The lazy beast within

Christmas was very nice for Chris and I. We have been so busy lately between work and Liberia preparations that we needed a few days off. I missed being with my family but the quiet time at home was wonderful. We had our friends Mollie and Rob over on Christmas Eve. Kelty, their 2-year-old, kept our cats in line, and Keen, their tiny 1-mo-old just lay there and snorted every now and then. We had some good laughs and it was nice to share the holiday with friends.

We went to church at 11 PM and Christmas day we slept in (the theme of the weekend). Chris gave me some great books I'm looking forward to reading (3 cups of tea, in defense of food, and a slow-cooker cookbook!) and some funny presents. He was simply delighted by the UGA snuggie I bought him (haha). Personally I think it is great for those sub-zero nights we've been having, even if it's not as stylish as the leapord-print snuggies. I stayed in my pajamas all day on Christmas, a feat I have not accomplished in ages. It was great! I even got started on my masterpiece paint-by-numbers (further proof of my inner 80-year-old).

This morning was painful though, and after 4 days of sleeping past 9:00, I realized just how lazy I am deep down. Somehow, I surpress the laziness through early morning workouts and my caffeine addiction, but letting the lazy beast out for a few days made it even harder to fight back today. I lead a pretty active lifestyle and sometimes compare myself to some amatuer triathletes or cyclists, but in this respect I am so different from the super driven athletes. When given the chance, I LOVE to slack off! It just makes me wonder how long I can keep up this act.

Luckily, although it was difficult to get to, I really enjoyed my 6:30 AM body pump class, so I have some hope for returning to a productive human being. Then again, it's 1 PM and I am blogging instead of working, sooooo ...... yeah.

Day 8: Arolla to La Sage

We took our time leaving today and did some grocery shopping first. We also said goodbye to our British friends, who were taking a rest day in Arolla. Chris and I also split ways early on the trail – he took a more difficult route while I tried to salvage the cartilage in my knees by taking the lower trail. We’ve been having a great time traveling together, but it was a little nice to be on the trail alone for a bit. Solitude is a good thing from time to time.

After about 1-1/2 hours we met up at Lac Blue – more like a pond with very clear, blue water. Well, it was a little warm so I decided to jump in. Once my feet were in I realized I’d have to just dive in or give up because it was frigid! When I dove in, I really wondered if I would make it out – it was probably the coldest water I’ve ever been in! There were lots of people picnicking around the lake and I got some funny looks, including from Chris. Oh well, it was fun!

We then hiked down a lot to Les Haudres, where we had a delicious lunch of Switzerland’s version of a slim jim, bread, honey (from Les Haudres), nutella and plums. Very nice. From there it was just an hour to La Sage, where we are staying tonight. La Sage is tiny and I kind of wish we had just stayed in Les Haudres. Our hostel/gite is kind of dumpy but what else can I expect from an old village on the side of a mountain? I did some laundry, then Chris and I sat on the deck and took in the views and some beer/coffee. Dinner was a very pleasant surprise. Chris got lamb covered in an amazing soft cheese and I had a tasty sausage. Now we are hanging out in a common room with some French people. Oh yeah, there was a bit of communication error with our hostess. We asked for the menu and then waited 30 minutes before deciding that something had been lost in translation. At least that gave us plenty of time to get very hungry!

The silly American

A typical Valaisian home in Les Haudres

Our hostel in La Sage, the food was great

Day 7: Refuge les Ecoulies and Arrolla

We woke up to less than an inch of snow. Not a big deal but it was very pretty … and cold! The door to the bathroom, outside the refuge, was frozen shut! Today’s hike was very exciting, and we really enjoyed having the trail to ourselves most of the way. We left at 8:45 and walked along the Lac Dixence. We decided to hike by the Cabane de Dix and I’m glad we did. It’s in an amazing setting, surrounded by peaks and glaciers. It would be an awesome place to stay the night.

