Champex – Refuge Le Peuty

Wednesday 19th August 2020

---

Today we were leaving Champex what looks like a floating village or a castle in the sky.  We were heading to a hamlet called Trient.

Each section of the trail is comprised of a serious uphill slog, almost always immediately followed by an equally relentless descent.

It is an impressive route with views of the Town of Martigny which seems to be miles below, we passed through this town by train on our way to Switzerland at the beginning stages of our trip.

The path snakes its way across fields, meadows and forests and provides a good amount of elevation change and challenge.

Our route climbed up to Alp Bovine a former cattle ranch which is now a cafe perched on the hillside over looking Martigny.

As soon as we arrived and had a look inside we were sold on the amazing array of home cooking and coffee.

After our short stop here for coffee and cake we continued our upwards trek.

Our route went over Col de Forclaz (5,006 feet). We get a good view of Trient Glacier which is quite beautiful, although it is shrinking in size. 

There is a rest stop here as the main road from Switzerland to France passes near by. So we stopped for a well earned ice cream.

Now as if my rucksack at this point was not heavy or full enough I had my eyes on some cow bells as gifts to bring back home. I literally ‘weighed’ up my option would I be able to carry extra weight over an other couple of days?

The cowbells were bought and in my rucksack and by the way for the person who receives this just remember I carried this for you over the mountains of Switzerland and France!!!

Throughout this trip I have rarely been aware of the actual time as we walk and often I have lost track of which day it is. I relish this sense of loosing myself in a dreamy state.

One of the lovely things about long distance hiking of this nature is that life becomes reduced to a series of simple pleasures that all become worth so much more due to the context in which they are taken.

The first heavenly taste of an ice cold drink, a banana, a square of chocolate, a coffee, or that hot shower…all of these become small things of magnificence that have been earned through the hard but pleasurable graft of walking.

Beautiful old chalets, mountain views and friendly villages are everywhere.

We decended through forest, which included crossing a metal bridge hanging on the side of a cliff before arriving in the picturesque hamlet of Trient.

Our refuge for the evening was owned by a couple who were two young guides Anja and Raphael. They had just bought the property two years previous.

And ow my god I was so jealous. This would be my perfect work/life if only I had saw this before them.

We arrived in the afternoon when the sun was still shining so we quickly showered before relaxing in their hammocks and bean bags which were strewn around the beautiful garden surrounded by the most beautiful views.

It was a hippy dippy rustic place where I would be in my element. Across from their main building was a yurt which was a ‘dining hall’ where we had our evening meal…and what a meal these guys served up.

We relaxed some more and simply took in the evening after a long day…and we even went for an evening walk (as if we haven’t done enough of this already) in crocs I hate to say (sorry boys please forgive me) which the refuge provided us with and I looked a real beauty!!