Chamonix Activity Report: 14th June 2009

The town has seen quite a few visitors arriving, with pretty much all the bars, clubs and restaurants now fully open to accommodate them. Even though last week it snowed to as low as 2500 metres, the snow barely managed to settle for an hour, keeping the trails up high open.

On Friday we decided to hike to Bec de Lachat, which is a peak just below 2500 metres, accessible from Argentiere, Montroc, and Le Tour. We decided to take the train from Chamonix up to Montroc, from there you follow signs to Le Planet and from there up to the Bec. The walk is fairly gentle at the start going through the lovely little hamlet of Le Planet, after which it gradually becomes steeper.

As we ascended we were looking out for a turn-off that would direct us up to our destination, however with our chatting away we actually missed it, instead heading up toward the foot of the Glacier d'Argentiere, so we decided to carry on up to the view point which is at the end of this hike.

After stopping for some pictures and another look at the map, we continued back down the trail to find our initial mistake. Once on the correct trail we found it increased with difficulty as it increased with altitude switching back on itself until above the tree line, where you will be blessed with some amazing views of the valley and the glaciers. You will get to a point where you need to come off the path to reach the top, or you will end up returning in a circle back toward Le Tour, so a guide would be quite useful if only for this section.

Once off the path, we scrambled up and over the rocks and bushes to the peak which was quite difficult for the last section, and having the sun beat down on us without the cover of the trees, it was exhausting. From the top you get an amazing panoramic view of the valley and the glaciers, so we sat around for a while taking in the view and waiting to see if a serac would fall. After a while we got our wish and witnessed a huge serac fall and create an avalanche below, we were glad to be watching in safety from high above.

After completing our climb we made our way down as quick as we could back to town for a very reasonably priced big burger from Monkey bar which is located in Chamonix Sud. A brilliant way to end a day of pure effort!

Even with the warm weather, it is still possible to ski/snowboard tour above the Aguille du Midi and while we were hiking up Bec de Lachat some friends were touring and skiing the North face of the Mont Blanc du Tacul, which boasted half a metre of fresh snow for them to play in. The guides are still taking people up for touring in this region, for Mont Blanc ascents and many other adventures, so why not bring your winter gear over with you, as you could still get a nice powder day in June!

If you're wondering when a good time would be to come over, why not make it next weekend? With the Fete de la Musique next Sunday the 21st June, there are going to be some cracking parties with some excellent musicians playing in almost every bar and street corner! So book a trip over to avoid any disappointment!

Don't forget to keep an eye on our What's On Calendar for a full list of events taking place over the summer months.