But we continued on and walked across a glacier! This was one of the highlights of the trip so far. We were on the glacier before we realized it. We both thought we were still on a lateral moraine, but looked down and realized the small rocks and dirt were actually frozen together. If you brushed the top layer of rocks aside you saw nothing but clear ice below! Once we got to the main glacier, it was obvious. Under the dusting of snow, it was just clear. Here and there little streams coursed down the ice and looked like them-park water slides (Chris even tried sliding down a little slope on the glacier). It was very beautiful. The streams were the clearest things you’ve ever seen. I got some water from one and it was refreshing, and also had an interesting mineral flavor. It was also interesting being at the edge of a glacier. You could see how the ice in contact with rocks would melt first, so if there were only very small rocks you’d see little spires of ice between them.

After probably about an hour, we left the glacier and headed up the Col de Chevres. I guess we left the trail because we ended up scrambling up some super-steep, sketchy stuff. It reminded me of some of our Alaska hiking. You can’t actually hike up the Col de Chevres – instead there are four 10-15 ft. ladders linked together scaling a steep cliff! I was very relieved and a little shaky at the top!

This was when we started to run into all the other hikers. It was a nice descent into Arolla. As we talked to people, we learned that our choice to not stay at the Cabane de Prafluerie was a good one. It was crowded and only had 2 bathrooms and no cooking facilities. No one sounded like they enjoyed it, plus the Col de Roux was very icy in the early morning.

We’ve learned that the Swiss seem to be super hikers. I think you have to be pretty hardcore to climb any of these mountains. This point was further driven home when we arrived in Arolla and a 25 km race was ending that went from 1800 m (5900 ft) to 3000 m (9800 ft) and back to 2000 m (6500 ft). The winner did it in 2:15! Arolla was nice but crowded, especially with the “trek” in town. Luckily we found a room and dinner from some folks selling food out of their garage. We had a refreshing beer with dinner and then polished off an entire bottle of wine! A Goron from Cab. de la Tsa – which actually is a cabin you can stay at perched above Arolla. The funniest part of the day was listening to all the drunk racers and festival-goers outside our hostel. They were singing in French along with an accordion – funny how drunk people sound the same in any language.

Cabane de Dix (get your mind out of the gutter, "dix" means ten in French!):

We were hoping to start the 2009 Georgia season right, oh well:

Glaciers and ice outside of Arolla:

Day 6: Cab. Mont Fort to Refuge Les Ecoulies

Today was a very difficult day in terms of mileage (~11 mi.) and terrain (4 cols), but we both felt great and had a very good day. The only bad thing about the day was the line of people on the trail, thanks to the added traffic from the tour group. We can go fast, but today we stopped so often for pictures or just enjoying the scenery that we were almost the last ones on the trail. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so why rush?

First we walked along the Sentier des Chamois, an almost even trail along the side of a mountain with spectacular views of the Grand Combin and the mountains we’d walked by days 2, 3, and 4. Every now and then we’d look around and realized, “Holy crap, we’re walking in the Swiss Alps!” ☺ We went over the Col Termin, then the much more difficult Col de Louvie. The wind was so fierce at the top that it knocked Chris over when he knelt to take a picture! It was flurrying, too, so we hurried on and had lunch overlooking the Grand Desert glacier.

The hike to the Col du Plafuerie was our favorite part of the day. Past the Grand Desert, we were on flat rocky ledges and passed by a picturesque tarn. The sun even came out, so we stopped to gaulk and have a couple of sips of wine. The wine led to all sorts of silliness heading up the Col (or maybe it was just our ebulence at the glory of the day). We imitated Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin (cycling announcers) and referred to the hikers ahead of us as the breakaway that we were trying to reel in. Then Chris attacked … all hell broke loose! Once the climb kicked in we stopped talking though. We caught up to Mike and Jenny (the couple from Texas) and then waited on them at the top for high-fives and then headed on.


By now it was snowing/graupeling, and that continued on and off the rest of the evening. We made it to the Cabane Prafluerie around 5:00. It was packed. We stopped in for some hot drinks and chatted with Todd. I got hot chocolate and Chris got coffee and they both came in huge bowls! Yum! We somewhat reluctantly left the warmth of the Cabane for Col #4: Col de Roux. It didn’t take long and soon we were overlooking the Val d’Dixence, with a long man-made lake, steep slopes all around, and large glacier-clad mountains at the head of the valley.

We stopped for several pictures and then made our way to the Refuge des Ecoulies. We were the only ones there – a very welcome sight after the Cabane. We had some delicious cold ravioli with cheese, sauce, and 3-day old bread. Add some wine and great views, it was an excellent evening!

