Monday, July 11, 2022
Tour du Mont Blanc – Day 2
Refuge Nant Borrant to Refuge des Mottets
Starting elevation: 1,459 m
Ending elevation: 1,864 m
Elevation gain: 1,034 m
Elevation loss: 985 m
Distance: 9.3 miles
Col du Bonhomme: 2329 m
Col de la Croix du Bonhomme: 2443 m
Col des Fours: 2716 m
Today we woke up about 6 am. I felt quite rested even though there was a freight train snorer in the next room. I had adjusted my earplugs last night after the snoring started and determined that the massive rumble was not in our room, but next door. Nathan said that he thought someone got fed up and kicked the person’s bed because there was a huge banging and the snoring stopped. Maybe they killed the guy because I never noticed it again.
Breakfast was served at 7, and consisted of bread, croissants, jam, cereal, coffee, and orange juice. Our luggage porter arrived by 7:20, so we donned sunscreen and set off for Col du Bonhomme.
The uphill trek was steep, long, and hard, and we reached the top by 11 am. Along the way, we passed a herd of cows, of course wearing their bells. All the cows and sheep do!
I took the opportunity to rest at the top and start in on my packed lunch, which was a ham sandwich on baguette, cheese, hard-boiled egg, apple, and Twix. Pat wanted to keep going, so she continued on to Col de la Croix, and Andrew took off after her.
We caught back up with Pat and Andrew having a snack at the Refuge de la Croix (what a dump!), and after carefully consulting the paper map and the map app, we decided we needed to backtrack a few steps and take the Col des Fours.
Not a major backtrack, but going uphill after you’ve already come down is a major drag.
3 cols in one day! Col, by the way, is pass in English. We got to the top of Col des Fours, and waited for Pat and Andrew. Andrew wasn’t feeling 100% so he was going to close his eyes and rest at the top. Both he and Pat took a photo of the paper map and urged us to keep going. Pat urged him to put some electrolyte mix in his water and drink it.
We were primarily done with the uphill for the day, but the downhill is no treat. Very steep and extremely difficult to keep a decent pace. We kept going down and down, looking back to see if we could spot Pat and Andrew. We couldn’t. (Insert worry here)
Along the way, we met a Belgian grandpa and grandson, and an Israeli couple from Jerusalem. Both were camping. We finally got to Refuge des Mottets at 4:35 and found our room and all of our bags.
We quickly got our things organized, showered and kept a careful eye on the window for Pat and Andrew. They didn’t arrive while we were in the room, so we gathered our entertainment; journal, tablet, map, book, etc, and went to the outdoor common area and had a beer and cider, and kept a careful eye on the path into Mottets.
Nada.
The Israelis arrived. I asked if they remembered seeing a couple in orange shirts. They hadn’t. We waited. Now even the Israeli woman is staring at the path worrying.
At 6:40 or so, we saw Pat and Andrew coming down the path, and we ran out to greet them and carry their bags if needed. They quickly showered and got ready for dinner, which was served at 7.
If I don’t make it tomorrow, it is because one of them pushed me off a cliff. 😉