Woke up the next day in our sleeping bag liners and found ourselves thankfully free of any bed bug infestations.

Le Pontet

Organized our bags, caught the pastel sunrise, packed our lunch tins and consumed our breakfast of cheese, meat and bread.

Le Pontet

Bright eyed and bushy tailed or something close to it.

Le Pontet

Leaving the campsite as we saw other hikers breaking down their tents to get ready for another day on the trail.

TMB Trail

We crossed the bridge to start our hike for the day.

TMB Trail

Chico using the trail telescope to make sure we were going in the right direction.

Notre Dame de la Gorge

This Catholic Church as we know it today was rebuilt in 1699 and also serves as a place of prayer for safe passage to the Col du Bonhomme mountain pass.

TMB Trail

Yielding to vehicular traffic on the trail. You mean we can ride instead of walk?

TMB Trail

Mari using her “magic hiking sticks” on the trail. This part of the route was supposedly taken by Hannibal of Carthage who traversed the Alps, once thought impossible; with 30,000 soldiers, 15,000 horse mounted cavalry and 37 war elephants in 218 BC against his war with Rome.

TMB Trail

We briefly stopped at the bridge to watch the stream flowing below us and then rain made its thankfully brief appearance.

TMB Trail

Looking at a 16-point buck mounted on the outside of the cabin we were passing. I’m sure that was the buck of a life time for whatever hunter that bagged him.

TMB Trail

“Deb, tell me why this is fun?” I don’t think I ever heard the answer the whole time on the trail. Enquiring minds want to know.

TMB Trail

Headed up the trail with the 8,818′ summit of Aiguilles de la Penaz to our right.

TMB Trail

Watching a cow get its mineral nutrients from a salt lick. Much like how hikers need electrolytes.

TMB Trail

Passing the Refuge de la Balme, no iced coffee?

TMB Trail

Hiking next to a river fed by glacier melt.

TMB Trail

Pushing up the trail with the alpine forest behind us.

TMB Trail

We waited for the rest of the group to catch up, so Chico decided to climb the nearby power line tower. There were no trees around to climb, so he had to make do with what he had.

TMB Trail

Perhaps it would be prudent not to sit next to a sign that says falling rocks. But then again, the risk can’t be any more than being electrocuted or falling from a tower.

TMB Trail

What do you call a sheepdog without sheep to herd or guard? Just a dog.

TMB Trail

Hikers coming up separate paths which will eventually merge together. Just like in life.

TMB Trail

Group photo with our alter ego characters.

TMB Trail

Standing in front of Tumulus Plan des Dames which it turned out is a burial mound containing two English ladies who perished in a terrible storm sometime in the last century. Custom is to throw a pebble at the site to ward off bad luck, not an apple.

TMB Trail

Mari treading carefully.

TMB Trail

Some took it slow and steady on the trail.

TMB Trail

Others elected for fast and furious.

TMB Trail

Having our lunch of sandwich and applesauce. Somebody had a kanak attack. Sylvia suggested we not dawdle too much as the weather forecast was predicting thunderstorms this afternoon.

Col du Bonhomme

Partial group photo at our second mountain pass at an elevation of 7,641′, which resulted in the largest ascent gain of 4,300′ in one day.

TMB Trail

Leaving the pass behind us to go climb another pass.

TMB Trail

Following the trail as it wrapped around the rocky flanks of the Rocher du Bonhomme.

TMB Trail

Taking the high and lower trails where the clouds soon erased any visibility.

TMB Trail

Robin standing in place of a tree. Organic tree.

TMB Trail

Sylvia said the trail was going to get technical and to stay together. Technical as in Kalihi Saddle technical?

TMB Trail

Technical as in uneven terrain and wayfinding. Throw in a little rain for good measure. Sylvia directed some other hikers on the correct path as they were about to go “exploring.”

Col de la Croix du Bonhomme.

Standing next to the cairn which marks the 7,900′ mountain pass. No views to be had.

TMB Trail

It was a hop, skip and a jump towards the next mountain hut, but the stench from the outhouse hit me before the actual standalone structure. Hard pass.

Refuge de la Croix du Bonhomme

The refuge was originally built in 1922, destroyed and looted during WW2, rebuilt in 1965 and expanded in 1992.

