TOUR Des ECRINS--AN ALPINE ESCAPE (PART 1)

 

A fortnight booked off work. A 12 day hike on one of the toughest GRs in Europe and a decent weather forecast. What could go wrong?.

Monday June 15th;

After doing my usual "sleep" in Dublin airport I was all set for my 6am flight to Lyon from where I would get a bus to Grenoble followed by another one to Bourg d'Oisans where my adventure along the GR 54 would begin. Everything went perfect and I alighted in the pretty (but hot) village at 13:50. A quick visit to a nearby supermarket and another to a nearby outdoor store (which amazingly was open at lunchtime) and I was on the move by 14.00. Everything was going great, well except that my charging cable for the phone was playing up and the security bands on my Suunto sports watch strap had broken. A rubber band from the outdoor shop made the watch more secure. 

As is usually the case, the heat came as something of a shock. Leaving Ireland where the weather had been a succession of cold wet weeks (with one exception), suddenly being immersed in unremitting 30 degrees plus is tough. However it is also glorious and only adds to the sense of being somewhere new and different. After a walk along the main road (very busy with cyclists who I guess were going to, or after doing, the Alpe d'Huez climb) and after crossing over the river, I walked to just beyond the campsite on the right from where the route was supposed to turn right before climbing a rocky buttress. A sign said private property (and rather bizarrely no urinating) and a fence blocked the way. I walked into the campsite to see if I could access the trail from there but to no avail so I returned and just climbed around the fence and was on my way. It was hot so I took things steady as the trail wound its way up through the rocky steep ground. In places some chains aided possibly exposed places but overall it wasn't too bad. After gaining nearly 300 metres in height I reached a tarred lane which led to a lovely fountain (gratefully used) before it entered the woods and climbed until another lane is reached and you walk through three hamlets. Out here in the open you can see the ski resort of L'Alpe d'Huez across the valley and you have gained almost 800 metres. Unfortunately, soon after the trail drops steeply and loses one hundred of those hard earned metres until it reaches the river.

This was a lovely cool spot to rest a while and have a bite to eat before I continued on my way towards Col de Sarenne (1999mtrs). From here the going is decidedly easier. Over the next two kilometres the trail runs near the river and gains just 150 metres. After this you reach open country and the valley widens and you rise through open pastureland. Before too long I reached a junction of valleys at Le Gua where plenty of places for a possible bivouac were to be found. It was at around the 1650 metre contour but I passes it up as I was hoping to get nearer to the col. Ahead the valley narrowed and the gradient steepened a little. I worried that I would have to go all the way to the col and as I didn't know if it was allowed or possible to bivi there I resolved to use the next likely spot I found as my home for the night. Thankfully before too long, at around the 1800 metre contour I spotted a nice level grassy spot amongst the scrub and made for it. There was even a trickle of water nearby so I was sorted. I revelled in blissful solitude and relaxed, ate and enjoyed my rugged surroundings. Before long the rigours of the restless night and travel caught up with me and I retired to a good nights sleep.

So, just 14 kilometres covered, almost 1200 metres ascent in 4 hours 45 mins. I was content.

Tuesday June 16th;

I had a good night and slept most of the time. I was wide awake well before 6am but I lazed in my sleeping bag and just listened to the birdsong. it was a beautiful morning when I emerged from my tent and the sun was lighting up the upper slopes of the surrounding mountains. I was in no hurry and I didn't have a set target for today. I would just see what the day would bring. It didn't take long to reach the Col. A short walk along a ski road and the trail reached the tarred road from Alp d'Huez and it rose gently to the wide verdant pass. There were a couple of people camping  there and a couple of camper vans as well. All were still asleep as I dropped over the other side and began my descent to Clavans le Haut. So far the scenery had been great without any real wow factor. That changed now when I got my first view of The Meije. OMG, what a sight it made. A wonderful wall of soaring rocky peaks, blanketed in places by glaciers was a joy to behold. My biggest problem now was trying not to stumble as I was constantly looking up to soak in the view. The trail dropped steeply until it reached the woods and before long I reached Clavans. Easy walking through the forest saw me reach Clavans le Bas and a short sharp drop followed and I reached a road and there the climb to Besse started.

