So much has happened since our last blog – over a month ago! …leaving Spain, we flew to England and had a whirlwind tour – visiting my Dad, Cate’s Mum, seeing friends, and going to a comedy show (Ed Gamble), two concerts (Abba and the National), and an impressive exhibition of the Apollo moon landings narrated by Tom Hanks.
Just over a week later we came out to France, joined by my Dad who met us at Lyon airport, having taken a flight landing just a few minutes after our own. A tram, a train, and a taxi ride later and we were back in our Chalet. Dad stayed for just a few days, but we were lucky to get great weather and ventured out for walks each day.
On our first full day we headed out towards the Cormet de Roseland, detouring before the pass towards an area called the Ville des Glaciers. The area is restricted, so we parked the car and took a navette to the start of our walk, where we passed a memorial to the resistance fighters of the Second World War, and on to the Refuge des Mottets where we stopped for a cold beer and a chance to admire the fabulous views. We ran out of time (and energy) to climb all the way to the col at the head of the valley, but that gave us an excuse to return to the refuge for a second beer before heading home.
On day two, another beautifully sunny day, we drove over the Petit St Bernard pass into La Thuile in Italy. The river passing through the village was huge – a testament to the snowfall over the winter and the on-going rainfall earlier in the Spring. After lunch in town we drove back up towards the pass and stopped for a walk around Lac du Verney. There was still snow in patches around the lake – one patch taller than Cate, and the colours in the algae surrounding the lake were stunning, as the top picture shows.
For Dad’s last full day with us we ventured out for another walk, this time above our neighbouring village of La Masure towards the Ruitor glacier, with lunch at the Refuge du Ruitor in the valley just below the glacier. It was another lovely day, but by that evening storm clouds were beginning to appear and we were able to enjoy the view of the gathering clouds from our balcony, whilst having a barbecue on the terrace.
By the following morning the weather was clearly deteriorating. We drove Dad to Moutier to catch his train back home and returned to the Chalet to spend most of the next couple of days indoors watching the rain outside. By Sunday the weather was clearing, just in time for the arrival of David, Cate’s brother, who stayed with us for the week. Again, we (and he) got lucky with the weather and were able to get outside every day for some great walks. That week was also my first chance to try out the drone that Cate bought me for my birthday. What a fabulous piece of kit! Without wanting to tempt fate, I was surprised at how easy it is to fly, and I have been practising most days ever since – hopefully it will be as easy to use on the boat later this year.
On David’s first day we returned to the Ruitor refuge, taking advantage of the calm conditions to practice flying the drone, as well as returning to the refuge for lunch.
I had more practice with the drone that afternoon when we got back to the chalet – launching the drone from the car park just outside our place and getting a nice aerial photo of the chalet and surrounding village.
For David’s second day we took a trip up to the Sassière lakes above Lac du Chervil – another chance to fly the drone!
The good weather held, and the next day we returned to Italy, taking in a walk near the Petit St Bernard pass, complete with spectacular views of Mont Blanc. Of course, the day would not have been complete without a good lunch, and we had a great time outside on the terrace at the Maison du Laurent, a restaurant we first discovered in the ski season a couple of years ago.
On David’s last day with us we drove up to Val d’Isère and beyond, to the Gorge du Maupassant, from where we took the path beside the gorge and up to the Prariond refuge – a place we have stayed on ski tours a couple of times over the years. For Cate the walk was also a reminder of the time she had done the same walk 10 years ago with her Mum, then age 73! Conditions were again perfect, and we stopped for lunch at the refuge. Once back in the valley we drove into Val d’Isère village to take the Olympique cable car (free in Summer!) up for views of the ski resort from the top of the Bellevarde.
Somehow, both my Dad and David managed to stay with us when the weather was good – as soon as David left, the weather turned and we have sat through a few wet days. It has given us the chance to catch up on chores around the house and garden. In particular, there has been a persistent leak around the drainage pipe for our terrace, so we have dug up the flower bed and, with Martyn (the builder who did our chalet conversion) we are trying to pour concrete into the holes! Sunny weather is forecast for most of the next few weeks, so we hope to get some more walking done, possibly even some cycling, before retuning to our boat in August.
Morning, it’s amazing that there’s still snow on the ground and so much of it, mind you, it hasn’t been the best of summers so far and the river in La Thuile is a raging torrent!
ABBA eh? Was it ABBA Voyage off Pudding Mill Lane? We went in June, the second time for Kris, and really enjoyed but we got thoroughly soaked whilst waiting to go in still it adds to the experience, lovely here this morning though.
Your photos of the Alps never fail to impress.
Love, Kris and Gary. Xx
Morning, it’s amazing that there’s still snow on the ground and so much of it, mind you, it hasn’t been the best of summers so far and the river in La Thuile is a raging torrent!
ABBA eh? Was it ABBA Voyage off Pudding Mill Lane? We went in June, the second time for Kris, and really enjoyed but we got thoroughly soaked whilst waiting to go in still it adds to the experience, lovely here this morning though.
Love, Kris and Gary. Xx