Bryan and Kiana first discovered this area seven years ago when he ran the Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc for the first time. Since then they have been going back to the same camp site, Camping le Pontet, every summer, and this year they invited us to come down so they could show us around.
Camping le Pontet is located about a kilometre and a half from the little town of Les Contamines, and is in use in summer for hikers and trail runners, and in the winter for skiers. The Nature preserve of Les Contamines-Montjoie is the highest altitude nature preserve in France, and the only protected area of the Mont-Blanc mountain range. The elevation of the village and the campsite is around 1100m, and the mountain ranges nearby reach as high as 3892m. As you can imagine there are wonderful views, and many micro-climates that can be visited from the campsite. The area is also famous for its delicious cheeses, crisp white wines, and a schnapps-like liqueur called genepi that is flavoured from local alpine herbs of the same name.
We made four different hikes over the eight days that we stayed there, beginning with a roughly six kilometre hike to the Refuge de Tré la Tête. To explain the idea of a refuge, there are a series of shelters spread throughout the region, and they been used for many years by travellers who either are making day hikes or for those who are doing longer journeys through the mountains. These were originally simple huts, but many of them have been turned into cafes and hostels.
The trail to this refuge climbs about 850 metres to an elevation of about 1970m. We were happy to reach the top, and enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful views. People live up there during the season, and staff the hostel and restaurant, and we saw lots of cows and sheep, and other livestock on the way up. We shooed some chickens out of the way so that we could find a seat at the refuge, had a beer and ate our picnic lunches, then headed back down the mountain to the campsite.
The next day was cloudy and rainy, and so we took it easy. When the weather cleared the next day we did a two-stage hike. The first stage was about 5km with a climb of 526m to the refuge de La Balme at an elevation of 1706m. We had lunch there and Maggie stayed with the dogs and her embroidery, and the rest of us continued another 3.5km and a climb of 621m to Col de Bonhomme, at an elevation of 2329m. This second stage was a pretty strenuous hike, over shale and even some snowpack, and when we got to the top it was quite cold and windy. We were happy to huddle in the primitive refuge for a bit, and then head back down the mountain to meet Maggie and return to the campground.
After another day off to rest and recover, our next hike was to le Signal, around 5-6 km distance with a climb of 750m. Some of us took the cable car for part of the way, while others did the hike. It was a beautiful day and so we could see the very top of Mont Blanc as it poked its head above the intervening mountains. We had a great hamburger lunch, and the frites were spectacularly good!
On the way back down we stopped off at the Chalet de l'étape, and had a beer on the patio while Malcolm and I went for a swim in the snowmelt lake nearby. The water was very cold but not unmanageable, and it felt great after the exertions of our hike.
We relaxed a bit the next day, and Armani, Malcolm, Duncan, Bryan and I went to the nearby driving range and hit some golf balls in the late afternoon. Then as the evening was clear, we thought we'd take a drive up the mountain to try to find a clear spot to watch the Perseid meteor shower, which was just past its peak. The night drive up the mountain in the WV camper van was pretty exciting, especially with nine humans and two dogs in the car, and we found a lovely quiet spot near an alpine lake. Unfortunately the sky was too bright to see many meteors, because the meteor shower coincided with a full moon. I didn't spot any shooting stars but many of the others did.
Our last hike on the 16th of August was the big one; the first stage was around 5.5 kilometres to the Refuge de Miage, with a climb of around 630m. We all walked that section of the trail with the dogs, and had a great picnic lunch among the cows and sheep in the alpine meadow formed from the sediments carried by the meltwaters of the glaciers above. The Refuge de Miage is quite large and has a big terrace bar for hikers. Maggie, the younger kids and the dogs stayed there for the afternoon, while Bryan, Kiana, Armani, Malcolm and I continued up the mountain to the Refuge Plan Glacier, which is perched on the side of the mountain, just across from the glacier.
That was the toughest climb of all, nearly a kilometer climb in the span of 3,6km distance. But the views were really gorgeous. We we thirsty from the climb and wanted some beer and lemonade, but the cafe operators explained that the helicopter had only just delivered the monthly supplies that morning, so they had nothing to offer us. We offered to help unload the package, at least until we found the beer and sparkling water. They much appreciated our help, and we appreciated the beer and lemonade.
Then it was a long and very tiring descent that was hard on the knees and thigh muscles. Malcolm was feeling it most of all, as of the party, he has done the least amount of hiking in the last couple of years. But he didn't complain, and we all made it down safely to the Refuge de Miage for a short rest, and then resumed our trek back to the campsite. My hiking tracker read that by the end of the day it had taken us about 7.5 hours to travel over 18km, with a total climb of almost 2000m. No wonder we were tired! But not so tired that we didn't celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary with a bottle of champagne, and a nice meal together.
The next day was our last one in Les Contamines so we relaxed and took it easy. The kids did some rock climbing with a guide; Maggie did some more embroidery and I read my book, enjoyed a cigar, threw the ball for the dogs, and then in the afternoon we went to the beach nearby. The campsite boasts a beautiful sandy lake that is fed from the meltwater of a nearby river, and there was a big inflatable waterslide for the kids to play on. In the evening we had a bbq together and then turned in fairly early so that we would be up in time to pack up and head back home.
