Hiking the TMB with Deb and Jeff: Day 1 Les Houches to Contamines

So we started out in Les Houches with our destination being Les Contamines. We were feeling ambitious so we decided to take the variant route which adds 2 hours, 2 kilometers, and 1400 kilometers of climb to our day. The up side is that we get to hike to the base of a glacier! And we have views that promise to be amazing. We were not disappointed! The glacier was amazing and the views were unsurpassed!
What we didn't know was that we would climb and decend 5 times in an 8 hour period! The other imperative items that were missing from our book that we followed like a bible were that we BOTH needed hiking poles, and that there were NO meandering paths. We were either climbing at a steep pitch, or decending at an even more ridiculous pitch with rocks on the path! Last item that was not mentioned in our book was that parts of this path were only passable by the use of cables attached to very narrow, wet rocky ridges that were in avalanche zones and had extremely steep (at least 500 foot) drop offs. Even through all this, we enjoyed spectacular views, a fantastic lunch in the valley below a glacier, and finally when we reached our Chalet Chovettaz where we were greeted by Chris and Fiona with a cold beer, spectacular room, and fabulous meal. Tomorrow is a new day!