@hywan i'm jelly you have so much snow in the middle of summer at 3000... though walking on that reflective snow in heat and sun might not be all that fun (getting roasted)
@hywan
I enjoyed getting there a few years ago too! And watching the headlights of alpinists starting their journey on the glacier in the middle of the night was incredible too 😍
We arrive at La Breya. First stop. Quick snack. We discover the other side of the mountain, it's beautiful, still extremely calm. Trees are below us. Temperature is about 12-15°C.
Hike along the side of mountain, almost flat, but beautiful. Really sloping, some parts are dangerous but ropes and chains help to not fall down. Environment is between grass and rocks.
It looks like we are hiking on a moraine. And indeed, we discover the glacier! It looks far away, but rapidly it becomes closer and closer. We start seeing the Cabane d'Orny.
Welcome to the Cabane d'Orny! Up to now, things are easy, it's pure joy, no difficulty. We decide to not stop. The elevation gain is 1356m so far, on a distance of 7.7km, all good! Next and last step is the Cabane du Trient. We hope to reach this point around 12h30.
Environment is composed of rocks, rocks, and rocks. Sometimes snow here and there. Few “lakes”. Temperature is about 5°C maybe.
I cross 3000m for the first time in my life. At 3000m, there is 30% less oxygen (compared to 0m). It gently starts to impact our bodies. It's been 5h that we are hiking. The slope is 30% from here.
Environment is composed of bigger rocks and snow. We see ibices. We see landslips that last for many minutes, it's quite impressive.
Welcome to the Cabane du Trient! We did it!
An elevation gain of 1700m, in 5h45, on 9.84km. At this altitude, I need more time to breathe. Things are getting better after the lunch. The environment is still composed of rocks and snow, sometimes ice here and there. The temperature is 1°C. The glacier is majestic. Some peaks are new this year: the glacier is melting too rapidly sadly.
Welcome back to the starting point. Hiked for 10h, on 19km, with +1700m/-1700m elevation gains. Tired but extremely happy. My right knee has still a serious problem. It's still much easier to climb rather than going down.
The variety of environments, ecosystems, views, temperatures, we have experienced, in one day, was fantastic.
Please, do not forget that it is a dangerous environment. Do not go there alone. Be prepared.
@jeffmaury Body can adapt. It doesn’t take long. But when you hike that much at that speed, the body hasn’t time to get used to it. Except if you frequently go at this altitude of course.
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