Day 4 (Chamonix – Zermatt) Thurs 29th June: Le Châbleto Cabane du Mont-Fort
Ascent 1636m / Descent 0m (6th day walking)
Up, up & away – heading back into the mountains
- This is day for those who hate going down.
“Continental breakfasts are a bit light though Ian did share his ham & cheese & didn’t forget the Nutella”
"Sorry, I got too much cheese on my paws & couldn't rotate the photos"
Well, then. Both well rested, both not so well fed, one well & one getting well, we set off.
Even though this was our 4th day in Switzerland we hadn’t been through any little Swiss mountain villages . . from today this was joy & everlasting cultural experience until the end.
The Swiss seem to have a tradition of hanging trade equipment on the outside of their houses – much more on these later
Yeah – Cuckoo clocks (on the house wall) . . now we really are in Switzerland!
“Ian, check these out - Swiss doggy poo bags, with instructions – You’ve got to love the Swiss”
“Ian, can we keep a few for souvenirs? Empty ones, preferably” “Bravo”
“What about priority for dogs?”
We meandered steeply & gradually up, sharing paths with mountain bikes –
Passed a few tournament standard MTB trails near Verbier – seriously scary steep stuff with lots of safety nets.
Views down the valley from yesterday’s walk towards Sembrancher
Swiss drinking fountain with a difference – Cold beer
(Near Clambin restaurant, above Verbier – both in the photo – if anyone fancies popping over for a free beer – Ian left a few)
Another cracking lunch stop at a picnic area, Le Hattey, above Chamblin – Wow, Ian you’ve done your homework. You even splashed out on quality Swiss cheese.
I was pushing my luck about ending up in the dog house with chasing a wild goat & . .
“You roll in anymore [censored], we won’t need to toss a coin to decide who sleeps outside!”
Sounds like Ian’s feeling better with his wise cracks. Then again . .
Les Ruinettes Cable Car station
“What? Have you gone barking mad? You’ve got a free cable car ticket from Le Châble to here!”
His stomach may be fine . . what about his head? It took us 6 hours to climb here.
“Zen, what’s the rush? We only take gondolas or cable cars in an emergency”
“Boy, he can be stubborn!
In hindsight, he was wrong, it’s not half, it’s all the fun in getting there!
And we soon arrived at Cabane du Mont-Fort 2457m (photo tomorrow) as snow was falling.
Ian was a little nervous how they would be about wild camping nearby.
– Daniel, who has been running this Cabane for years assured him there was no problem. Top bloke.
I was a little wet, cold & nervous about the snow falling.
After pitching the tent, Ian did something super surprising – he separated the waterproof bivvy bag protecting his down sleeping bag from a wet dog like me & laid it on the freezing tent floor for me
Fab, for later … Now, I snuggled up on the sleeping bag whilst Ian ate the famously delicious food served up by Daniel Bruchez
– again Ian had done his homework as Cabane du Mont-Fort has always been one of the best huts on the Haute Route
(Cabane de Moiry is possibly the best)
“Hey, Zen, remember Day C to Lacs de Cherseys?”
“How could I forget!”
“We have another awesome day planned tomorrow
“What about the snow?”
“All taken care of to make it more special!”
“I felt special . . and lucky. Ian forgot about the coin toss!”