We started our day walking through Champex, past the lake, through the town, and then proceeded down a small country road through a few more small Swiss villages. At this point we were able to have some beautiful views of the Rhone Valley. After walking for about 1 1/2 hours, we left the road and began climbing up a rugged 4 x 4 track which soon turned into a rugged steep footpath. We began our climb to Al du Bovine (climbing about 1500 feet). At one point we crossed a creek that was a vibrant green that we hadn't seen before. We had to stop to take pictures as the color was iridescent. We heard later that day that one of our fellow hikers actually filled a bottle with the water from the creek because the color was so unique. Soon we were above the tree line and could see the valleys below.
As we neared the top of our ascent, we arrived at Alp Bovine (a high mountain cow farm that produces their own cheeses). This was a very very small refuge about 1/3 of the way into our journey today. It was a bit wet, drizzly, and chilly so we stopped in to have some food. When we walked in, we found the locals playing a game of cards, drinking beer and wine, and eating the cheeses (that they no doubt made in this location), and enjoying the afternoon. There were two ladies preparing lunch and dinner for the various hikers that would stop in for a bite to eat, as well as those who would actually seek refuge for the night in their loft beds. We enjoyed a bowl of vegetable soup, some beer, and homemade bread. The perfect meal to keep us going through the remainder of our day.
As we left Bovine to continue our hike to Col de la Forclaz, we walked through the cows that were grazing in the high mountain meadow just outside the refuge. All the cows have bells around their necks, attached by leather straps that have a specific emblem or crest on them to allow the farmers to identify their herd. It's quite melodic to hear all the bells chiming as the cows move around and try to shake the flies off their heads.
These cows clearly didn't care that we were hiking through and they had no intention of moving off the trail. Needless to say, I made Jeff go first!!!
After hiking through the cow pastures, we continued to climb a bit further, to reach our highest point at 2040m. The fog began to roll in, and the clouds were building. We were able to catch a few more glimpses of the Grand Combin mountain range, and the Alp Bovine in the distance. We could tell that rain was coming so we quickened our pace. We had about another 1 1/2 of down hill walking to reach Col de la Forclaz. The remainder of the walk down hill (to 1400m) was through a wooded section filled with mountain wildflowers, and thick brush.
As we neared the end of our day, it began to drizzle and the ground became wet. We were about 200 yards from reaching our hotel, and we could see it in the distance. Jeff looked over his shoulder and noticed an older couple closing ground on us from behind (the locals we encountered in the Alps are very strong and very hearty. We had a few occasions where we were 'dusted' by hikers older than us). Suddenly, after 5 hours + of hiking, he decides to sprint so that the older couple would not pass us. He slips on the wet rocks (keep in mind we are still going down hill), and tries to catch himself so that he doesn't hurt his already sore and swollen knees. In the process of trying to save his knees, he spins around and slams his hand into a jagged rock on the side of the hill. Blood comes spurting out of his hand because our hands were swollen and filled with blood from walking. Fortunately I had a napkin in my pocket and he was able to wrap his hand and walk the final 100 yards to our destination. As we sat outside the hotel, removing our boots before entering, his hand had soaked the napkin and he looked like a horror movie. Fortunately, his hand just had a deep cut on it that didn't need stitches. Needless to say, Jeff was not able to help with the laundry that night (how convenient). Tomorrow we cross back into France.
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| This was the view from our bathroom window. Very convenient to see the trail from our window!!! |
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| This is what our room looked like after I did all the laundry. Thankful for a large room, private bathroom, and plenty of places to hang our wet clothes. It was raining outside so we couldn't hang anything in the windows |
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