DAY 20: Thursday June 21st - Modane to Refuge Peclet Polset:
Walk: 17k, 7hrs: Blue skies with some storm clouds, 12°C to 18°C - without doubt the pinnacle of our trip
Accommodation: Refuge Peclet Ponset
Out with the old Merrells - but I'm not really sure
Boot Boy - Salamon goretex
Did I already say how magic is this?
Up through a forested path
Entering the Vanoise park - note I've just been shorn.
Out of the forests to meadows
Blue skies, snow, waterfalls etc etc
Better than a picture postcard
You can't imagine how beautiful
There's one rock in this meadow - I'd better visit now before the snow
We're climbing up there
Where to now
I'll just follow Ian's boot tracks
Nearly there - time for a break
Made it - Col de Chaviere 2796m
Which view is better - this side
Or this side
Teuli, Rob, Karen and Dave - our 4 American tag friends at the top
Coffee at the top - Col de Chaviere
This is just so beautiful
Now we need to get down
Ski sleds would help
There's storm clouds looming
Whoops!!
I'll just pull myself up
I'm not going up I'm just getting up
Well what can I say! Today was one of the best days we've had in the Alps. Blue skies, snow, alpine forests AND best of all, we climbed Col de Chaviere at 2796 metres, the highest walking pass in France.
We're up at 6am and packed - the weather forecast is for afternoon storms and we want to be over the Col de Chaviere before the lightning. Breakfast is hot bread and hot tea - that's a good start. I slip away to the Boulangerie to buy bread and Beaufort cheese for the next 2 days while Ian phones home. We leave Hotel Perce Neige and find a bin for Ian's old Merrels. There’s almost 2,000 metres to climb today from Modane at 1,000m to Col de Chaviere at 2,796 m. We wind our way through the back streets of Modane then up a forested track for 2hrs to reach the small hamlet of Polset where our American friends spent the night. We stop on a sunny rock for a cup of coffee, bread and cheese. Then above the tree to the rocky alps, grassland, waterfalls and snowdrifts – we’ve just entered the Vanoise National Parc.
I make a loo stop at the only big rock for miles. Trust Ian to whip out his camera. We meet a father and son on their way down who tell us to stick to the right. We've been going up for 4 hrs and have another 2 hrs to go and it's good that the Americans are ahead as we can see their tracks in the snow. They went further than us yesterday to Refuge Polset and had a 2hr head start on us. Looking up we can see 4 tiny back specks in the snow and know the 4 Americans are nearly at the top of the Col.
Slipping and sliding and digging our toes into the snow to grip, we can see it’s just a little further but we need to keep moving as storm clouds are looming. Up the last 200 metres of snow, we reach the Col and our 4 American friends greet us. They stopped for lunch and waited for us - that was nice. We shared photos and a chat and they headed off to Pralognan, while we stayed for a coffee to celebrate.
Going down was just as hard as up. Following the Americans footsteps was easy to start with but when the snow iced up, I got off track to land in waist deep snow. Ian was a concerned but I was smiling while waiting for a photo shoot. Finally after clambering downhill for 1 hr, we see the Refuge Peclet Polset - the newest (built 2004) and best mountain refuge in France. A sign says 10 mins to the hut - but it took us an hour to pick our way across snow drifts and rocks to get to the hut at 2.30pm.
After 7 hours of climbing in snow, our shoes and socks are sodden. We take them off to go to our dorm - a 6 bedder. Then back for lunch - bread, ham and cheese with a wine and beer on tap!. There's 14 in the hut which holds 84. Three couples are doing the Tour de Vanoise, a mix of the GR55 and GR5 over 7 days, 6 huts 1 hotel. Two girls are nurses from Les Contamines. They followed us down from the Col stepping in our footsteps but in doing so, one of them fell in the same hole I had. They said that last year, there was no snow on the Col and they were hoping likewise this year. We were all lucky get through.
There's coin operated solar heated showers. Ian grabs 2 coins, and courteously gives me one. In the cubicle, I strip down, put the coin in and press the timer button - cold water for 15 seconds. Press the button again - cold water for 15 seconds. Press the button again - cold water. Press the button again - warm water on the 4th attempt and I have a super quick shower. I dry myself with a 30cm square towel then run back to the dorm and jump into bed to get warm. Ian goes off to the shower and comes back smiling - he's had 4 presses of the timer - all HOT water. He thanks me for pulling all the cold water through the system.
I stay rugged up and do some blog. Dinner is at 7pm and we all wait in the dining room having a pre dinner drink - or two. The 4 course meal is piping hot pea soup, chicken and rice, cheese. Dessert is whipped white creamed cheese and berries. Then they bring out the local genepi. Time for bed at 8.30pm - snuggled up in our sleeping sheets and doona. There's no lights in the dorm so it's good night to all. What a marvellous day. I get excited just thinking about it all again.