MOUNT BLANC...ONE OF THE GREAT TREKS OF THE WORLD

MOUNT BLANC RANGE WITH
GLACIERS RUNNING DOWN ITS SIDE

Now, if someone had said to me let's go climb the equivalent of Mount Everest, I would have laughed.... but that's exactly what our group did.
With 57,000 feet of elevation change, over the course of 100 miles in 10 days, we were about to embark on one of the great adventure treks. Luckily the altitude was usually under 7,000 feet, that's the big perk of hiking in the Alps, add in the dangling glaciers, with beckoning waterfalls, some as high as Yosemite's, and you have the magnificent Mount Blanc range of France, Italy and Switzerland. We had all signed up for the famous Chamonix to Chamonix trek, that included a guide, accommodations in 3 star hotels in the villages and some interesting room sharing in the mountain huts.

ANAND, LAURENE, VICKI

Our guide Vicki Chelton, was right out of Top Gun. A 38 year Phenom, she trotted from the front of the group to the back checking on everybody, hardly breaking a sweat. A master rock climber and ultra runner, her idea of fun is to run for 18 hours straight through the Alps!
At 16 years old she left home and has scraped out a living in the mountains ever since. A successful product of an Outdoor Camp, her instructor turned her into one of the region's best rock climbers. Early in her career she was in charge of training the
RAF boys (Royal Air force) how to rock climb..if that isn't a story I don't know what is. Addicted to dark chocolate, coffee and snicker bars, her job was to get this group of 10 people from all over the world, with varying degrees of fitness, through mountain passes, that included precipitous cables, ladders, and bridges.

TOP LEFT: VIKI, ME, SARA, GABY, TED
MIDDLE: LORRAINE, EMMA, ADAM, NICOLE,
TERESA, AND ANAND DOWN IN FRONT

GABY CLIMBING A
LADDER

CLIMBING SOME
CABLES,  & LADDERS

We had an interesting mixture of people from all walks of life, and each with their own inner challenge. Most were Americans- like Sara, Teresa, and Adam, but we had a nice blend of Brits-Emma and Anand, a Kiwi-Lorraine, Canadian- Nicole, and Aussies -Gaby and Ted. We jumped in the cable car for our first ride up and I'm thinking this is going to be a walk in the park, little did I know, by the end of the day we would be going straight up 2,100', including  some cables, and ladders, then down 3,000'.  Wasn't sure if Emma was going to make it, by the end of the 1st day she took 2 or 3 good spills, and slipped while grasping the cable and was hanging on for dear life, but she proved to be tough as nails  and powered through with Anand. Adam the trekking stud, provided comic relief, but most of the time he was sucking air trying to keep up with the the athletic Nicole. And what would we have done without our inspirational kiwi Lorraine, because no matter how tough any of the climbs were, she would catch up and say, gasping for air, "it was simply Marvelous". We made it south to Les Houches for our first overnight stay in a quaint 3 star hotel, where for dinner we had David our comedian server, throwing out one-liners as we tried to order vegan, non dairy, vegetarian, and meat dishes.

THE TREK: 

MOST TRAILS HOVERED AROUND
VILLAGES AS WE TREKKED.

The cool thing about the Mt. Blanc trek is the magnificent variety: around every corner there seems to be striking glaciers, coupled with serious hiking paths, then a mixture of rolling trails through villages that were in some cases built in the 1600s, all surrounded by green valleys that captures ones imagination.

A TYPICAL MOUNTAIN HUT

All the 3 star hotels were excellent with meals included, the only challenge we had was to scramble and make our lunches, or hope we found a hut with food along the trek. Now the Europeans know how to hike,  no big backpack are needed because scattered between villages are mountain huts called Auberges, some with beds and some strategically placed along the trail just for food. At each hut we would get our cappuccinos, teas and if they had it-DARK chocolate especially in Switzerland (ok the milk was good too).