A steep climb up through the woods gained over 100 metres before things eased back and the trail emerged from the woods and rose more gently towards the village. Besse is a delightful place. A jumbled collection of old well loved stone houses line the narrow lanes. I had thought to buy a baguette here but things were late opening so I just continued on through. The trail stays on the road until it reaches a basic camping area and then it rises up the right flank of an impressive valley. It was hot out here on the open hillside and as I had forgotten to refill my water bottle in the village I was hoping to reach a water source soon. On the map the trail went near a torrent on the steep hillside so I hoped to be able to refill there. I was disappointed to find that the water had carved a deep gully and it would have been too dangerous to try and reach it. I continued on and hoped for the best. Thankfully after I passed Col Nazie I was able to top up my bottle. Eventually I reached Col Saint Georges (2237mtrs) and I has reached the Plateau d'Emparis. This was a delightful undulating grassy landscape filled with wildflowers and backed by rolling mountaintops. It was a joy to walk through as I headed towards Col de Souchet (2365mtrs). I had been on the move for over six hours by now and I was on the lookout for somewhere to bivi. The plateau is off limits as there are signs all along the trail forbidding any camping.

 I paused at the col and when I was able to draw my eyes from the stunning view of the Meije I surveyed what lay ahead. Basically it was almost all downhill from here to La Grave but I hoped to find a bivi spot long before there. The trail dropped to the south and contoured around the mountainside. As I walked I saw a wide spur drop gently to my right and near its end there seemed to be a flat grassy area near a stream, I wasted no time and headed straight for it. It proved perfect. I soon had my tent up and I lazed away the sunny afternoon in wild camping heaven. I was well away from any trail and I basked in blissful solitude  and gazed in wonder at the stunning view. At around 5pm the breeze picked up and I heard a rumble of thunder. It came as a surprise as there was not a lot of cloud on the high mountains but when I looked back to the lower mountains surrounding the plateau there was a wall of darkness. I gathered everything into the tent and awaited the storm but it never arrived and just an hour later it was all blue sky again. All in all it was one of the best camping experiences I can remember.

Literally the view out the door of my tent.

Wednesday June 17th;

After a lovely night I was on my way again by 8am. It was a gentle easy start as I dropped slightly to a trail that crossed the spur and re-joined the GR54 trail at Chicot. This trail dropped down to the village/town of La Grave. After getting a few supplies here I left and followed the route that went alongside the river to Villar d'Arene. While it isn't flat it certainly has less climbing than following the "official" route that climbs over 150 metres through the woods only to drop down to the river beside Villar again. Once I joined the trail again I followed it easily as rose very gently alongside the river. After a couple of kilometres it crossed to reach a road. A few hundred metres later it passed a pretty little lake and then traversed above the valley floor until after a kilometre or so the valley narrows and the trail climbs steeply above a gorge until after gaining 200 metres in height things ease back and you head for Alpe de Villar d'Arene. The scenery all around is wonderful and and becomes more spectacular and complex as you go on. Below the Romanche river turns southeast into another valley at the back of which mighty peaks rise to over 3600 metres. 

Stunning view from the refuge. The Romanche in the valley below.

I was feeling quite good but I decided to head to the nearby refuge and see if it was possible to bivouac near it. As I got nearer and nearer there seemed little likelihood so I opted to stay. It was just 14.15 but I had been on the move for over six hours and it felt like a reasonable effort for today. I had decided to only go as far as Monetier les Bains the following day. That would make it almost like a rest day as it shouldn't take more than a few hours to reach it. I would then follow the required schedule for the remainder of the trek. There was a lot of people milling about and as the dorms wouldn't be ready until 16.00 I found a shady spot and relaxed. Later, once settled in the dorm I took a nap and cooked my dinner and whiles away the evening reading and gazing in wonder at the views. I tried to charge my battery pack but the cable wasn't connecting . When I tried to pull it out of the connection it was stuck fast and eventually broke. I managed to borrow one from the refuge and got everything charged, but I would have to try and sort something out in Monetiers the following day.

