Day 5 on the TMB turned out to have lots of runnable sections to reach the Refuge de la Peuty. Whilst it was our longest day in kilometres, it turned out not to be our hardest. Unbeknownst to us, that was still to come!
- The Route – via Praz-de-Fort, Champex-lac, Alp Bovine, Col de la Forclaz and Trient
- Distance – 32.6km
- Elevation gain – 1478m
- Elevation loss – 1736m
- Duration – 8 hours 30 minutes, including 45 minutes of refreshment stops
Early start from La Fouly
Having had such a short day, finishing by lunchtime yesterday, we were raring to go. The sky was completely cloudless as we set off at 7.40 am along the deserted main street through La Fouly. Lined with picturesque flower-decked chalets, it was a spectacular start with the mountains lit up in the sunshine on either side.
We turned off the main road and headed towards the river. As we ran past a couple of early bird hikers, they laughingly cheered us on. We laughed back, feeling surprisingly sprightly.
The first 10km of the day were pretty much all downhill. There were a couple of (much smaller than yesterday) landslides to pass and a short section of narrow pathway cut into the cliffside with a helpful chain to hold on to, but mostly it was very runnable. We trotted happily along, following the course of the river, below waterfalls and through idyllic grassy meadows.
Down to Praz-de-Fort & up to Champex-Lac
Around 2 hours in, we reached narrow paved roads passing through quaint cobbled hamlets of chalets. Then, through the small valley villages of Praz-de-Fort and Issert. By now, we’d realised that our impression of Champex-Lac from watching UTMB was completely inaccurate. We hadn’t realised there was a 450m climb from the valley floor to reach the lake!
Our surprise ascent was mostly up through the forest. We soon got back into our climbing rhythm and just short of an hour later, reached the Champex-Lac road sign. We’d been looking forward to reaching this UTMB landmark, and it didn’t disappoint. The lake shimmered in the sunshine, its shores busy with strolling holidaymakers and the water busy with pedalos.
We nipped into a small supermarket and were excited to find wedges of watermelon for only 0.75 CHF! Supplemented with salted crisps and two juicy nectarines, we enjoyed a lakeside bench picnic, soaking up the views and holiday atmosphere.
A hot & sticky climb to Alp Bovine
Around 11.30 am, we reluctantly vacated our bench and set off for Alp Bovine. After a short descent, this turned into a real trudge. Zig-zagging up through lush forested areas, it was a beautiful landscape, but felt relentless in the now intense sunshine.
Despite the heat & timing (late July), we passed through a short section of old, muddy compressed snow, and collapsed ice bridges. The dripping meltwater on my head was quite refreshing. Over dinner that evening, we learnt that one of the ice bridges had only collapsed earlier that very day.
A little before 2 pm, we arrived at the Alp Bovine mountain restaurant. In contrast to all previous days, our timing was less than perfect as they’d just closed the kitchen. Fortunately, they were still able to offer vegetable soup served with a slice of Swiss cheese. This went down really well, as I honestly wasn’t feeling that hungry. But in reality, it wasn’t anywhere near enough to replenish the energy I’d used, and I knew it. I could feel my head dropping towards the table and my eyes closing as I waited for the soup to arrive.
A return to reality and the Col de la Forclaz
Tasty but small lunch over, after admiring the view towards Verbier and the Grand Combin, we set off again.
This part of the TMB had a very different feel from the previous sections; less remote and without the views of the Mont Blanc massif. Down in the valley, urban evidence reminded us that life continued outside of our current adventure, and as we descended towards Col de la Forclaz, we could hear occasional snatches of traffic noise.
By now, the clouds were rolling in and the wind was getting up. It was still very warm, though. We made another quick stop at the main road junction at Col de la Forclaz for an ice lolly and a brief sit-down before the final push to Le Peuty. This last part was a bit of a blur. My legs were no worse than the previous days, but my whole body felt tired.
With the threat of rain in the air as we passed by the distinctive pink church of Trient, we were eager to reach Refuge de la Peuty before we were sodden. I really wanted to spend our time before dinner relaxing rather than ineffectively trying to dry my clothes ready for the next day.
Arriving at Refuge le Peuty
Around 4 pm, we happily spotted the Mongolian yurt that marked the spot of Refuge le Peuty. We ducked into the check-in area as the first drops of rain fell.
We were in a shared dorm for our last night, so after taking a shower and sorting our bags, we ordered cups of herbal tea and nipped through the rain to the communal yurt (where breakfast and dinners are served). In hindsight, a cup of herbal tea was not what I needed when we still had a couple of hours to go before dinner! I definitely should have ordered food. Or one of their amazing milkshakes that I failed to realise they served until I heard somebody raving about them later that evening. Instead, I felt so tired that I soon abandoned my husband and returned to my mattress to lie down.
After an extremely welcome dinner, we soon retired to bed. My mattress felt unbelievably comfy! And with my earplugs in, I slept reasonably well given the barn full of snoring strangers.
Refuge le Peuty
What we loved:
The cosy dorm, the food and the Mongolian yurt dining area. Best bread of the trip!
What we didn’t love:
You have to access the dorm via a short wooden ladder. This is fine in the day, but (as one of those annoying people who wake up the whole dormitory to go to the toilet during the night) I felt a bit precarious making my way up and down in the dark (the toilets are located on the ground floor below). This wouldn’t stop me from staying again, though.
Accommodation:
Refuge le Peuty has one large shared dorm for 16 people (and one private yurt for two, but this was booked). The dorm is basically a big wooden barn. Even if you don’t fancy a dorm, you shouldn’t be put off, as it was so spacious. It was very rustic and surprisingly cosy with bright, cheery hand-drawn pictures (by local children) pinned all around. The beds (mattresses) are laid out on two different levels with curtains for privacy. We had two mattresses on the upper level, accessed by a wooden ladder. Tucked away at the far end, we had plenty of space to have a few belongings close by. We had no plastic boxes here; everyone kept their rucksacks in the dorm entrance.
Facilities:
There were two toilets and two showers, which worked out just fine for the relatively small size of the refuge. They were basic (as you would expect) but clean, and the non-rationing of hot water was nice.
Meals:
Dinner here was very good, an olive bruschetta starter, tomato soup and a Moroccan-style chicken, chickpea & spinach curry (and a small dessert). We were seated at the end of a table for 8, coincidentally next to the Utah couple (from dinner two nights ago). This was nice as I was feeling quite drained and a bit antisocial, so it was a relief to be with at least two people that we already knew! Further down the table was somebody who had run the E101 Eiger Ultra Trail only the previous week, so I soon perked up and had lots of questions to ask.
Breakfast was typical hut-style fare of hams, cheese and cereal. But there was a small amount of fresh fruit, and the bread was way above the average hut standard!
Visit the official Refuge le Peuty website here.
Read my Day 6 blog post from Refuge le Peuty to our finish in Chamonix here.
See our full TMB route here.
My Switzerland travel memoir
My love affair with the Alps began when I moved to Switzerland to be a holiday rep. You can read about my repping adventures in my travel memoir – It’s a Wunderbar Life. Click here for sample chapters.