Hot chocolate served in a bowl. Score!















Sunshine on the other side of Col de Roux















Our cabin for the night

Day 5: Le Chable to Cabane du Mont Fort

Today we ascended 1600 m, or 5200 feet, kind of like climbing Long’s Peak! It was difficult yet enjoyable. The higher we got, the grander the views. Relative to the Swiss hiking times posted on signs here, Chris and I are faster uphill than down. I think we just get into a good rhythm and take less breaks going up. Stopping during a climb makes getting going again very difficult. So we just go. Today Chris set the pace and it was challenging but do-able for me. Unil the end, when we came around a ridge and saw the Cabane. It looked so close but was 45 minutes away! I was delirious with exhaustion, but also with the amazement at the views.

I like the cabane, it’s nicer than expected. We have a private room and things seem pretty clean. It’s 3-stories high and has strange horned human heads outside that howl when you walk by. Someone’s idea of art, my idea of creepy!

We are getting to know some of our fellow trekkers. Mike and Jenny are kind and maybe a little overwhelmed by the experience. Todd is a vet from Vermont/Albany (NY). We ate dinner with him tonight. Then there are four British guys in their late 50’s who impress us with their speed. We’ve also met a British couple and a Canadian couple. We were a little bummed to see a group of 10+ show up on a guided tour. The only plus is one of the guides, Dan, went to UGA and has lived in Italy for 15 years since graduating.

Well this hike has been very enjoyable so far. Some times it’s harder than I expected, but the views almost never disappoint and Chris and I are having fun. We came to the realization this morning that our legs will probably hurt the rest of the trip. But, on the plus, they will be made of steel by the time we reach Zermatt! ☺ Oh yeah, the espresso at Hotel la Poste was amazing!

The Cabane du Mont Fort, nestled among the peaks and gondolas

Incredible view from the cabin's deck

Day 4: Champex-Lac to Le Chable

According to Kev, today was “easy.” According to Chris, “It was steep and far down to the place.” The hike was mostly downhill, but that can be very rough on the legs. It started out fabulously. We hobbled to breakfast and then decided to go for a walk before checking out of the Club Alpin. The walk elevated our legs from very gimpy to slightly sore status. We watched old men fishing along the Lac and fog rolling in over the hills. We spoke with 3 people on their way out on the Tour du Mont Blanc, and one couple from Texas (Mike and Jenny) who are also doing the Haute Route. None of them went over the Fenetre the day before, which made us feel either special or dumb, or maybe just “youthfully” over-ambitious.

We left town about 10:15. The first half of the hike was great – overlooking a very pastoral valley with impressive mountains all around. We passed a handful of hamlets. Many of the homes in this region have their own garden, some of which Chris was drooling over.

If I could go back to this AM however, I would recommend taking the train between Sembrancher and Le Chable. Much of the walk was on a gravel road next to an extensive gravel pit, with lots of heavy machinery and a recycling/compost center. It was ugly, to be honest. One highlight, however, was when we realized the Tour de France had passed through this area in July. Apparently, there’s something called the “Livestrong bot”, which will paint messages on the raods of the TDF. The messages went on for a few hundred meters and made an impression on me. Here, thousands of miles from home, you see evidence of two things probably all people have in common. First is cancer – in some form we all know someone who had or has it. Second is the human spirit – the will to fight, the audacity to hope (sorry to steal the phrase), the remembrance of loved ones gone, the need to cheer for cyclists about to tackle climbs that seem just as crazy as beating cancer. It just made me feel, I don’t know, more connected to the humanity around us, and even to whatever it is that compels so many people to shoulder a pack and traipse through these jumbled mountains (I’ll let you know when I figure out what that is).

So enough philosophy. Le Chable is in an impressive setting, but unfortunately it’s cloudy so we can’t fully appreciate it. We spent the afternoon in an exhausting search for groceries, dinner, gifts, etc. But now we are enjoying our 80 degrees private room in Hotel la Poste. Also we are noticing our heart rates are unusually high. Mine was 86 bpm at breakfast. Maybe it was the 3 cups of coffee, because tonight it is down to 52.

