Hiking to Lac Blanc Refuge

A couple of weekends ago we finally got ourselves oranised (ie: Linda organised us) to hike into a Refuge in the mountains near Chamonix.

We'd been wanting to do something like this for a really long time and, with the hiking season drawing to a close, we decided it was time to get on with it!

The Refuge is situated by a lake across the valley from the Mont Blanc range of mountains and the walk in was really amazing even though it was quite cloudy for much of the walk (and it was consequently quite cold).

We followed the path into the national park, seeing some Chamois and plenty of small lakes and ponds along the way, and occassionally the clouds would lift giving us a view across the valley.

Once we finally reached the refuge, we familiarised ourselves with the way these these work (not having stayed in a refuge before) and took ourselves out for a walk out by the lake, returning in time for dinner. We had a feast for dinner; soup with slabs of cheese dropped in it, beef bourguinoin and pasta for mains, and something else delicious for desert.

However we pretty rapidly lost track of what was happening then. Everyone around us bolted off for showers and bed, and we discovered that the hot water was soon to disappear as were the lights for the night. So Linda and I did our best to get our selves off to bed but were hampered by our locker jamming up on us. I stood there in the dark using my phone screen as a torch trying to figure out how to unjam our locker for some time before one of the caretakers appeared and was able to help us.

Our sleep wasn't brilliant either, with refuge sleeping being very much a dormatory style affair filled with snoring adults and sleep-talking children (and anyway we were pretty wound up after our locker lock-out).

So it wasn't much of a surprise that we woke up for dawn and so we went out to watch the sun rise over the alps. This was amazing, with clear skies and some whispy clouds in the valley below us.

After the sun was up and we'd had our breakfast, we hiked up the mountain towards Lac de la Perserverance. This wasn't actually our plan, as we though we were just going to do a walk around Lac Blanc itself but evidently we got on the wrong track at some point and ended up somewhere completely different.

Not that this was really a bad thing, as it turned out to have been a very interesting destination - a lake high in the mountains that was still largely frozen over even at the end of summer.

After this we back-tracked to the Refuge for a final hot chocolate before deciding to head straight back down the mountain because the weather was starting to close in (and a storm with snow was forecast!).

We had a very nice walk down the mountain, passing many people going in the opposite direction who were apparently taking part in some kind of mountain walking event in Chamonix that weekend. We stopped by a small lake that was fed by a spring, and we drank from the spring (an occasion for which we had specifically brought camping cups) and snoozed in the sun by the bubbling stream.

Around Nyon

Over the last several weeks we've managed to do a few things around Nyon - which happens less often than you may think given that we live here, but we spend so many of our weekends travelling we don't often get a chance to really explore our home town! [most of these photos are by Linda]

On the 1st of August we had Swiss National Day which is usually quite a relaxed day where you hang around and swim in the lake and watch fireworks at night. This year was unfortunately rainy and also unfortunately on a Sunday which meant we didn't get the benefit of a day off work!

This was not really a big problem, as it just meant it was even more relaxed than usual, and the weather managed to clear up in time for the fireworks in the evening. Even the fireworks were a close call this year since it's been so "hot and dry" (by Swiss standards) that there was a ban on fireworks except for in specific controlled areas near the lake.

We still managed to have fun despite these rigid controls over our fireworks (we bought up big this year!). The main event of the fireworks in Nyon was a band of drummers on a trailer that was towed around the town - followed closely by people with buckets in case the fun became too extreme but, as usual, Linda and I had the most fun setting off our own fireworks

At the end of the night there was a big bonfire on the lake.

Not long after this Richard and Renata came to visit with their son Oliver.

We weren't lucky with the weather then either (it seems to have been a pretty miserable summer, weather wise) but still managed to get out and see bits of Nyon, Lausanne, and Divonne in France.

Then recently we discovered the local pool at Nyon, which we only found the weekend it was due to close for winter despite a late burst of really quite nice Autumn weather (Swiss pools seem very strict on their swimming season). It was great to be swimming in a nice big clean pool overlooking the lake and with Mont Blanc in the distance.

Last but not least, we went back to Divonne this weekend to shop for fresh seafood, ham, bread and other delicious bits and pieces for the weekend, which seems to have lasted us into the rest of the week - it's great being able to drive 15 minutes into France to go to the markets!

Camping at Chamonix

Last weekend we packed our little car full of camping gear and drove to Chamonix, which is only about an hour and a half from Nyon - a very convenient distance considering it is one of the major mountain resorts in Europe!

We had found a camp site in our Cool Camping book that looked nice, and were quite happy when we arrived that it was arranged into quite small allotments - so it was quiet and peaceful (not at all resort-like, which is how many campsites in Europe can be).

After quickly setting up our tent we drove into Chamonix itself for supplies and some equipment shopping. I have to say we are probably the best equipped campers around, swapping and receiving various pieces of gear as gifts over the last couple of years. This time around I bought myself a new hiking bag and a we also bought a double camping bag (it gets cold camping at the base of these big mountains).

Aside from gear, we also bought some local bread, cheese, ham, some apricots, and a small bottle of wine for dinner.

We cooked ourselves up a fantastic omlette on our little camp stove, eaten off our camping plates with our camping sporks and washed down with wine from our camping cups. Then we washed up out of our camping bucket.

We had a fantastic night's sleep, despite the occasional rumble of an avalanche somewhere in the valley (we were camped at the foot of a glacier, so this was initially a little alarming).

Breakfast was just as good, finishing off the remaining bread, cheese, and ham from the previous night. So good we almost weren't up to the task of packing up our tent, but we managed it in the end.

All this meant we were a bit slower getting started than planned, and by the time we reached the Aigle du Midi station to ride up the mountain it was after 11am and there was a huge queue already formed. You see this weekend was the first we'd had in a while with perfect weather, and it seems everyone had the same idea to head into the mountains to take advantage of it.

Our plan was to catch the panoramic telecabine from Aigle du Midi to Punta Helbrunner, which is on the French/Italian border at 3462m. The last time we'd been to Chamonix the lift had been closed and we'd resolved to come back in Summer to do it properly.

The ride was amazing - taking you 5 kilometers over the Vallee Blanche, one of the major glaciers from Mont Blanc. The valley was full of hikers either looking to summit on Mont Blanc, climb one of the surrounding cliffs, or just to camp or hike across the valley.

We arrived at Hellbrunner without too much bother - though to be honest the station itself is not that interesting. This feeling was probably made worse by the fact that we were now on the return journey and the queues were getting enormous.

At least they gave you a ticket at each station so you didn't actually have to queue up the whole time, but could come when your number was called. Still, the round trip from Chamonix, Aigle du Midi, Punta Helbrunner and back took us about 8 hours!

So in the end we didn't get to do any hiking, which was one of our main objectives of going to Chamonix in the first place, but the ride up and across the mountain was amazing and the weather was absolutely perfect.

Anyway, with Chamonix only 1 & 1/2 hours away, we know we'll be back (in fact we're off there again this weekend!)