TMB Trail

Leaving the hut behind us along with the clouds and rain as we made the long and gradual descent into Les Chapieux.

TMB Trail

Coming down from the mountain. No metaphorical transition here, just a literal descent.

TMB Trail

Deborah crossing over one of multiple streams cascading down from the mountains.

TMB Trail

Soaking in the views of the beautiful Alps.

TMB Trail

Traversing over a short boardwalk over the uneven slope.

Chalets de Plan Varraro

Passing another mountain hut on our way down, they didn’t seem open for business.

TMB Trail

Is that our ride down there? Wishful thinking.

TMB Trail

The predicted thunderstorm finally made its appearance several hours later but thankfully only 15-20 minutes before our exit.

TMB Trail

Leave no man behind. Where’s Patrick? We got to our shuttles just as the storm in thunderstorm turned on the faucets full blast or as the French say “Il pleut des hallebardes.” Somebody didn’t appreciate the “rough” drive to the lodge as they got motion sickness. Better to be nauseated than soaking wet.

Hotel Base Camp Lodge

Perfect timing. Arriving at our modern lodge for the night just as the storm passed. Clean rooms. Clean bathrooms. Clean everything. First world problems.

Hotel Base Camp Lodge

Dinner was served in the form of bigger than your eye portions of Caesar chicken salad, sausage and pizza and sorbet for dessert.

GPS Tracks

Our second day on the Tour du Mont Blanc trail covered 10.33 miles through more beautiful scenery and terrain. Somebody else wanted to take a zero day on the third day. Is this catching? Economic and language motivation won out again.

Photos taken by Aida Gordon, Chico Cantu, Deborah Tom, Ferlino Carinio, Mari Saito, Patrick Tom, Robin Farr, Roger Schiffman, and yours truly. Not necessarily in order.

Note: I have been made aware that some hikers have been using my blog as a hiking guide and getting lost on the trails. Please note that this blog was made to document the hike for the crew(s) that did it. That is why some of my comments will seem to have no relevance or meaning to anybody outside of the crew(s) that hiked that trail. My blog was never meant as a hiking guide, so please do not treat it as such. If you find inspiration and entertainment from these hikes, that is more than enough. If you plan on replicating these hikes, do so in the knowledge that you should do your own research accordingly as trail conditions, access, legalities and so forth are constantly in flux. What was current today is most likely yesterdays news. Please be prepared to accept any risks and responsibilities on your own as you should know your own limitations, experience and abilities before you even set foot on a trail, as even the “simplest” or “easiest” of trails can present potential pitfalls for even the most “experienced” hikers. One should also always let somebody know of your hiking plans in case something doesn’t go as planned, better safe than sorry.

The day had finally arrived as we started on the CliffsNotes version of the TMB. We had eschewed hiking the entire 106 miles circuit that typically takes 8-11 days to complete. Instead we opted on a guided six-day hike that highlighted the “best” of the trail and left the more “mundane” sections out in left field. The TMB trail started for practical and economic reasons to move herds of sheep between the valleys and to facilitate fur trade among the scattered groups of people living in the valleys. Now it serves to move hikers between the valleys.

Chamonix

We stored our unneeded items in the hotel’s storage, packed our pasta in the provided tins, shared some of the lunch load and ate our standard breakfast fare.

Chamonix

Is that where we are going today? General direction?

Chamonix

Sylvia paying our bus fare as we took the short ride to the next town.

Telepherique de Bellevue

Didn’t we pass Les Houches, the official gate and start/finish of the TMB trail? I guess this will have to do for now.

Telepherique de Bellevue

Waiting in line to take the cable car ride to the top.

La Chalette

Group photo at the top with the panoramic mountain view.

TMB Trail

I guess this is the start of the Tour du Mont Blanc trail for our group.

TMB Trail

Mari crossing the cog railway line. You mean we can take the train?

TMB Trail

The girls making their way down the rooted part of the path.

TMB Trail

Heading out to the picturesque mountains. Not a bad way to start the morning.

TMB Trail

“Chains? We don’t need no stinking chains!” Paraphrasing the famous misquote from the 1948 film The Treasure of Sierra Madre.

TMB Trail

Sylvia and Ferlino passing through one of two cattle gates on the path.

TMB Trail

Is that Mont Blanc in the background?

