After B d' O to V; around V; Ailefroide to Les Deux Alpes; and back to B d'O I start off in the Oberland. We're now in the seriously unplanned section of the trip; I need to get to Arles by the weekend, but otherwise have some time free, and the Belledonne seems like a good choice.
Mon 28th: [GPS, pix]: wake in night and open window to let in the sound of rain. Wake 7: yup, cloud and not-heavy rain. Duolingo in comfort of bed. B'fast 8 is good, looking out at the cloudy hills. Talk with Dutch cyclist and Oz walker, the latter about to start the GR54, probably from la Grave skipping the "relatively boring" Huez / Emparis stage. I'm probably going to do Huez and see how it goes. There's snow at 2200 m! I'm starting to worry about my shoes a bit, they're getting frayed.
11: I've managed to leave (b'fast was elongated) and ask in the best sports shop for a solar powered battery charger but failed (not that it would be any use today…). So now in cafe des Negotiants which is the most Fr cafe I've been in all hols: crappy Fr daytime TV, old blokes mumbling, a walker waiting out the rain (not me: its going to rain all day: I'm just doing my duty), little old ladies, football club scarves over the bar and so on.
Oberland is an old place; here it is when the gare was a gare, not a gare routiere.
I've realised the obvious: BdO is more of a cycling town. 11:20: off. Sign: Lautaret open, Galiber ferme. The 21 lacets are famous; we count them down; even I have heard of Fausto Coppi. And views down to Bourg on a grey day. Don't forget G or Tom.
Top: 2:30. Just under 3h. Interesting to walk up, and perhaps more pleasant than the path would be on a wet day. There are signs every km and every turn and graffiti on the road though less than I expected. There's also no pavement but not too much traffic. Its a fairly constant ~10% gradient and I'm going well so the 3h passes happily. For lulz, I enter my ascent as a "ride" in Strava, and discover that I'm 150,008th.
Alpe d'Huez is really bleak and empty, either in summer or just today. Which is tbh a poor day: 100% cloud, rain, somewhat windy, and cold: 6 oC says meteo. Currently in the Blueberry cafe which looked half shut but is open and warm. Just as I was thinking it was only decent to leave, as the only customer, several others come in. So I'll lurk a bit more. Vacillating: to push on, or wimp out and get a hotel? My contortions over whether to spend E95 amuse and frustrate even me. Also the meteo has worsened to 4 mm ppn in the next hour. Booked.
And so to the happily nearby Odalys AppartHotel. Which, appart from being a monstrosity, is really very nice. In terms of decor and cleanness, almost madly so. Of course it is really for the skiers. Very few hotels are open now; I wonder if they arrange amongst themselves? Go for swim mostly because I can. Watch a Falcon 9 launch. View out of window.
Tues 29th: [GPS, pix]: leave s'market 9:15 having malingered in nice Appt for a while. Also, its cold and will get warmer. Cloudy, but with breaks. Faint rainbow. Looking back to AdH:
Path is slowly up along road. Giant digger convoi exceptionel comes the other way through cloud, summer is the time for works. AdH feels bleaker, bigger, less human than L2A and while some of that is wx not all is. Oh, and most of it was shut whereas most of L2A was open.
On, and the feeling is Lakes. Navigation would be tricky if not for GPS. 10:30: chalet du lac Besson for a cafe. I am the only customer. Il y a un chat.
12:10: past the lakes, and largely past the ski crap, descend a bit towards Enversin d'Oz and stop for lunch. Fine views over to the Belledonne but not the summits. Snow above me, say at 2200 m. Sun is shining! Convert from cold gear to normal: rm down, coat, and tracksters. I've realised I'm not set up for cold wet walking: would need w'proof trous. Anyway day, whilst cloudy, is better than f'cast.
Here I'm about to drop off the L2A plateau down towards l'Enversin d'Oz; we're looking WNW; lac du Verney peeps shyly.
We're on the circuit des sangliers. 1:20: might be turning to light rain but I've just got to the resto un l'Enversin and will start with a cafe.
3: stop for some bread+cheese. Finish the last of the la Berade bread. It didn't rain. Walk up the valley nearly on traverse through lovely woods often beech a la Ashridge.
Towards the end (and its about 2:30 going through, so it does start to feel a bit endless woods most beautiful), lose my way a bit and follow logging road not track but this turns out to be fortunate as it is easier and ends in a better place. 5:30: to start of track up to Sept Laux. 2h to first lac says the sign lets hope for less. Have more b+c and some dates which are getting quite squishy.
