I treat myself to nothing else

New day, new luck. After a wonderful sunrise high above the Rhone Valley, I had the descent all to myself. And that was a good thing, because the trail was blocked and very demanding with complete equipment. So just the right thing to wake up. So I hopped down over rocks and stones and then climbed up to the beautifully located Lac de Champex. Another place where I would have liked to spend more time, but at nine in the morning in the best weather, it doesn't make sense to end the day of the tour.

So I continued, over beautiful flow trails to Orsières. With that, my next intermediate goal was reached - I had successfully completed the Tour de Mont Blanc. So I turned back to my own track. And immediately found myself in a dilemma. I made good progress on the first stages from Chamonix. It was faster than expected. The next optimistically planned campsite was not far away anymore. But I was skeptical, because it didn't look like there would be any water there in a reasonable distance. The alternative would be to continue to the campsite at Champsec. Then I could finish the tour in three instead of four days. But each stage would have about 2000 altitude meters. A decent daily average. But after just under half, I felt good and ready for it.

Off we go. Today, first 1600 meters of altitude up Mont Brûlé to Col de Mille, and then on an epic trail the same number of meters of altitude down again. I treat myself to nothing else. As a last resort, there was a Cabane at the top. The ascent was laborious, first in the blazing sun up the road, and then pushing the last 600 meters of altitude to the summit. But by 3 p.m., it was done, and I was standing utterly exhausted at the top. There wasn't much energy left, but it should be enough for the descent. Especially since the Cabane Col de Mille didn't actually have any cake. Where does that happen? I don't want to stay there either.

The trail was another highlight of epic proportions. For my battered condition, there could have been a few less uphill sections. But the overall package fit, and despite the exhaustion, the descent was a lot of fun. Almost directly, I ended up at the well-known campsite in Champsec. Cheap, simple, and beautifully located, that place. But there was no way to get any food with less than 200 meters of uphill. So today I stuck with my dry meals. Now only one stage separated me from Martigny. But that was going to be a tough one.