 DAYS ELEVEN & TWELVE – July 13 & 14 The last two days of this epic hike included: the best hot dogs ever, a cable car ride, ibex sightings, some scrambling over rocks, a night at Bellachat refuge, and the ultimate views of Mont Blanc. DAY ELEVEN After many nights in shared sleeping quarters with strangers in tight spaces, waking up our hotel room in Chamonix, with a private bath, was simply divine. It was Saturday morning in Chamonix. After taking full advantage of our hotel’s buffet breakfast, we decided to enjoy the morning and walk around the town because today’s hike from Plan Praz to Bellachat would only take a couple of hours. This Saturday in Chamonix was bustling! Farmer’s market, World Champion rock climbing competition, Hot Dogs, and general celebrations for Bastille Day – a busy Saturday indeed. I was feeling really proud of myself for having hiked the TMB so far but then we watched the best rock climbers in the world tackle a vertical wall and suddenly I felt completely inadequate and unaccomplished. These climbers are phenomenal! Super human strength combined with a fearless attitude – so inspiring!  Meanwhile, I couldn’t help but be distracted by the incredible scent of cheese and olives and fresh bread from the market right beside the competition. The agony of not being able to buy anything was tortuous! Without anyway to keep the food cool, it was impossible to carry anything in our packs. Just look at that amazing cheese!  Naturally by now we were starving so we ventured down Rue de les Moulins and decided to have a hot dog for lunch at Cool Cats. THESE ARE THE BEST (VEGGIE) HOT DOGS IN THE WORLD. This is the only time I've ever taken a picture of a hot dog. It was that good. That’s all I will say about that.  That was the end of our leisurely morning. Back up the Plan Praz cable car to pick up the trail where we left off yesterday. And I thought the day before had the best views of Mont Blanc! I was so wrong. Today’s trail follows a ridge with spectacular views like this:  And then the trail dips down into a rocky valley that is quiet and still. The only sounds you might hear is the clacking of ibex hoofs as they walk and jump along the rocks. Ibex! This next section does require some finesse as some scrambling over rocky spots and crossing snowy hillsides are necessary. It’s not particularly difficult, especially if you’ve hiked the trail the last 10 days, instead it was actually rather fun. You do have to pay attention to the TMB signs through here as there are also signs for other trails. Of course the day wouldn’t be complete with some kind of ladder up a rock wall. I was inspired by the rock climbers we saw earlier that morning!  Our host at Bellachat was very happy to see us. Apparently it’s not that common for people to arrive as late as we did so she was a bit concerned. Also, I think she wanted to prep for dinner. Bellachat Refuge is a MUST DO on the TMB. I think it gets missed by many hikers because it adds another day. Bellachat is perched on top of the mountain. Sure it’s rustic, sure it doesn’t have a ‘normal’ toilet or a shower, but it has the most spectacular views of Mont Blanc of the entire trip. The food was really good too – omelette and pasta – so much that I couldn’t eat it all (don’t say anything about the hot dog I ate earlier!).  Staying here is one of the highlights of the whole hike. DAY TWELVE – FINAL DAY ON THE TMB Not only is the view from Bellachat one of the best on the whole trail – if you’re lucky to see it first thing in the morning and watch the sunrise over Mont Blanc, you will see this panoramic view and it will take your breath away, like it did mine. There is no better way to start the last day on the hike by looking at this:  This is where you eat breakfast if the weather is nice (otherwise you’d eat in the common dinning area inside). Not a bad place to have a HUGE BOWL of coffee – you might recall, one of my new favourite things.  There’s something about the final day on the trail, like the last-day-of-camp feeling. Excited to finish but also sad at the same time – at least it was for me. 24 hours a day together for 12 days – we did it ladies!  We weren’t quite finished yet. Today was all downhill. Our destination – Les Houches, where is all begins and ends. For a while the trail hugged the mountainside. I was getting used to the cliff side trails by now – more confidence, same amount of anxiety – but still, looking back at the photos from that day does sort of take my breath away.  After this part, the trail enters a forest and zig zags its way downhill to Les Houches. Every once in a while Mont Blanc would peek through the trees:  And then what seems like a short amount of time later, you walk by a parking lot, and then a road and then suddenly you cross a bridge and you’re in Les Houches. Our plan was to go back to where we got off the bus to start the hike (also because we knew that there was a restroom there). On the way we came across the official starting place of the hike so we opted to take our official-ending-place-of-the-hike photo:  And that’s a wrap on this incredible hike of a lifetime. I can’t believe I’ve had “Tour du Mont Blanc” on my wish list for what feels like forever and now it’s done – all 170 kms conquered. It was really quite something.
Now, where to next? Any suggestions? Go back: Day 10
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