Day 3: Side of mountain to Champex-Lac

Trient Glacier

Chris didn’t sleep well at our crooked campsite, and I woke up from time to time, too, with fears of marmots getting into our bags or geese flying over our heads (not sure why that was a concern but I woke Chris up a few times yelling at these fictitious creatures). But every time I woke up, I was enthralled by the scene around us. The horizon, or 270 degrees of it, was lined with jagged peaks, and the sky splashed with stars. Down below us, the peaceful village of Trient sparkled in the dark valley. So not sleeping well didn’t bother me too much.

When we woke up, some chamoix were wandering around the hillside next to us. These “acrobats of the hillside,” according to a children’s book we bought for Ashlyn, look like goats with warpaint, according to Chris. They looked like beefy pronghorn to me. Anyway, the closest one to us made eye contact when we started talking, and then ran away. Then all the others galloped off, as if the rocy hillside were nothing. They must have been very spooked because they kept running until they were far out of sight. But I felt like we were very fortunate to see so many of them (8-10), considering how skittish they are.

Anyway, we had seen the trail for the day the evening before, and it looked crazy. This ended up being a very difficult day, but I was glad we at least knew somewhat what to expect. We started hiking at 9:15 and hiked down, down, down. We had to take a break near the Chalet du Glacier at about 11 AM just to give our joints a break. Here’s an idea of the profile: we passed the Refuge les Grands at 2100 m, then down to the Chalet at 1500 m, and then back up to the Fenetre d’Arpette at 2660 m, and back down to Champex at 1460 m! My legs were so tired by the end that they ached.

The hike up the Fenetre (which means ‘window’ in French) was not so bad because we did a good job of pacing ourselves (AKA I was in front, and we stopped every 25-30 minutes). We arrived at about 2:10 and the view at the top was pretty amazing, as were the views of the Glacier de Trient all the way up. I’ve never been so close to such a huge glacier, it was impressive. It was also interesting to compare it to a picture in the book we are using. I don’t know when that was taken, but the glacier seems to have retreated quite a bit since then.

The only really bad part of the day was the water. There were plentiful streams to drink from on the way up but none for about 1-1/2 hours on the way down. It was hot and we were very very thirsty and growing more fatigued with every step. I was so happy to finally see a stream that I was ready to lap the water off the ground, if necessary.

We finally arrived at Champex-Lac at 6:15, just in time to check into a hotel (Club Alpin), rinse off, and sit down for a magnificent dinner. So all told we hiked for 8 hours 15 minutes. Kev (the author of our guide book) said it would take 6.5-7, oh well. We loved our hotel. For 70 francs (about $70), we got a 5-person room all to ourselves, a 4-course dinner, and breakfast (I had 3 cups of coffee ☺). Also Champex was nice, a beautiful setting but not over-developed.

The Refuge les Grands - a nice spot that we passed up in favor of camping last night.


Easy hiking on the western side of the Fenetre

Views along Lac Champex

Stage 2: Argentiere to side of mountain

View from our campsite

Today we hiked from 10:30-4:45, with about a 1-1/2 hr break at the Col de Balme. The hike up to the Col was much more difficult than I was expecting. We gained 2400 ft. from Le Tour. Mocking us the whole way were gondolas and lifts, but that would be cheating! The views made it well worthwhile, though – especially of Mont Blanc.

At the Col, we had lunch and then napped for 45-60 minutes! We were beat. The trail since hasn’t been difficult, just along the side of this mountain. We decided to camp tonight (even though it’s illegal, for whatever reason). It’s been nice to have this amazing vista to ourselves. Only problem is there’s no room for a tent because the hillside is steep and rocky. So we will be sleeping at a bit of an angle but hopefully won’t roll away!

I’m enjoying our food – salami, local cheese, baguettes, nutella, chocolate, fruit, and wine. ☺ Sleeping outside is great, this makes the trip feel more like what we usually enjoy doing outside.

the dinner table

view of Mont Blanc on the way up the Col de Balme

Pictures from Stage 1, Haute Route

These didn't work last time so I'm trying again! Better late than never :)

A view from the train in Germany. This is when I was thinking, "I want to move to Europe."


Reto cooking us fondue:

Street-side dining in Bern:

Neat mountains along the trail on the first day: