We beat the heat this morning with a few quick climbs at Gaillands before Nick's taxi arrived to get him back to the airport.
It was way too hot to set off anywhere in the afternoon, so we waited until evening before setting off on a little bivi adventure along the famous 'Balcon Sud' foot path that traverses the hill side above Chamonix. We actually set off from Le Tour, not Tre-le-Champ as we caught the wrong bus. It added an extra kilometre of hiking and a bit of sweat, but it was always going to be a sweaty evening!
This normally busy trail (part of the Tour du Mt Blanc), was quite and cooler, at 18:30 when we set off, so much more enjoyable. It's uphill all the way though. We stopped off at the 'Aiguillette', which we climbed on a previous visit about fifteen years ago.
Beyond this was new terrain for us and some handy ladders helped on the steep sections.
We passed plenty of Bouqutien and Chamois along the way.
Having stopped for dinner along the way, it was about 21:00 when we arrived at our proposed bivi site. We scoped out a few options, but hit gold when we found this secluded spot.
Mirror calm, with incredible view and not a soul about. Even as it went dark, we were warm enough for a quick drip to freshen up from the sweaty hike.
Sun set was mindblowingly good.
Then we bedded down for the most comfortable nights sleep. I woke twice in the night. The first time I saw a shooting star, the second to watch the moon rise from behind the jagged peaks opposite. Incredible....
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