SOME DAYS WE NEEDED OUR
COFFEE MORE THAN OTHERS,
NOTICE VICKI'S (GREEN) 
TIGHT GRIP:))

ADULT SLEEP OVER
IN A HUT

SUPER HIKER ANAND (GREEN)
CHECKING THINGS OUT

We slept in mountain huts a couple of nights, and most had a "do die for" scenic views, and in one we shared a giant wall with our beds about 2 inches apart, kind of like an adult slumber party. And some mornings we just had to have our caffeine kick to get us moving! (see pic)
THE TRAIL TO COURMAYEUR and my new interest-GLACIATION: Some days are more special than others. Day 3 was that day, by the end we had completed 4,800' of ascent and 2,500' feet of descent. And my aching left knee and new found blister were proof of the challenge.

THE RECORDS IN THE ALPS GO BACK
ALMOST 200 YEARS. HERE IS LEX
BLANCH GLACIER IN 1826 VS TODAY

SIZE OF QUARTER!
IT NEEDED- 2ND SKIN, BLISTER
PLASTER, ADHESIVE TAPE
 DUCT TAPE, AND WAX
THANKS EMMA!

Along the way we came upon the Casermetta Conservation hut, that low and behold had a docent named Stephen, who was a fountain of information on glaciation. I was so intrigued by his knowledge I stayed behind, while the rest of the group forged ahead. Here is some interesting new data from the European Alps that I hadn't heard before: The glaciers above 12,000 feet don't seem to be affected by climate

DEBRIS ON GLACIER

PRE DE BAR GLACIER FROM 1897 TO 2013 

change, of course they are way up there, but the ones below 12,000' are experiencing dramatic degrees of receding. And any glacier that has a 20 cm =7.87" or more of debris on top (as the glaciers move sometimes they are covered by dirt and rocks) the more they are protected from thermal radiation.

TERESA AND SARA

I think this is important when talking about the Koumba glacier (just below Base Camp Everest) in the Himalayas. The naysayers point out it hasn't shrunk much. Guess what when I was there in 2012 it was covered with debris and looked practically black from above. The European glaciers below 12,000 feet are receding way faster than a natural glacial cycle of 100,000 years in the Northern Hemisphere, you should see this short 1 minute video on glacial natural cycles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlzQ1i2caj4 Human impact started with the Industrial Revolution-(1750-1830 AD), at that time the world C02 level was 250 ppm, it has just recently passed 400 ppm.  If you want to see how C02 captures heat, watch this enlightening 1 minute video: CO2 experiment - YouTube
Along the way Sara, Teresa and I had some special times. Both just in their 30s, I was kinda of like their adopted Dad, we had all experienced some kind of loss in our life, they had lost their fathers, and me my wife and X, and somehow talking about it seem to make it bearable surrounded by the mountains and people that cared enough to ask.

WELL, LET'S SEE THE MEANING OF LIFE..
SATISFACTION

CHAIRLIFT DOWN TO
COURMAYEUR

Before we dropped down into Courmayeur we stopped at the top of valley, it was one of those spots that takes away your breath, makes you feel like you are on top of the world and gives you time to ponder the meaning of life. At our last lunch stop Teresa spotted a chairlift (I love the Alps) to Courmayeur and a few of us from the group jumped on it for the ride down.

OUTDOOR POOLS

COURMAYEUR: A miniature Chamonix, with several ski resorts, it had an inviting street shopping scene full of mountain boutiques, but the reason I liked it was ...the Spa!  and my aching muscles were in desperate straights. And it was only a short bus ride to the little town of Pre-Saint-Didier, with the famous QC TERME.

INDOOR SPA ROOMS

What a place, an old Roman mineral hot springs that had all the modern day luxuries including massages. I have to tell you about the STAR ROOM found below the first floor is an intricate network of bath rooms. I stumbled on the Star room and curiosity got the best of me.
Dark, and cave like, I noticed everyone was laying their heads on noodles looking up. Hmm.. so I grabbed a noodle and put it behind my neck and looked up at the stars on the ceiling and when i put my head under the water.... Shazam..there was music!-Beethoven, Mozart and more, I kinda of floated away, didn't feel much like leaving, but after an hour ventured outside to the waterfall Jacuzzis, pools, indoor saunas and cold pools, and on top of that they had all the free food you could want to eat, my kind of place!
DAY 7 A GRAND DAY: THE WALK TO CHAMPEX!