TMB Trail

Descending down a set of switchbacks which bottled the hikers on the trail.

TMB Trail

Crossing the Glacier de Bionnassay footbridge that passes over the river fed by the glacier melt.

TMB Trail

Passing through an alpine forest as we pushed our way up, somebody had magic hiking sticks on the trail.

TMB Trail

Robin at a nice scenic spot with the Alps in the background.

TMB Trail

Back to the grind.

TMB Trail

We had our lunch below the windswept pass with tins of pasta salad and of course; bread, cheese and meat.

Col de Tricot

Our first mountain pass in the Alps at an altitude of 6,955′ with Mont Vorassay in the background.

TMB Trail

What goes up, must come back down.

TMB Trail

Making our way down the steep switchbacks.

TMB Trail

Descending towards the valley pasture.

TMB Trail

You take the easy way, I’ll take the hard way down.

TMB Trail

Headed towards our first shelter on the trail.

Refuge de Miage

We stopped at the mountain hut in the center of Miage Valley to have carbonated drinks and ice cream.

TMB Trail

Refreshed and recharged, we crossed a small stream and refilled our water bottles before resuming our hike.

TMB Trail

Back on the trail to climb a smaller pass.

TMB Trail

Chico taking advantage of the creative use of a tree stump.

TMB Trail

Nice to have a bench at the top of the pass to rest our derrieres. Trying to speak the local lingo.

TMB Trail

Looking back at our steep descent from the earlier pass where we lost over 1,800′ of elevation.

TMB Trail

Robin trying to orient herself to the direction of the trail.

Chalets du Truc

Brief stop at the mountain hut located on the plateau du Truc with sweeping mountain views of Domes de Miage to the Aravis mountains. We would have to miss the evening milking of the cows.

TMB Trail

Passing through the 14,000 acre forest reserve created in 1979 that encompasses pastures, rivers, forests and glaciers.

TMB Trail

Mari crossing over an electric wire meant to keep the cows in their place. I don’t think anybody actually checked if the switch was “on.”

TMB Trail

The group waiting their turn to cross over another slippery cow barrier. It must be working, we didn’t see any cows.

TMB Trail

Leaving the tree line for signs of civilization.

TMB Trail

Looking both ways before we cross the road. Safety first. We walked on the roads, passed through clusters of places for rent, crossed over multiple bridges, followed the stream and passed a horse pasture among other things.

TMB Trail

Are we there yet?

TMB Trail

We are almost there. That was a long 15 minutes. I think it must have been measured in metrics.

Le Pontet

Checking in, party of nine. We were assigned to our dormitory style rooms with bunk bed accommodations and bed bug powder at the foot of the bunks. There was some confusion as to whether we could bring our packs to our rooms or not. Some heeded and some did not.

Le Pontet

Some of us took hot showers in the common areas and then we all met up to have our family style dinner. BYOC (Bring Your Own Coke).

GPS Tracks

Our first day on the storied Tour du Mont Blanc trail covered 8.74 miles through the wilderness of the Alps. Somebody inquired as to taking a zero day on the second day. Cost was 270 euros for the taxi. That was roughly $315 dollars. Hard pass. The secret to motivating hikers? Hit ‘em in the wallet.

Photos taken by Aida Gordon, Chico Cantu, Deborah Tom, Ferlino Carinio, Mari Saito, Patrick Tom, Robin Farr, Roger Schiffman, and yours truly. Not necessarily in order.

Note: I have been made aware that some hikers have been using my blog as a hiking guide and getting lost on the trails. Please note that this blog was made to document the hike for the crew(s) that did it. That is why some of my comments will seem to have no relevance or meaning to anybody outside of the crew(s) that hiked that trail. My blog was never meant as a hiking guide, so please do not treat it as such. If you find inspiration and entertainment from these hikes, that is more than enough. If you plan on replicating these hikes, do so in the knowledge that you should do your own research accordingly as trail conditions, access, legalities and so forth are constantly in flux. What was current today is most likely yesterdays news. Please be prepared to accept any risks and responsibilities on your own as you should know your own limitations, experience and abilities before you even set foot on a trail, as even the “simplest” or “easiest” of trails can present potential pitfalls for even the most “experienced” hikers. One should also always let somebody know of your hiking plans in case something doesn’t go as planned, better safe than sorry.