Day 10 Hiking, Argentiere, France

One of many view of the Alps from the TMB

Alpine cows with their heavy bells

 with their heavy bellsToday, perhaps, was the most dramatic scenery we have seen out of ten days of spectacular scenery. We climbed 1100M to a high mountain ridge, traversed the ridge, and then descended 1160M to the valley below and the pretty village of Argentiere. The first part of the day, and 3/4 of the elevation gain, was climbing to Col de Balme. On arriving at Col de Balme we sat and had coffee at Refuge du Col de Balme with Mt. Blanc as the backdrop. From there we climbed up onto a ridge with more views of Mont Blanc and the surrounding snow covered peaks and glaciers. The route up to Col de Balme was busy with hikers, however once you get to the top there are multiple routes to choose from, and the groups soon disperse, some to hike higher and some to take a ski lift (telecabine) down. We needed to refer to the map and the compass and successfully found our route across the Aiguillette des Posettes (a ridge walk). In the Alps we hike up through alpine pastures listening to the ever present cow bells while looking ahead to snowy peaks and back to the chains of green valleys and pretty villages. In the Rockies we hike in a wilder wilderness, see fewer people, and seldom get caffe latte at the top of a pass.

It was good to arrive at Hotel de la Couronne a little after 4 this afternoon after 8 hours on the trail. We have another large twin room with a balcony and a view. Tomorrow we go sightseeing in the Chamonix valley.