Chamonix

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Warm-up Hike to the Chalet de la Floria

Today was our last full day in Europe and we had grand plans of going up to the Aiguille du Midi to view Mont Blanc. Then we would return to the mid-station, Plan de l'Aiguille, and hike over to the Mer de Glace via the Grand Balcon Nord trail. And unlike during yesterday's hike, we had hiking poles!

We arrived at the lift for opening at 8am and purchased our tickets. We told the ticket lady of our plans to hike over to the Mer de Glace and would therefore need tickets to ride the cog train down versus taking the cable car. She warned us there was still some snow on the trail. No problem, we had hiking boots! Plus, we had been monitoring the trail conditions for several weeks prior and I knew there were some hikers already out there, so I thought it would be fine for us.

Early afternoon on the day we arrived in Chamonix, Dan and I set off in hopes of finding the Chalet de la Floria. According to our hiking notes, it should take about an hour to get there. The chalet is only accessible by mountain trail and serves drinks and snacks with a view looking out towards Mont Blanc. This sounded like the perfect warm-up for our larger hike we had planned the next day.

It was a steep climb up a paved road at first. We reached a lift and off to the side we found a trail for the Petite Balcon Sud. We turned onto a smaller, traditional forest trail and climbed for 20 minutes. I looked at the directions; uh oh. I think we took a wrong turn. We walked back down.

We continued back on track and saw signs for the Petite Balcon Sud, but now we’re looking for signs that point to la Floria. We continued to walk and the road kept climbing. There was some construction & pick-up trucks ahead. Strange. We took a break to review the directions and decided to turn around. It was sunny and warm so we couldn't waste too much time going in the wrong direction. We took a new trail and eventually saw signs for the Chalet. We continued and saw an even larger sign for the Chalet, but no Chalet in sight. We climbed and climbed, but rain clouds were starting to roll in. I was exhausted from the steep elevation, so we turned around a final time.

Looking at a map today, I can see that we were probably pretty close, but the directions weren't clear enough.

The good news was we got a sense of the terrain. There's a lot of loose gravel here, so I decided we should pick up some rent-able hiking poles. We visited a sports shop Cynthia recommended and picked up one pair of €5 poles. I felt this would be a smart plan for tomorrow's hike.

We started in the bottom left corner & followed the teal path. The red trails mark the paths we took incorrectly. The darker blue is the trail we took back to the hotel. We were so close to the Chalet!

Click the circle to see the routes we took.

Mont Blanc and the Aiguille du Midi

In one section of the upper lift station, there was a long tunnel where hardcore mountaineers were leaving the safety of the building and venturing out onto the snow.

Can you see the tiny mountaineers?

There they are!

Can you see the tiny mountaineers?

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There were over 100 people already in front of us waiting for the cable car, but apparently this doesn't compare to the peak summer season lines. Lifts were leaving every 15 minutes and they could cram a lot of people in those cable cars. Around 8:30am, they shuffled us into the next lift and we climbed up up up! to 12,400 ft! That cable car holds the record for the highest vertical ascent in the world; it also took 20 minutes to reach the top. Impressive.

Unlike our time at the Schilthorn, the clouds were holding off and we could see for miles in all directions. There, looking deceptively close, was Mont Blanc.

Next, we took a separate 6-person elevator and went up another 200 feet. They had a gimmicky glass overhang called "Step Into the Void." During peak times you have to pay for this feature, but we were early in the season so it was free. After waiting maybe five minutes, they gave us these oversized slippers and we stepped into the glass room. You're only allowed to hand over one photography shooting item and they'll take your picture. We stepped in, took a moment to look around, and then they took about 20 photos of us on my iPhone and they were all terrible. I had to do some heavy editing to brighten us back up.

There was a nice info-graphic on the amount of oxygen in the air at this elevation. We weren't even half way to Mount Everest yet, wow!

As much as we were enjoying ourselves up there, it was time to get started on our hike. If there was any chance for rain, it would happen this afternoon. We took the 10am lift back to the Plan de l'Aiguille, the middle station.

The stunning Mont Blanc.

Chamonix sits at the foot of the Aiguille du Midi, with Mont Blanc looming behind. Surrounded by tall mountains, Chamonix is a very popular ski and outdoor destination. Those experienced and brave enough to face the elements, can trek from the Aiguille du Midi to the glacier, Montenvers, at any time of year. (like the mountaineers in the header image.)

We said goodbye to our faithful driver, Omar, in Chamonix. He did a stellar job getting us from place to place.

And here we are, at the last stop on our journey. The town was quiet as we were still ahead of the peak summer season by a number of weeks. Rain threatened in the evenings, but the weather mostly cooperated during the daytime.

