The Tête Rousse

Alternative title... While Hilary is Away...

Another fabulous day today - this time properly into the Haute Montagne - the IttHs rode the Mont Blanc Tramway from St Gervais up to the Nid d'Aigle at 2385m - a wonderful scenic hour made all the nicer by my new local guides discount :)

From here though it was foot power that took us first up to the Col des Rognes and then after executing a neat 90° turn up the ridge of Les Rognes itself until we finally reached the tiny glacier de Tête Rousse at around 3100m. A short rising walk across the glacier took us to the wonderfully situated hut of the same name at 3187m.

I've been here several times, but it was a first for C, and it's such a wonderful setting - above the Ultra modern Goûter Refuge glints, and the air is filled with the distant echoing of rockfall and the creaking of the truly big and wild glaciers that tumble off the Alps highest peak. From the Hut you stare across the Bionnassay Glacier at that beautiful corniced ridge - for me a trip down memory lane, 5 years ago I completed the Royal Traverse of Mont Blanc and the crossing of this ridge was the (scary) highlight.

It's truly somewhere to sit and ponder, to know your place in the scheme of things and, hopefully, to find peace in that.

Oddly the Tête Rousse choose to put a large plastic ibex out in the view point, so I decided I'd scramble around the rocks to obtain a view without it. And I did, I was sure that view in extras would be my blip, but as I climbed back up I met this magnificent creature. We were probably 10ft apart and he wasn't bothered by me one bit*, a magic mountain moment.

We had a hearty mountain lunch and made our way back whence we came, smiling all the way.

*in fact, in one of the extras he actually seems to be laughing at me!