Backpacking the Haute Route: Day 1 – Chamonix, France

by Gator and Nuthin | Aug 4, 2018

The Haute Route is a series of backpacking trails that span from Chamonix, France to Zermatt, Switzerland. Depending on which paths you take, the trail is roughly 120 miles long. We decided to backpack the entire route over 13 days. We flew into Geneva, Switzerland and got a van ride to Chamonix where our adventure began.

We arrived at Hotel Gourmets et Italy mid-morning, where we were greeted by a mythic Boston Terrier. On Trip Advisor, the night before we left, we were looking up reviews for the hotel. To our surprise, we found many negative reviews mentioning an angry dog which bit some of the guests. Lucky for us, we found him to be docile and have no interest in us whatsoever. Our room was small, but beautiful with a balcony overlooking the mountains.

Boston Terrier guarding in Hotel Gourmets et Italy

After settling in, we decided to ride the Aiguille du Midi cable car up to 12,605 feet. The cable car was roughly the size of a small hotel room and packed so tightly there was no room to fall over. We were both terrified thinking that if any piece of machinery broke, we would all surely plummet to our death. It seemed like we were the only ones concerned with this. With sweaty palms, we arrived safely to the top. When the doors opened, we saw it was snowing. Down in the valley it was a steamy 80 degrees.

There were a few tourists with cameras like us, but most people were dressed in mountaineering gear with ice axes, crampons and rope. We watched as they put all of their gear on and exited an ice cave to begin their descend down the mountain. We decided to stay on the manmade paths, and take pictures of the beautiful surrounding mountains.

Mountaineers in ice cave on Aiguille du Midi

Mountaineers on Aiguille du Midi

Once back down in the valley, we decided to explore the town and find a local market to buy our lunches for the next few days of backpacking. While we were wondering around, an impromptu percussion celebration broke out. We paused for a moment to enjoy the music and continue to wonder, enjoying the architecture and natural beauty. We noticed all the bars and pubs were crowded with people. We didn’t realize they were all watching the World Cup Final between France and Croatia. (Sorry sports fans)

Hostel in Chamonix

Arve River in Chamonix

That evening, we were enjoying our dinner of fondue, cured meats and Gamay wine. We heard a loud cheer. France had won the World Cup! Then we saw a drunk French sports fan running around with face paint randomly marking the France flag on the faces of unwilling participants. We were hoping he would come to the restaurant and paint our faces but sadly the maître d’ turned him away. We left our windows open that night to keep the room cool, and listen to the celebration. When the sun came up that morning, they were still celebrating in the streets. The French sure know how to throw a party.

Next Post:

Backpacking the Haute Route: Day 2 – Chamonix to Trient