TMB Stage 1: Les Houches to Les Contamines

 

On Thursday, June 30,2016, Bob, Dorothy, and Hans Tullmann set out for our first stage in the TMB (Tour du Mont Blanc) from Les Houches to Les Contamine, France.  

It had rained and thundered through the night and we had been warned to not hike due to weather conditions.  But we decided to take the risk...

We woke in Chamonix, France at the Chalet Ski Station after not getting a lot of sleep, due to jet lag.  After packing in the dark (without waking our Israeli roommates), and a quick breakfast, we missed our 6:21am bus.  

We arrived at Les Houghes and walked to the trailhead.  We started stage 1 going straight up a steep path.  Our first encounter with another TMB hiker was a young girl quickly passing us in the steep up hill.  It was her first day and by her accent, we could tell she was from Ireland.  We would later learn her name was Dorothee.

The views were spectacular, but the abundance of clouds put us on edge...

Each stage usually starts with a steep climb to a Col ( French for mountain pass) before heading down the other side. Today was no exception.  It's difficult to climb up hill for hours, but the views are the reward.

Unfortunately, the warnings of bad weather came true as claps of thunder led to a downpour of rain.  We quick got into our rain gear, which includes a pack cover and rain jacket. 10 minutes later the rain stopped for good!  

After climbing for a long time, we made it to the Col Du Voza, had a cup of coffee and energy bars, then started our down hill descent.  We also met 4 Candian guys who were pretty quick on the trail.

Our Path led us through little villages, green forests, and across rivers and creeks

 We descended in into a valley and then up to Les Contamines.

 We went to the Office of Tourism to get info on lodging, food, and briefly got on wifi.  

After eating dinner and grocery shopping in town, we took a bus up the road to Le Pontet, where we would stay for the night, at a gite. 

A dortoir is like a hostel, where you share communial sleeping quarters, restrooms, kitchen facilities, etc. we would share this room with Dorothee, her friend Miranda, and the Canadian hikers.  Exhausted we went to bed early to rest up for stage 2-- which includes a 4000+ ft climb up snowy mountains...