Looking up, after a bit. Half way up: unimpressed bouquetin. 7:30: to first little (nameless) lake. Just before I get over that hump there are views back down into the valley and (probably) the village of Le Rivier D'Allemont.
Then up a bit and around lac de la Sagne because the bank provides some shelter from the wind. There's some lying snow yum. A couple of other groups tenting. There's some kind of conrete wall (hydroelectric stuff) which I consider briefly, but reject. 8:10 tarp up and me in bag. Hopefully I'll warm up a bit. Wx: in cloud. Due to slope I'm forced to be slightly head down so put boots under head. Sleepy so don't read.
Wed 30th: [GPS, pix]: well I survived and quite well. Toes a bit cold and s'bag got a bit wet that end since touches tarp. I thought of putting bin liner over and should have but was too tired to bother. In night sky clears bright moon; up for wee; pix of moonlit lac.
Lie in till 8:30 hoping for sun but no so up. There's ice on my tarp! So I know I'm good down to 0 oC and medium wind. Was in thermal leggings, tracksters, one pair socks, yellow top, down, and raincoat the latter because I forgot to take it off. Vue interieur.
Off 8:50 ref 10:30. As I go up ground gets to cts snow, quite hard frozen. I'm feeling slow perhaps lack of b'fast perhaps I worked harder y'day eve than I realised. Looking to Lac Jeplan:
Get a cafe though formally she is ferme pour menage. Sit out: wx is now clear, but haze. Spread out tarp and s'bag and socks to dry. View across lake to snowy mtns.
Q: what next? Plan was col de la Vache 2556 and the ref was but a diversion to see it and to let the sun come out. But its 3km back to the start of the col part and perhaps more importantly I'm a bit doubtful I'll get over sans crampons / axe (pic: at lac du Cos, looking up towards the col path). The alternative is a long but hopefully pleasant diversion on the "balcon des sept laux". Thought: that means that quite a lot of what I've done this month is currently out of reach.
12:10: off down. Back in trainers: wore boots this morning for the first time in ages. A little down: an old concrete hut that's used as a rather grimy bivvi.
Pass through PraPoutel, a little skiing place, and stop for a coffee. I guess I could have stopped here, but I'm still trying to reconnect to the "high" path that I wimped out of. Paths are sometimes grassy roads.
8:10: stop and bivvy. I'm kinda in the middle of nowhere… on a traverse / balcon path. Roughly here. When I decided not to col des Vaches this morning I didn't realise quite how far round it would be. Nonetheless its ok. Not as interesting as y'day's traverse, too many ski roads. But good views across to limestone cliffs of Chartreuse. Wx: still, sky clearing, won't bother with tarp to start with.
Thurs 31st: [GPS, pix]: a still dewy night with thin overcast and bright moon. Stopping in the middle of nowhere distinguished by nothing, just because I'm out of light and legs, is odd and feels wrong.
A car comes past at 7:10 - which is a surprise, this is a small track - so up and off, 7:30. Along, up through trees, then out with views of Chartreuse, and then up. After a while, views of the Ref in the sun on its out-thrust, with snowy hills behind.
Grenoble is down in the far valley. To Ref Jean Collet at 9:30, 1941 m.
Slight ache in R side back so will aim for easy day. Sun. Still. Ref appears empty so no cafe for me but! G'ienne arrives 10, warns of heli, and there will be cafe eventually. There is. 11:15: heli. Impressive flying in that there's only about 10 feet from blade tip to hut. Also top tip: the backwash is much bigger when it takes off again. Apart from a few packages it seemed to mostly deliver a couple of young children. Now I can put my s'bag out to dry again.
Cloud fills the cirque to our height. And goes again. Mme reckons snow now to 2300 and melting a little. Its quiet up here. A few people come, perhaps have a coffee, and go. By 12, more people for lunch. Mme feeds her infants indoors so sadly no pic but: small place, wood and tin, 33 places. Traditional loo. Despite the sun it isn't warm: my hands get cold, I've still got the down on. And the snow above isn't melting. Plat salé: omlette and cold rice salad. I may be hungrier than I realised.
Impressive views from ref: its on a point so view down and across; and behind cirque up to scarp with waterfalls hiding lac Blanc. Which if I keep to my "easy day" I won't see. Meantime at home M has had to book a car to Londres due to train strikes. Hopefully it will work out.
