Friday, July 9, 2010

Chamonix Miscellany

I spent two days in Chamonix working on the %$#@ "Shurflo" water pump and macerator--some success on the former, none on the latter--and then another day being sick, all of which enabled us to visit the marche once more, and enjoy yet another poulet roti repast. Then we were off to Italy.
"Ye Ice-falls! ye that from the mountain’s brow
Adown enormous ravines slope amain—
Torrents, methinks, that heard a mighty voice,
And stopped at once amid their maddest plunge!
Motionless torrents! silent cataracts!"
--Coleridge,
"Hymn upon Sunrise in the Vale of Chamouni"














Mssr. Paccard, first to climb Mont Blanc,
always seems surprised to be sitting in a
main square in Chamonix














The repast (second)







And then, Sunday, we're off to Italy through the Tunnel
(to be explained)

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Air Show

There's always an airshow going on in Chamonix--if not the skies and mountains, then the helicopters, the parapentes (parasails), or the gliders
French TV covering the Marathon, and us










Up close and personal







Air traffic control and the launch point for parapentes,
Plan Praz











Mornings often see them fill the summer sky











Spiralling down for landings at the athletic
field

A parasail in the Chamonix Aiguilles







Another








And a glider in the Chamonix Aiguilles

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Grand Balcon du Nord

And on Tuesday we took the first stage of the Aiguille du Midi telepherique to Plan Aiguille (the second stage goes on up to the Aiguille du Midi, which we have done at least a couple times before), in order to do the Grand Balcon du Nord trail. This trail crosses the area between the Glacier des Bossons and the Mer du Glace, at tree-line, just below the famed Chamonix Aiguille (big pinnacles, hundreds of them). Normally, one takes the telepherique up, hikes the trail to Montenvers, then takes the Montenvers train back down. Alas, rockslides had closed both the train track and the trails down from Montenvers. We wanted to do the hike, so we decided to walk in the direction of Montenvers as far as we wanted, then walk back and take the telepherique back down. Vicki notes that this trail is far better than the Sud, less gravel, etc.
Lady of Pain I adore you...this is how the baguettes get to
the refuges, cafes, restaurants, up high (stepping off the
telepherique)











The upper stage of the telepherique--enlarge
and you'll see a cabin decending from near
the top













Another view











Warning











Alpine donkeys with dreadlocks; seriously; Vicki theorizes
they are intended to protect the donkeys' eyes, like
sunglasses; I believe they are merely another French
fashion-statement







Chamonix below and part of the Aiguille
Rouge












Randonneur Vicki











Beneath some of the Chamonix Aiguille









More warning and signage











The trail down to Chamonix really was closed (not that we
wanted to walk down 4,000 feet)







Vicki stopped at this point, not wanting to over-do her knee
(she's doing well); I carried on to Montenvers and its great
views, this of the Dru, one of Chamonix' many landmarks












And of the Mer du Glace, the Grand Jorasses, and more of
the interior







The whole area is cairn-city, big cairns








But the prize of this hike was grabbing this discarded sign
(with permission) for our sign collection back home

Lac Blanc

Monday I took the same La Flegere telepherique back up the Aiguille Rouge and walked the other way, mainly up, taking the trail to Lac Blanc, a high tarn with celebrated views of the Mont Blanc massif.
It's all in the Aiguille Rouge national park;
they don't even allow tenting here! Other
places around the massif, in France, you
can erect a mountain tent only between
7PM and 7AM; in Italy, only above 7,000
feet; in Switzerland, no place, no how.
Jeez.
















Looking across the valley to the Mer du Glace







Lac Blanc was still frozen








But the view was great








Like seals on a rock on the California coast, oui?

Marathon du Mont Blanc

Friday we lazed and reconnoitered, re-acqainting ourselves with the lay of the land, the city, our old campground, the TI, wifi, the bus routes, the trails, etc. Saturday we made our usual visit to the marche, purchasing cheeses, olives, raspberries, potatoes, and the wonderful poulet roti with lots of jus, for our traditional Chamonix repast. After the repast, naps, then more shopping ventures into town. It is touristy, yes, but it is the oldest of all mountain resort towns, still going strong (four seasons), and, well, French touristy is a good thing.

Chamonix is on the north side of the Mont Blanc massif, in a glacial slit trench between Mont Blanc and the lesser but still rugged Aiguille Rouge to the north. It is from the Aiguille Rouge that one gets the best French views of Mont Blanc, and it is from the Aiguille Rouge that most parasail launchings occur. Anyhow, we decided to walk the Balcon Sud, the trail that goes along the Aiguille Rouge from La Flegere to Praz Plan, east to west, three thousand feet above the valley. We knew that we would be sharing the trail with the Marathon du Mont Blanc, its final kilometers before ending at Praz Plan, but we figured that, with a late start, we would not have many runners, certainly not the competitive ones, to contend with. Besides, it would be exciting to watch, and, yes! mountain bicylistes had been banned from the trail for the day. We rode the La Flegere telepherique up the mountain and hit the trail a little after noon. We saw runners throughout our walk, always yielding the right of way to them, offering such encouragement as we could; what an ordeal they had undertaken!
But the nice thing about running a marathon in the French
Alps is that you can always stop at a cafe, have a glass of
wine, maybe an expresso and croissant; but in this terrain,
you also have to carry your hiking poles







And use them; the terrain can be demanding, even the level
parts












But the scenery is good












Very good (the Chamonix Aiguilles)







It is all part of the 110 mile Tour du Mont Blanc, which we
walked back in 2005












Chamonix and Mont Blanc from the Aiguille
Rouge













Another kilometer and a couple hundred meters' climb to
the finish line (we were tired, too, by this time)







Le home stretch, agonizingly up-hill; but supporters lining
the way








The finish line, nicely framing the Mountain; we took the
Praz Plan telepherique back down to town and spent the
rest of the day recovering

Chamonix

Our favorite place in the French Alps (but, of course), site of at least six previous visits, many adventures (the telepheriques and hiking in 1979, 1986, 1989, etc., parasailing in 1993, the Tour du Mont Blanc in 2005) and memories...is Chamonix.  We stayed more than a week this time (including two days of wretched camper repairs, one day of sickness), camped with dozens of other RVs in the aire that is part of the Telepherique d'Aiguille du Midi parking lot, a block from central Chamonix. More adventures, memories, and...pix.
The Glacier des Bossons and Mont Blanc, from our aire







Part of the aire








Part of the lower glacier, from the trail above; and the
summit of Mt. Blanc, 15,700'







The Aiguille du Midi; we are parked right below it...it is
about 9,000 feet above us!












East of us, Dru, the Grand Jorasses, the Mer du Glace
(more of all later)







Festivities near the Office du Tourisme

More Beautiful Annecy

We ventured into town our second day there, taking the ferry from Jorioz up the lake to Annecy.
The old chateau overlooking the town







Quay-side and street scene; we had lunch somewhere along
here, a formula lunch so large neither of us could finish; in
my case I simply tired tweezering the tiny French moules
from their shells...







We located the marzipan shop we both had been impressed
by in 1993; of course, having seen the one in Lubeck, five
stories and marzipan museum, we are no longer quite so
impressed













But we were impressed with the cookie shop














Very impressed












The harbor and international park; Annecy is a finalist for
the coming Winter Olympics






A beautiful setting and place