Ensō : A Walk around Mont Blanc --- Day 2 of 9

Ensō: Day 2

The zipper of the tent flap broke the morning silence. As I gazed out, I remembered there was indeed a gorgeous valley below me, but now I could not see it, I was living in a cloud. A pure white cloud. If these conditions were to hold, vision would be a sense that I would not be utilizing today. Yet, at the same time, it was not raining too intensely, and with that fact - I sprung into action.

Good morning.

After taking down the tent, I headed back up the Col, presented with a much different portrait than the one that was painted for me the night before. The route was downhill, dirt steps supported by wooden slabs. My trekking poles sunk into the moist ground. Small waterways have formed an array of smaller trails, carved into the hillside through time and persistence. I followed whichever I could presently see, constantly in a game of walking to the edge of the mountain and then turning to do it once more. Occasionally, people passed me going in the opposite direction (remember, this is the typical direction that the hike is endeavored). The greeting was always somewhat mystical, as to each other we appeared to come straight out of the fog.



Yet, hills always will become flat at some point. As I approached the end of the decline, I started to notice something... the surrounding mountains!



The cloud seemed to live at a certain altitude, and as the bottom of the hill approached, I seemed to walk straight out of the fog and into a beautiful world with a lower than usual grey ceiling.

A small silver stream split the landscape into parts.

As I had not prepared breakfast in light of jumping on taking the tent down in good weather, I was feeling a little hungry after the descent. I had not packed much mid-day food, or snack food, just the essentials such as quinoa, potato flakes, and rice. With that being said, refugio Elena was soon to be come across, nestled in between the arms of mountain ranges and at the bedside of a rushing river. I decided to go inside to see what they offered in ways of sustenance. There were three workers, one of whom spoke English, perhaps. I asked if they had any food, and she replied that they have apples for 50 cents a piece. I happily accepted and requested two, and I also spotted a small display holding brioche. I asked for one of these as well, and simultaneously asked if they had any bread. Now she replied that they had sandwiches! That changed everything, I changed the brioche for a nice speck & fromage sandwich. The sandwich was 3.50, and with the apples totaling 1, I decided to go for one more apple and make it an even 5, because hey, apples are delicious and coins are heavy. The sandwich was a modest size, with inch thick bread yet with only one thin piece of meat and one piece of cheese, but I was not there to complain. As I picked up the sandwich out of a small basket and into my hands I noticed something wrapped in a napkin underneath, another sandwich! This one, along with two apples, were saved for future endeavors.

Refugio Elena

I headed out of Elena with a full belly and full water supplies. Onward I go, taking advantage of the drizzle as a means to cool off from a good walking pace. A lady stops me on the trail, inquiring about the trail conditions ahead as she holds her mountain bike. I look at her with a mixture of confusion and admiration, and after assuring that it was indeed a bike she was holding, I told her that the trail ahead was wide enough, though, the uphill part in which I just came down would cause quite a bit of trouble due to the numerous gullies that formed as a result of the rain, and internally I had doubts she could surmount the ascent on a bike, but I told her she could push the bike if need be and after that the way would be steadily downhill and pleasant. She thanked me, and I took my next few steps being a bit curious by the whole idea. 

There supposedly was a trail that went up to the left toward the next location, but seeing as the trail I was on leveled out and followed an impressive river backdropped by towering giants for a few hours, I just took in the scenery, and seeing that I could eventually get to where I wanted to go on my map, I simply kept walking, it was truly amazing. Just look.


















All of that within a few hours! Can you believe it? That could have been my photo album for the entire trip and I would have been amazed. During this jaunt, I also found a small black circlet scarf with smaller mountains and the words Dolomites printed on it. I saved it for what would later become inspiration for another trek (and it was, I plan to hike in the Dolomites this year). After some time, I found the trail marker for my next destination, the lovely stroll through the valley was over, I would begin the climb now.




I followed a series of switchbacks as my altitude steadily increased. Quickly, I had a new perspective on the valley I was just in below.

