Tour du Mont Blanc, Pt 2

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We began our fourth hiking day with a mix of low clouds and sun. Sun sounds good at this point!

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Window box at the cheese shop next to our auberge.

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This is our little shuttle van. It isn't big enough to hold the entire group of 14, but this morning we have access to a second van to get us to the trailhead.

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Off the bus at the trailhead in a bucolic part of Ville des Glaciers

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Mike, our 3rd guide/driver. Also, Mike is in charge of shopping for our lunch fixings, so he is VERY important.

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Before we hike, , we are visiting a small "factory" where beaufort cheese, the local specialty, is produced. This copper pot is no longer used, replaced by slightly larger and modern vats.

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Mike is telling us about the cheese process in the very dark aging cellar. Each round of cheese is carefully tracked, as they are worth quite a lot of money.

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OK, back tot he hike. Looking up a verdant canyon at the cloud-shrouded peaks.

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We hiked by the remnants of a French fortification left from WWII. Near the Italian border, there was quite a lot of skirmishing at times.

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Hiking past an outlying farm building.

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Sue and Jim are waiting for the gang at a trail junction.

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A young marmot (mormotte, in French)

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Peaks piercing the cloud layer.

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The gang is making pretty good time on a fairly long climb to the Italian border. The nice weather helps.

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Crossing a cascade.

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We are high enough here to have great views of the snow fields and glaciers ringing the pinnacles.

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It will be hard to see, but just below the rock face are five climbers trudging up the glacier.

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And our hiking group trekking through the alpine meadows below the peaks.

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Reaching the Col de la Seigne, Jim takes a breather

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This is the border between France and Italy; Sue and Jean are on opposite sides of the border.

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Marie-Guislane is celebrating our border crossing with an impromptu persuasion set; just proving that trekking poles are good for many tasks.

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I believe this is a type of large (2-3 feet tall) gentian.

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Eve giving Sue a hand on a big step across the creek