French Cuisine

Tarts and Desserts

Cynthia showed us where to find the best lemon tarts, but I think everyone from our group stopped by looking for one. Sold out, we tried a passion fruit & raspberry tart.

Delicious Cafés

We found a great little cafe serving sandwiches and other treats. We stopped in both days to pick up sandwiches. The bread was, of course, amazing.

Chocolate Shops

There's a great little chocolate shop near the center of Chamonix. We had a little time before our restaurant for dinner opened, so we splurged on some chocolate!

Le Monchu

Great French restaurant with a nice atmosphere. Only downside was that the restaurant was stifling warm and we kept torturing ourselves with warm dishes like French Onion Soup, and two hot entrees. That soup was worth it.

Farewell Dinner at Le Télécabine

Nearly all of us gathered one last time for a pre-dinner toast, an exchange of our days' adventures, and a farewell dinner. The night was bittersweet but we went out one last time together. The meal was so tasty I forgot to take pictures, except for the sorbet.

EXPLORE the Extras

WITHDRAW to Wengen

Our Adventure in the French Alps

I was so looking forward to the Grand Balcon Nord hike. I knew we were pushing it by attempting it on June 1st, the unofficial start of the hiking season in Chamonix, because the snow-melt doesn't necessarily abide by those guidelines. As I mentioned earlier, we knew there was snow on the trail in some sections but I knew people were making the hike for about a week prior, so it couldn't be that bad, right? Wrong.

The Grand Balcon Nord hike is about 4.1 miles long connecting you from the Plan de l'Aiguille to the Montenvers-Mer de Glace, a large glacier you can tour. This hike was going to be the big finale to our trip. It would offer stunning views, be moderately difficult, and we'd have a rewarding experience.

A Little Foreshadowing

The First Hour: 1/2 Mile Traveled

We set out from the Plan de l'Aiguille and immediately ran into some snow on the route, but we could make out the trail in the distance. Dan decided to walk over it, but sunk to his waist after the first step. I gave him a hiking pole for support and I walked around the snow packs. The first part of the trail takes you by the Refuge, a restaurant maybe 10 minutes away from the lift, but we bypassed that entirely by taking a shortcut.

About 30 minutes in, we encountered our first challenge. The path was covered by snow, but we could see the path ahead. It was a challenge, because unlike the beginning where the trail was flat, this section cut across the steep mountainside. Other hikers' foot prints were in the snow and we decided we'd take their strides, albeit large strides. We leaned into the slope and used the hiking pole in our free hand to balance each step. We crossed safely and kept walking, surely that would be it!

It wasn't.

We didn't have a clear view of the trail ahead of us because it was hidden behind the mountain ridges. As a result, we would encounter another and another snow crossing.

You could even hear the sound of a stream trickling underneath one. Breaks in the snow, like boulders, were little achievements. Dan did a nice job assessing each one and really helped me through it. We hoped each snow pack was the last, because we also didn't want to turn around and traverse through it all again.

In between one snow pack, we countered a trail runner. We were shocked to see anyone else out on the trail and this guy was running shirtless, in shorts, with zero gear. But if he could do it, we could do it, right?

Eventually the snow packs thinned and the hike was as we expected it to be. We were finally making up lost time from the first hour and now we were enjoying ourselves. Sometimes the path featured stairs using boulders as the steps. It was narrow and you certainly needed to focus where your feet were landing the entire time.

Nearly two hours in to the hike, we took a break and realized we were resting where the trail split off into two different sections. If we go right, we hike up to le Signal and have a wonderful view of the glacier. If we go left, there won't be much of a view and it could be trickier. Dan realized if we went higher, we'd likely encounter more snow. We were tired of the snow crossings so we went left.

Our first snow crossing.

The footprints were above the blue line.

Our first snow crossing.

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Here Comes the Trail Runner

I was monitoring our distance traveled and knew we had to be close to the end. We turned a corner, and there was one more snow pack. We were on a rock path ledge and this section of snow was short and steep. The only way we could comfortably cross, was taking the path backwards. Dan went first and guided my feet into the foot holes. A few feet later we crossed a metal ledge where you had to grip a chain - crazy!

At last we saw tourist groups and knew we had made it to Montenvers. The sign said it would take 2 hours and 45 minutes. Despite the challenges we had, we completed the hike in 2 hours and 50 minutes. Not bad!

Overall, the trail was beautiful and fun, but we were there at the wrong time of year. I'm happy we pushed through it together and it will certainly be an experience we will never forget. We skipped the glacier tours, since we had enough fun with snow and ice, and took the train back down to Chamonix.