LUNCH STOP IN A
COOL 400 YEAR
OLD SWISS 
VILLAGE

BETSY THE COW...
MILK PLEASE

ADAM'S NEW PROFILE SHOT

CHAMPEX LAKE 

Finally an easy walk to start the morning. Off we went down a twisty windy valley, and then there was a pretty good climb to a lake city in the sky, called Champex. What a place! turquoise water, quaint houses around the lake and paddleboard rentals. The kids (Adam, Nicole, Teresa, and Emma) went out for a spin on their paddleboards, Nicole and Emma turned out to be quite the paddleboarders, Adam was hanging on for dear life, and Teresa lost her $150 pair of sunglasses... Fun to watch, but I was still battling my blister so no water for me.

OUR ORIGINAL HOTEL 
IN ARGENTIERE
WAS BOOKED
 SO WE 
TOOK THE TRAIN
TO THE HOTEL BUET

CRAZY LADY: HOTEL BUET: Of course what's an adventure without one interesting story. On our next to last day Lorraine, our sweet kiwi, took a picture of the owner's sister's cat at the bar. Big mistake, little did she know that was the crazed drunk sister, she cussed out Laurene and then belittled every person that came in the bar. Following that we heard screams coming from the kitchen, as she attacked the 16 year old daughter who was the waitress. Turns out we were in the middle of a sister feud. We cleared the bar as the police come to clean up the mess. Upon our return the owner assured us the crazy sister was gone, but as we crept up the stairs somebody noticed her.... needless to say we all locked our doors! 

ARGENTIERE GLACIER (NOTICE THE WATERFALL)
IT'S AS BIG AS YOSEMITE'S, AND ONE OF THE
FASTEST RECEDING GLACIERS ON THE MTN.

NOBODY INJURED--BUT SORE,  AND SOME
NEW FRIENDS WERE MADE

LAST DAY: All we wanted to do is was escape the crazy Buet Hotel, so no breakfast, off went for our last outrageous day. We walked to the village of Argentiere to get some croissants and coffee, and headed up one more time on the mountain ridge. Our trail was closed so we took the next one and that added on a couple extra miles. The rain had started to pour, as we charged into the storm above. We all got pretty soaked, and endured slippery steps, fog, and the exhilarating thunder and lightning on top.
At the end of the day we took the tram down, but first we had to wait another hour for the lightning to pass. Finishing in the rain, we jaunted into Chamonix with bells on our heels, we had just completed 100 miles, and 57,000' of elevation change! Vicki met us at the local MBT brewery in Chamonix and we all celebrated our trek with raised glasses and a sense of personal accomplishment. Thanks Vicki!!!
SUGGESTIONS: MBT was a fantastic company to travel with. Run by a lady Brit-Sara , who responded in reasonable time to emails, and answered all our questions. They have an excellent packing list with pictures of what you needed.
PRICES: Around $2,000 for 13 nights, including food, guide, and accommodations. Also figured in is a much needed rest day at Courmayeur (spa time or take the tram up to top of Mount Blanc.)
LUGGAGE: Either keep your day back around 20 lbs or pay $175 and have them transport your bags, this way you only have to carry a day pack.                                                                        
DIFFICULTY: 3/4 OUT OF 5 STARS: my 4th most difficult trek.
THINGS TO TAKE: Day pack: Z30 (liters) by Gregory, thermo light bag liner for Huts, waterproof boots, I recommend poles for some of the tricky spots-light weight collapsible.
HINTS; BUY chocolate in Switzerland to eat and to bring back:))
CHAMONIX: great place arrive a day early.                                                                                      Ride up the tram to Aiguille du Midi (top of Mt. Blanc)-unbelievable view on a clear day