{"id":2632,"date":"2022-10-27T05:59:21","date_gmt":"2022-10-27T05:59:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hoptraveler.com\/index.php\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-du-mont-blanc-rick-steves-travel-blog\/"},"modified":"2022-10-27T05:59:21","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T05:59:21","slug":"the-tour-du-mont-blanc-rick-steves-travel-blog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hoptraveler.com\/index.php\/2022\/10\/27\/the-tour-du-mont-blanc-rick-steves-travel-blog\/","title":{"rendered":"The Tour du Mont Blanc \u2013 Rick Steves’ Travel Blog"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Earlier this fall, 4 of us \u2014 whole novices at long-distance treks \u2014 hiked round Europe\u2019s highest mountain. (On the primary day, huge birds of prey circled excessive overhead. My hunch: They had been vultures simply ready for one in all us to drop.)<\/p>\n

The Tour du Mont Blanc<\/a> is a 100-mile, ten-day hike \u2014 however we cheated a bit, climbing one of the best 60 miles in six days from mountain lodge to mountain lodge, catching native buses by the much less thrilling components, and letting a \u201csherpa service\u201d shuttle our luggage every day by France, Italy, and Switzerland, from Chamonix to Chamonix.<\/p>\n

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The Tour du Mont Blanc is a 160 km (100 mile) circle round Europe\u2019s tallest mountain. We did essentially the most rewarding 100 km (60 miles) connecting the segments with public buses.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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I like the sherpa service supplied on Mont Blanc: You depart your huge bag within the resort foyer or at your mountain refuge and belief the shuttle bus to choose it up and ship it secure and sound to your subsequent lodging. Every day, our luggage had been ready fortunately for us at check-in.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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An array of buses and mountain lifts can be found to hikers to assist them alongside, as they select, on the Tour du Mont Blanc. But the season is brief, and a lot of the lifts and buses had been shutting down by mid-September.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This was the primary time I\u2019d loved a slice of Europe with my girlfriend Shelley, and we had been joined by Sue and David from Minnesota. (I\u2019ve labored with David Preston for 20 years at TPT \u2013 Twin Cities PBS<\/a>. In the general public tv world, he\u2019s thought-about the \u201cpledge drive guru.\u201d)<\/p>\n

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It appears everybody hikes the Tour du Mont Blanc in a counter-clockwise course, ranging from the ceremonial begin level within the village of Les Houches, simply exterior Chamonix. And this arch is at all times good for a contented, pre-blister group shot.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Each day, we\u2019d hike what the path indicators stated could be a five-hour hike \u2014 that took us six or seven. \u00a0Our mantra: \u201cTake our time. This is why we\u2019re here.\u201d Generally, the day would begin at a 3,000-foot climb to a move (or \u201ccol\u201d) 8,000 ft above sea stage. Each col was slightly triumph, with its cairn of rocks organized in a pile, dramatic climate blowing throughout, commanding views, and congratulatory selfies.<\/p>\n

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Part of our pre-trip coaching was taking steep hikes nearer to residence. As a typical day\u2019s climb on the TMB is a thousand meters (or roughly 3,000 ft), I\u2019d advocate selecting a apply hike with a 3,000-foot elevation achieve so you should utilize it as a reference level. Ours in Washington State was the Mount Si path. We even had a time period for a 3,000-foot altitude achieve: \u201ca Mount Si.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Every morning on Mont Blanc, we\u2019d do our onerous work, typically climbing a 3,000-foot elevation achieve. It appeared to final perpetually\u2026but it surely didn\u2019t. And reaching the move (typically round 8,000 ft above sea stage) was at all times a lunchtime celebration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n