A few water breaks and quite a journey later, I found myself walking uphill next to a small stream, the trail came to a T-intersection as several old beautiful stone shacks stood gracefully on the hillside, the ruins of Goié. They looked out onto the mountain crested sky as fog crept from the valley, rising up from behind the solemn buildings; it was simply beautiful.





The fog continued to weave its way through the forest, and given the backdrop, it was truly a mystical feeling.



Continuing on, I came to a small bridge that crossed a waterfall whose source came from somewhere far above.





Then I saw it. It was directly across from me. Embedded in the heart of the mountains like a jewel, the ice blue enrapturing me in a captive stare, like looking directly into a pair of crystal clear eyes.



Being surrounded by such things, well, it slows you down. Being this amazing sight was directly across from refugio Bonatti, and seeing as it was around lunch time anyway, I decided to stop for some time. I made some potatoes on a picnic table outside, and ate them at a glacial pace. From here, I should have about 3 hours until I would be done for the day, and these 3 hours proved to be much different from the hours before...

---

It started off with someone asking me to take their photo for them at this spot, and seeing as it was a great spot... I asked them to take my first photo of myself on the trip.



After this quick exchange, a gradual downhill greeted me, and overall, there was not too much elevation change in comparison to the rest of the walk. A pair of people approached going in the opposite direction, one of whom was wearing a Chicago Bears hat. We looked at each other and laughed while wishing each other a good journey.

 


However, after about 15 minutes, the sky broke wide open, and rain poured down from the heavens. It was only after I was soaked in water did I think to place one of my poles on my bag and pull out a compact umbrella I had thrown in my pack. This proved to be very useful, but the water already got to me.  Thunder began to shake the trees and wind played with my every step, while the glacial waterfalls that streaked the mountains beside gained in force.

The rain kept coming, and the walking was becoming more and more difficult. At one point, I simply sat down on a rock and ate an apple while the rain washed over me. Some hours later, and still in the midst of the storm, I decided setting up camp would not be wise. I came across refuge in a mountain hut, refugio Giorgio Bertone. I paused at the doorway, not wanting to drip on their floor, but they beckoned me in anyway. Some translation later and before I knew it, I was outfitted to have a shower, given a stay for the night, and presented with a grand bowl of pasta (for free). The sleeping style of these refugios are generally 'dortir’, which consists of a single large flat area with small cot sized slates of bedding laid side by side by side, like sardines in a can. Yet, out of the rain, I was a happy man.

I took a shower, hung up my wet clothing, and headed back into the hut with a few books. During dinner and thereafter, my reading was gladly interrupted by another joining at my table. Her name was Michella, her clothes were soaked, and she told me that unlike tonight where she would be sleeping under a roof, the night before she had slept under a tree that she came across. Quite an interesting one, she is on a pause from University where she studies Chemical Engineering, and has been working around different areas of Europe in exchange for travel and living expenses. Soon after, a guy named Rossy joins us. He has a thick New Zealand accent, and being I have dreams of adventuring there, we begin talk about the beauty of his country. Since Michella and myself were hiking alone, we were both curious if Rossy was doing the same. He informed us that he is hiking with four girls, who then shortly came through the door as if on cue; Sarah, Jess, Nicole, and Michelle. They are all Australian, and work in London along with Rossy. The girls are either physical therapists, occupational therapists, or rehabilitation therapists. Some even work with people who have suffered neurological deficits, which I thought was an uncanny coincidence as that is an area I am very interested in participating in. They have all been friends for a while and made the move from Australia together. Rossy is a high school teacher. I can say I truly dined with great people this night. We enjoy ourselves with some good cards and better conversation. It turns out that they may be coming to Stuttgart, a city nearby where I live in Germany, to work on a vineyard for a few days. We say our goodbyes laced with a thread of perhaps we will see each other again. I return to my dortir surrounded by the cool evaporation of my mountain rain soaked clothes and the smell of a wood fire. Goodnight.

---

This is the second post of a series of 10 from my thru-trek in August 2015.
Check back within the week for the next post! 
For more adventures, writing, photographs, and even video go to my website:www.InTentsAdventure.wix.com/Explore

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to reach out to me!

Also, if you are interested in using one of my photographs, please reach out to me!
Thanks for reading,
Eric