24th – Chamonix – Refuge de Nant Borant

Considering the rain last night, one might fear that it would still be raining in the morning. But no; the day was clear and the temperature comfortable.

We sorted our stuff whether to keep it at the hotel or bring along on the trek, and at around 0800 we left the hotel to catch the bus to Bellevue where we took the gondola up and officially started the trek. At the station on top you also had a stop for the Mont Blanc rail; the train we took up from here when climbing Mont Blanc last year.

We started descending crossing a river before a long ascent to Col de Tricot at 2120m where we had a rest with a view and curious sheep. From here we descended (again) into a valley to Refuge de Miage where we had lunch at around 1230-1300. At this point in time the sun had been out for a while on an almost clear sky so we were all getting heated up.

Crossing the river.

From here we continued and ascended on the other side from where we came up to Refuge du Truc and then down again and into Les Contamines-Montjoie where we took a short bus ride through the town where we got out and started ascending again. It felt like cheating but the weather was still warm – warmer than in the morning – and humid, so the cool bus was a relief, albeit a short one, and the walk through the town wouldn’t have been very interesting anyway.

The church in Les Contamines-Montjoie.

A small rock formation found near Nant Borant.

From here we had the final 45-minute ascent to the end of the day, Refuge de Nant Borant, where we arrived around 1730. It was perfect timing, too as after sitting for less than 5 minutes it started raining. This was a sign that cheating with the bus was a good idea after all; without it we would have been caught out in it. We got quite a shower during the evening/night. I hope it gets better before we leave tomorrow.

We were given our room and had a nice warm shower. General relaxation and settling down for the evening and dinner at 1900.

Refuge de Nant Borant.