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Published: July 12th 2017
Below is the drop from yesterday.
Stop wondering why they call these places 'mountain refuges'. Any queries should be dispelled by the accompanying pictures.
Relatively pleasant walk today. Sure the obligatory 700 m climb was there again but much of the path skirted the side of the mountains and hence significantly reduced the contour line crossing. Even my rudimentary French (haute cuisine and haute couture) was enough to warn me of the haute alternative route. In places we could see the route but then again we can see the moon at times as well and don't think we can walk to it! We actually completed the stage at about 3 today, almost in the advised time zone which was pretty good. I'm pretty good at scheduling rest stops and laying back for a while but I've realised as you rest you don't get any closer! Not tomorrow (not thinking about that yet) but the next day we have a baby day of only 4 hours so I am thinking of that!
About the confusion as to who is who and who is where.
I'm here, Lee's home, Julie is here and my blog is sent
to Lee who reposts. Sometimes I log in on Facebook as Lee and just send a couple of photos and a word or two. I'm hoping the extra photos and explanations are followed on my blog. I'm fairly certain that once you have accessed one blog you can go forward and back between blogs via 2 buttons at the end. The photos not embedded in the text are also at the end of the blog. Yes there are always more photos than blog.
The refuge here, Refuge Bonatti, clings to the side of a mountain (well everything here does) but it is very comfortable. We have heard the food is good, wholesome and plentiful but already the coin-restricted token activated showers were very good and our room is comfortable and very pleasant. More pleasant for me as I grabbed the lower bunk before Julie was settled! It sleeps 80 I think so you can imagine the dining room. They serve the same meal as standard to all I think, no vegan walks mountains, do they?
Well yes they probably do. I've seen some super fit athletes run past us and some twice. Very scary. They looked lean but
fit.
We are starting to re-see people we've seen before. Israelis, Americans, Scots and numerous Italians and French so it's really good. There are a couple of Aussies but not heaps and we always get a positive reception which is good.
I'm writing this section then I'll copy and paste so when you read it, it will be tomorrow but now it's almost meal time so I'm about to get ready.
Ciao for now.
Just in case you couldn't wait. It was salad, pasta, chick pea type balls in cabbage and apple slice. All good and quite a feat as I calculated close to 100 guests and not too many weren't hungry.
TMB Day 7
From Refuges Bonatti to Hotel Edelweiss. From Italy to Switzerland. From shared accommodation to comfortable hotel. From friendly, sharing community to well not such a friendly one (pay your bill now even though we may want to order something later). But it does have a monster big bath that I had to be asked to leave otherwise I would have missed dinner. Lovely little Swiss village and wait till you see the view out the window. Spectacular!
And we don't have to walk up it tomorrow as we walked around and down most of it today.
Just under 20 km today yet it takes us really close to 10 hours. Sure we have little rests and slightly longer breaks at the refuges that sell tea, water or even fresh cow's milk but the guide book suggestions only refer to real walking time so 7 hours extends to 10 pretty easily. We had the same 750 m uphill push to the good old 'col', this one they at least name the 'Grande Col' which is justifiable. Those 750 m ascents must translate to 750 X 10 steps and some are pretty tough. Even if not tough 7500 steps up hill is a big ask. Julie's step counter had clocked over 10000 by half past nine! But I'm pretty sure we both joyed the walk (I'm not brave enough or silly enough to ask Julie) and we are both blister free and moving pretty well. We have the hotel shuffle after meal time but so does every other walker and there are plenty of us!
Meals look like military operations feeding as many as 100 in the
refuges but even in the hotels walkers are feed a standard take it or leave it menu. Usually good, always wholesome and fresh and with some of those infamous breakfasts we don't go hungry.
The internet is sketchy at best here so I'll post and go.
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Lee
non-member comment
Keep up the good work
It sounds like you are really in the swing of it now! The scenery really is amazing!! Have you exchanged addresses with any of your new friends?! Looking forward to the next instalment. xx