All in all it was a great holiday! I am sharing a bunch of photos below...
The trail to this refuge climbs about 850 metres to an elevation of about 1970m. We were happy to reach the top, and enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful views. People live up there during the season, and staff the hostel and restaurant, and we saw lots of cows and sheep, and other livestock on the way up. We shooed some chickens out of the way so that we could find a seat at the refuge, had a beer and ate our picnic lunches, then headed back down the mountain to the campsite.
The next day was cloudy and rainy, and so we took it easy. When the weather cleared the next day we did a two-stage hike. The first stage was about 5km with a climb of 526m to the refuge de La Balme at an elevation of 1706m. We had lunch there and Maggie stayed with the dogs and her embroidery, and the rest of us continued another 3.5km and a climb of 621m to Col de Bonhomme, at an elevation of 2329m. This second stage was a pretty strenuous hike, over shale and even some snowpack, and when we got to the top it was quite cold and windy. We were happy to huddle in the primitive refuge for a bit, and then head back down the mountain to meet Maggie and return to the campground.
After another day off to rest and recover, our next hike was to le Signal, around 5-6 km distance with a climb of 750m. Some of us took the cable car for part of the way, while others did the hike. It was a beautiful day and so we could see the very top of Mont Blanc as it poked its head above the intervening mountains. We had a great hamburger lunch, and the frites were spectacularly good!
On the way back down we stopped off at the Chalet de l'étape, and had a beer on the patio while Malcolm and I went for a swim in the snowmelt lake nearby. The water was very cold but not unmanageable, and it felt great after the exertions of our hike.
We relaxed a bit the next day, and Armani, Malcolm, Duncan, Bryan and I went to the nearby driving range and hit some golf balls in the late afternoon. Then as the evening was clear, we thought we'd take a drive up the mountain to try to find a clear spot to watch the Perseid meteor shower, which was just past its peak. The night drive up the mountain in the WV camper van was pretty exciting, especially with nine humans and two dogs in the car, and we found a lovely quiet spot near an alpine lake. Unfortunately the sky was too bright to see many meteors, because the meteor shower coincided with a full moon. I didn't spot any shooting stars but many of the others did.
Our last hike on the 16th of August was the big one; the first stage was around 5.5 kilometres to the Refuge de Miage, with a climb of around 630m. We all walked that section of the trail with the dogs, and had a great picnic lunch among the cows and sheep in the alpine meadow formed from the sediments carried by the meltwaters of the glaciers above. The Refuge de Miage is quite large and has a big terrace bar for hikers. Maggie, the younger kids and the dogs stayed there for the afternoon, while Bryan, Kiana, Armani, Malcolm and I continued up the mountain to the Refuge Plan Glacier, which is perched on the side of the mountain, just across from the glacier.
That was the toughest climb of all, nearly a kilometer climb in the span of 3,6km distance. But the views were really gorgeous. We we thirsty from the climb and wanted some beer and lemonade, but the cafe operators explained that the helicopter had only just delivered the monthly supplies that morning, so they had nothing to offer us. We offered to help unload the package, at least until we found the beer and sparkling water. They much appreciated our help, and we appreciated the beer and lemonade.
Then it was a long and very tiring descent that was hard on the knees and thigh muscles. Malcolm was feeling it most of all, as of the party, he has done the least amount of hiking in the last couple of years. But he didn't complain, and we all made it down safely to the Refuge de Miage for a short rest, and then resumed our trek back to the campsite. My hiking tracker read that by the end of the day it had taken us about 7.5 hours to travel over 18km, with a total climb of almost 2000m. No wonder we were tired! But not so tired that we didn't celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary with a bottle of champagne, and a nice meal together.
The next day was our last one in Les Contamines so we relaxed and took it easy. The kids did some rock climbing with a guide; Maggie did some more embroidery and I read my book, enjoyed a cigar, threw the ball for the dogs, and then in the afternoon we went to the beach nearby. The campsite boasts a beautiful sandy lake that is fed from the meltwater of a nearby river, and there was a big inflatable waterslide for the kids to play on. In the evening we had a bbq together and then turned in fairly early so that we would be up in time to pack up and head back home.
All in all it was a great holiday! I am sharing a bunch of photos below...
Tre la tete
planning the next stage
on the old Roman Road near the campsite
snowpack while climbing to col de bonhomme
interesting rock formations
in the hut at col de Bonhomme
at le Signal for lunch
stargazing
at Refuge de la Baume
Happy anniversary!
lunch break
the path to the refuge plan glacier
arrived at last
the supply delivery bag, delivered by helicopter
hello to the dog
early morning at camping le pontet
pre-hike photo
cold water swimming at Chalet de l'Etape
de Miage
on our way to Plan Glacier
on our way back down
rock climbing with a funny instructor
embroidery
multitasking
savoie sausages and lederhosen
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