This was our last short day for a while! We started off the day nicely by going in the wrong direction. For some reason we thought we had to double back for a bit (despite signposts, guidebook and map telling us not to; it must’ve been the wine). Having finally located the right path (it goes up past the rifugio) we climbed up through the woods to Col des Thures, where there is a nice little lake and some great views of the surrounding mountains.
Read MoreThere was only one other person in the dorm but of course this was a snorer. After the previous day’s invigorating climb we felt like we could hardly stand, let alone climb the almost 1000 m up to the Col de la Vallée Étroite. This was all in the mind though, because we actually made very good time. The path was more like a dirt road or 4wd track most of the way, but there were some good views of Mont Thabor with the Refuge de Mont Thabor just beneath it. We’d originally planned to stay there that night but it when we called them they said they were fully booked for a week, so we had to continue on to the next refuge. Hence our decision to continue on to Valfréjus on day 5.
Read MoreWe were up bright and early! Refuge breakfasts are usually small and Péclet-Polset’s was no exception. Perhaps they do it so people don’t linger. Anyway, the day started with a climb to the highest point on the GR55, the 2796 m Col de Chavière. The last part of the climb was across snow fields and over boulders with some scree at the very end.
Read MoreBad news first: lots of condensation in the tent, but fortunately all our stuff was either inside the packs or inside drysacks. We had a towel so we could dry the inside of the tent and try to prevent water from dripping onto us and our sleeping pads.
Read MoreBlue sky! The refuge is in a deep valley so there was not sun yet when we got up. Frost on the grass and snow on the mountains! Glorious. And for some reason we got chocolate chip cookies for breakfast. Clearly, today was going to be a Good Day.
Read MoreThis was probably the coldest, rainiest day on the entire GR5. During breakfast we could hardly see the Col du Palet. Usually we hike in shorts no matter the weather but that just wasn’t possible. So we wore longjohns under our shorts and rain trousers and gaiters over them. Plus gloves and rainjackets. After a short climb to the Col there was a boring descent into Val Claret, a ghastly ski resort. We waited there a bit to see if the weather cleared up and started hiking again once a nice big blue patch of sky appeared. Unfortunately this disappeared less than ten minutes later and we were once again hiking in the rain.
Read MoreWe woke up after spending our first night ever in our new lightweight tent. It’s still standing and there’s hardly any condensation (it’s a single-walled tent). So far, so good. When packing up our gear we quickly realised we may have brought too much stuff but in the end it all fit in our packs. The GR5 runs right past the campsite, so it’s onwards and upwards!
Read MoreFrance has a brilliant network of long-distance paths, called Grande Randonnée (GR). In 2016 we hiked most of the GR5. OK, so technically, “most of” is a bit optimistic, because officially the GR5 starts in the Netherlands. However, the French Alpine section is probably the busiest and most famous. It starts in St. Gingolph at Lake Geneva and then crosses the French Alps to end up in Nice on the Mediterranean.
Read More
