Blogs from Champex Pass, South-West, Switzerland, Europe

There are many amazing places to discover in the world. Time is precious and certainly limited. So it's always a matter of priority to decide what to do with it. Some don't need to discover new things all the time. They are rather habitual and feel secure when things are familiar to them. Others are at the other extreme where everything but the new bores them. Most, however, might be somewhere in between those two extremes. They prefere some stability and security but they are also willing to take risks to gain new experiences. I would place myself within the last category. This trip to Switzerland started with a call over Skype. I was planning to go to a country where the sun didn't drag herself up at 8.30am only to fall quickly back to rest ... read more

This is supposed to be the most difficult day of the trek, and it better be. I'm sitting now at Relais L'Arpette, after this very long and tough day, and I'm sooo tired. We started before 8am with a nice path, climbing gently up the hill. When we reached Chalet du Glacier at 1583m the path took a steep turn... The higher we went, the steeper it became. No wonder in fact, as we were simply facing a wall in front of us. You look at the wall and it seems absolutely impassable. It's sooo high. The last 400m climb were the hardest. The effort was tremendous. I couldn't believe I could make it but of course there wasn't any choice. Going back wasn't an option. Finally at 1pm we reached the "Fenêtre L'Arpette", a beautiful ... read more