Day 74: Saturday 31 May - A Train Ride And A Walk In The Mountains

Daybreak brought clear blue skies and a temperature of 2°. We started the day with a bit more planning for the Italian leg of our trip but, after a lazy day yesterday we were keen to do some serious exploring of the French Alps.

Camping Ground - Early Morning

Camping Grounds wi-fi Spot

Breakfast was a repeat of yesterday - cereal followed by a croissant with marmalade for me and a pain au chocolat for Jane.

We were on the road in Smarty before 09:00 heading into Chamonix when I realised I hadn’t got my sunnies or hat, essential items if we were to do some walking in the mountains. Jane was less than impressed, particularly as my U-turn back to the camping ground was executed by a market that she would like to have explored.

Back in Chamonix we found a free park for Smarty and walked a short distance to the Chemin de Fer du Montenvers. For €73 each we bought a two day pass for the Montenvers rack railway and the Téléférique cable car which we planned to take tomorrow. The waiting area of the station had a collection of photographs of the railway under construction in the early 1900s. It’s an amazing feat of engineering with numerous viaducts, tunnels and avalanche shelter constructed in the mountains. It’s also says a lot about the early entrepreneurs who were prepared to invest in a railway solely for tourist use well over 100 years ago.

Steam Engine Outside The Station ('driving' wheels are well clear of the rails, they drive the pinions)

Building One Of The Railway's Viaducts

We were really pleased the entrepreneurs had the foresight to build the railway and that it is still running, it’s one of the few left in France. At 9:30 our bright red electric powered two coach train pulled out of the station and was soon climbing  above the valley floor. Pine trees blocked most of the view from the train, but every now and again there were glimpses down into the valley far below. Once above the tree line there were stunning views of the snow clad alps. Sitting next to us were two young men and a woman setting out on a mountaineering trip. One of the men, the noisiest of the trio, spent the rail journey carefully honing his ice axe with a file. Later Jane commented the French must have a mould that produces young adventurous Frenchmen, they look very similar – slim, long dark hair, about a week of stubble and lots of talking and laughing.

View From Train

Our Train Heading Back Down From Montenvers

About 20 minutes after setting off we arrived at the end of the line in Montenvers, elevation 1,913 metres metres. The station serves an hotel (a sign at the station in Chamonix advised it was full) provides access to an ice cave (it was closed) and to mountain walks. A viewing platform at the station gave wonderful views of the valley formed by the Mer de Glace, the largest glacier in France skirting the flanks of Mont Blanc, although the face of the glacier was hidden by the mountain from our viewpoint. Across the valley the mountains soared above us with Grandes Jorases 4,208 metres being particularly imposing. Some of our fellow train passengers set off to walk down into the valley and we decided to follow. We hadn’t gone far when we came to snow lying in a  shallow gully crossed by the track . The path had been turned to ice by trampers. We picked our way across it gingerly, Jane said our three mountaineering friends were far less timid, they had turned and run down the slope digging their heels in as they went.

Mer de Glace

Grandes Jorases

Jane Leads The Way Through The Snow As We Set Off

After walking for a while we came to signposts, one of which indicated Chamonix was a one hour thirty minute walk and there were refreshments to be had 40 minutes away. It was a glorious sunny morning and we decided to take the walk. It was hard going the route was marked, but there wasn’t a track as such – we had to scramble over boulders and icy snow. Nevertheless, it was great to be out in the crisp mountain air. We met and were passed by numerous younger and fitter walkers than us. Where we slowly inched ourselves down over boulders they leapt from rock to rock and even ran where the going was easier.

Relatively Easy Going

Having A Breather

Snow On Parts Of The Track

There Were A Couple Of Ladders To Descend

At one point the waymarks (yellow dots painted on rocks disappeared. I took what seemed to be the track that headed down a very steep slope and became indistinct. Jane wasn’t so sure and backtracked. Fortunately some walkers were not far behind us and they pointed out the correct way to go (about 90° to the path I had taken).

An hour after starting our walk we reached the café (supposedly 40 minutes away) deciding we would stop for a rest and a cup of tea. The café was closed, and to add insult to injury a sign indicated Chamonix was still 1 hour 20 away!

A Dejected Jane Outside Closed Cafe

Our Destination Comes Into View Shortly After Leaving The Cafe - Still A Long Way To Go

The Track Crossed The Railway

The going got easier and it wasn’t long before we were in woodland on a wide track that descended steeply through a series of hairpin bends. Our calves and quads were beginning to feel very tight. At one point we passed high above our camping ground and had a glimpse of Mabel’s roof through the trees. We could have done without the hairpins which increased the length of our walk considerably. Eventually, we emerged from the woods to see Chamonix not too far ahead. Our legs were very sore by now, the constant downhill walk and scramble over rocks had taken its toll. Fortunately, the last stage was over grass. A couple of parapentes had just landed and were folding their chutes. A signpost advised Montveners was a 2 hour 30 minute walk! We had made it (downhill) in 2 hours 40.

Nearly There

We were hungry after our walk and took a table in the sun at Le Carlina brasserie. We were served by a young ditzy waitress with a short term memory problem - while she disappeared inside to get some bread for us, she came out with another food order and only remembered our bread when she saw our frantic waving. And we had to wait a long time for our food. What she lacked in organisational skills, she made up for with a good sense of humour cracking jokes in English about the speedy the service and what a great waitress she was. We both opted for steak with fries and salad, the steak was on the chewy side. I had cheese to follow and Jane had ice cream.

Waiting For Our Lunch

There seemed to be a hen party at an adjacent table. One woman was colourfully dressed and wearing a blond wig, her friends all had white tee shirts with names sprayed on in pink. There was also possibly a stag party in town judging by a group of men, one of who was dressed as an old fashioned mountaineer complete with ice axe.

We were very tired and sore and had difficulty walking after sitting down for our long lunch. We decided we should try and walk it off with a stroll around the town. There was a band playing in a square and the hen was dancing to the music right in front of them. We saw her later with the stag guy posing on the plinth of the statues of two mountaineers pointing up at Mont Blanc.

Stag and Hen

We tottered back to Smarty and drove to the nearby Carrefour for supplies. Back at Mabel we ate the remainder of Jane's potato and bacon bake. Our legs ached and we had difficulty staying awake but it had bee a great day.