Thursday June 18th;

I slept quite well despite the heat in the dorm and it was another lovely weather morning when I went down for breakfast at 6.45 the following morning. The guardian requested that we eat early as they were  expecting helicopter deliveries quite early. I had decided to pay for breakfast so as to conserve my own supplies for the more remote following days but I was less than overwhelmed by the fare. The coffee was good but I wasn't in the mood to eat much. I tried to eat a decent amount but it was all too stale or too sweet. I was on the move by 7.20. The refuge is at 2071 metres and the high point of the day was to be the Col de Arsine at 2348 metres so there wasn't a lot of climbing to do. The going is easy as the trail rises gradually towards the col. Straight ahead there are ever improving views of a spectacular cirque of glaciated peaks rising to over 3600 metres. I reached the pass easily and looked forward to vistas new. Just below the pass there was an enchanting area where small blue pools and cascades glistened in the sun. It was a truly beautiful place. The trail continued into the narrowing valley until it reached the small Lac de la Douche where it entered the trees.

It was at this point that I took out my phone to take a picture and I was alarmed to see welcome scrolling across the screen in various languages...WTF. I tried to get it working by re-starting and it was still the same. Now here is the problem, I had taken my work phone because it takes better pictures than my own and when I re-started I had to log into the company system. Normally not a problem if you can remember the password but of course I couldn't . I had no choice but to continue to Monetier and see if I could contact home from there and get the password etc. I went to the tourist office and was met with a somewhat uncooperative lady who presented a series of nons. I walked to a nearby Italian restaurant and there I met a delightful woman who lent me her phone and allowed me to call home. I was eventually able to try to log in again but the next obstacle appeared when a verification number was being sent to my own phone, the sim of which was in my work phone. Goosed again. I waited a couple of hours (during which the heavens opened in a thunder storm) and caught the but to Briancon where I hoped that a phone shop would sort me out. The "Orange" shop was the first to present itself and the staff were wonderful. They too my sim out and used an unlocked phone so I was able to get the verification and finally log into the phone. I had thought to buy a phone as well for my sim but the cheapest they had was over 500€. 

I resolved to stay in Briancon that night and return to the trail the following day. Once settled in my hotel I set about putting all the apps back into the phone, especially Mapy.cz who I had a subscription with so I could use it for all my navigating needs. I was also gutted to discover that all my pictures were wiped when the phone had done a motherboard re-set. Bollocks to it. 

Friday June 19th;

It was another clear sunny morning when I emerged from the hotel  after a restive night. I was having severe doubts about continuing the hike. I was gutted to have lost all the pictures and another issue was the fact that the next section was over some high passes, some of which were closed due to snow. I had  thought that  I could continue along the GR 50 but from what I could see it travelled at lower levels and I was struggling to see what possible route I could take to cover the remaining 8 days I had left. I was stressed and struggling. I set off out of town and with each step my spirits got lower and my feet more leaden. I made a decision then and there to return home. I did a search and saw that there was a flight to Cork from Carcasonne the following day so I rang my wife and she booked me on it. I secured a hotel in Carcasonne for tonight and headed for the train station. A butt numbing 5 hour slow train to Marseilles was followed by another 3 hour journey to Carcasonne. My phone troubles were not over however as just after leaving Marseilles I went to check the name of the hotel in Carcasonne only to discover it was after doing a re-set again. A fellow passenger searched the hotels for me and it was just a few minutes walk from the train station when I arrived at nearly 11pm. I was glad I had decided to end the trip.