers back to Chamonix, stopping for gelato before walking back to the hotel for hot showers.

I pulled some clean clothes from my bag and picked out two patches to add to my collection and to commemorate the hike. Our group enjoyed one last dinner together at a microbrewery with burgers and beer before everyone parted ways for our flights the next morning.

I am full of appreciation after this successful trip. I am thankful for the expert guidance and friendship with our leader Becki and for landing with such a fun, supportive team of hikers. I am appreciative for having a healthy body that allows me to hike and climb to see such incredible views. And I’m thankful for the opportunity to travel across oceans, to visit new countries, to meet such incredible people and to take new adventures.