Off 12:20 as cloud fills again and a small troupeau with clean black faces misbehaves. Looking back. Pic: hut is in cen ter; path I took traverses around spur then descends into the stony river valley to R, which would lead up to lac Blanc.
Oops! went past turning and towards lac. Realise (and that I've not turned gps on) and come back, take path down too early but meh (actually, don't do that if you have the choice; it was hard work over scree). Passarelle du Mousset, 1:20, so I only lost 20 mins. And they weren't entirely wasted. Habert du Mousset: looks to be a (state sponsored) little shepherd's hut and mini refuge, with roof space for a few to sleep. A little further on, plaque to Mr Eugene Lombard, Cure Archipretre de Goncelin.
2:25: col du Sifre 2150. Leave pac, climb knoll, wonderful views: ahead to path gently slanting up into snow (err…), back across to ref, and towards bowl of lac Blanc though lac itself is hiding. Even wider pano. 2:50: off. 3:35: col 2350. It was ok.
Snow quite deep (someone said 40 cm) but there was a well trodden path. Nice to be back on snow! Listening to small stones / ice falling off cliffs. 4: little lac du Loup. Chamois.
Eat last of dates. And of the Abondance. The once mighty foodbag now contains but a trace of bread. Off: 4:20. Lac du Crozet 4:50. Sign: ref 55 min. Wash feet and paddle but cold. Off 5. From above, the still blue lake looks contiguous with the sky and the hazy blue background; lovely.
Ref de la Pra 5:40. Two buildings one old which is the dortoirs, new with cuisine / salle.
Big terrasse. View over plain with meandering stream. Go in. Power! Plug in I'm rather low. Order "petit planche" and biere. Quiet inside but then again it is lovely out: some children playing in the stream. Pano: the valley onwards.
For dinner a planche (cheese+saucisson). Save a bit of dry bread and nice cheese for b'fast. Have a biere, then a second with citron tarte. Talk to two Germans. Off 7: once again a lone figure walking out on a darkling plain. It is quite cold once the sun has gone. Because of the mtns it is setting behind, it goes and comes again. Pra was a good refuge; would come again. As I'm walking out the shepherdess is rounding up her sheep with two dogs. View back to ref; and back over lac Claret:
Stop 7:35 at the end of lac Longet with view further on (looking back). Lovely. All is calm and still the lakes mirrors. Bivvi.
Fri 1st Sept: [GPS, pix]: up 7:20 buzzed by hoverfly. Overnight: scratch off tick inside right knee. Wx good, didn't bother with tarp. Off 7:40 after scrap of b'fast saved from yesterday's planche. O'night fine v thin o'cast another bright moon. Ground is limestone, Chinese-looking, up and down.
9:15: Ref des lacs Robert. Non-guarde 4 places. Outside view.
Looking back to the lacs Robert. The tiny Ref is just visible at the far R edge in the shadow (a little above, now I look, the shadow of a bit of ski-lift).
9:45: "top" of the ski-junk area. And so we come nearly to the end of the mountains. One last distant view back to the Ecrins through the pass.
Down we go. Lots of lakes; here's a small nameless lake above lac Achard, which was goaty. And... just pause a moment and look at it: the whole scene is gorgeous.
2: whew. To Uriage les Bains. And a lot of descending that was. Quite a lot of it was pleasant through trees on paths; some on roads; but there was just lots of descent.
And my dream of walking into G is abandoned: it might be possible but its a looong way. Cafe here (finally! So many little villages no cafe) now in bus stop awaiting bus. I considered Uber, but was dubious of it in France, and also I'm cheap. Cats hug the shade.
2:38: off on bus (thnx Google). A/C! And €2 to St M d'Heres. Note: buses are much less frequent during vacances scholaires. Uni, 3; walk through uni to river to G, 3:50 cafe. Look up hotel / travel as well as I can with junk internet and… hmm, why not go to Valence?
And so to station, €20 (I was expecting less?), cafe and p-au-c in cafe, and 5:15: we're off. Crowded. Power: down to 23% phone and 11% battery. In mtns, spent some time optimising this. So would be v good to have other options.
Valence 18:30. End up in hotel de Lyon (les Negotiants was full) cheap but ok. No a/c but the noise of someone else's). Shower. Whew: several days grease comes off, much better. Realise supermarket shuts soon so rush out, get juice, yog, cheese and peaches but no bread. Ah well. Go down to river through park as recce for tomorrow then try and fail to find cafe / resto I like… I may be in wrong district. Valence fails to impress; never mind it was an experiment based on name. Retire and eat and catch-up.
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