From Switzerland we passed over the Col de la
Forclaz and arrived at a picture postcard perfect little lake at the Col des
Montets, featuring some horny locals.
Arriving in Chamonix, we wandered through town in
the sunshine looking for the tourist office.
As usual, it was closed for lunch. Taking our cue, we had our usual dejeuner
of baguette, ham and cheese and local beer in a quiet churchyard. After, a pleasant
young lady in the tourist office informed us that we could go up to the
Aiguille du Midi for an excellent view of Mont Blanc and a 360 degree panorama
of the French, Italian and Swiss Alps. She was not wrong. The air was perfectly
clear and unusually, there was not a breath of wind outside. We stayed until
the last cable car down.
The “Step
into the Void” is a 2.5 m glass box, bolted on to a rock, hanging out over a
1000m precipice. There are several members of our family whom I could not
imagine availing themselves to this facility. We did, and found it quite
spectacular.
Whilst
marvelling at the panorama over the glaciers on the northern flank of Mont
Blanc, there was a sound, unheard since my carefree days of off-piste skiing –
an avalanche. Majestic as it was from our vantage point, I still felt a chill.
From
the Aiguilles du Midi viewing platform at 3842 m, we could look over to Mont
Blanc, at 4810 m the highest peak in Europe, and down on the 16 villages that
make up the commune of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc at 1035 m.
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