With a showery day forecast and feeling somewhat fatigued after yesterdays endurance event, we drove down the valley to go for a swim in the lake. The rain didn't look like it was going to materialise, so we decided to take a leisurely trip along the Via Ferrata at Passy. The brochure that we'd seen made it look pretty tame, so we rocked up, hired some lanyards and set off.
I guess that the forecast had put everyone else off, as we had the whole cliff to ourselves. It was steep from the word go as we climbed vertical rock up the metal staples. As the ground dropped away below us, I begun to get the feeling that we'd been misled!
Between gullies and rifts in the cliff, wire bridges had been created. It looks easy, but with 100m of air below your feet, it required a bit of extra concentration!
We stopped for a snack half way along and got semi concerned when a few drops of rain fell. Luckily, it was just a few drops.
Everytime, we though we'd almost made it, another section appeared around the corner and I began to wonder if my arms would last until the end.
A particularly exciting part involved balancing across a wooden beam. Looking at the photos now, it seems like a doddle, but we both had eyes out on storks at the time.
The exit involved some slightly overhanging steps, in a mega exposed position.
Sitting on the grass at the top, we had to have a few moments to laugh out loud and compose ourselves before we could begin the walk down. Lots of nervous energy had been used again today!
The walk down was though nice woodland, with lots of double coloured flowers.
The afternoon stayed dry, so we took a swim at Passy, to calm ourselves down, before returning to Chamonix
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