#teterousse

[surlesmonts]

[surlesmonts]

[surlesmonts]

[advenculture]

The Normal Route to Mont Blanc: Tête Rousse 

Reading a map of the Alps, I notice that the north of Italy is full of French (Courmayeur, Saint Pierre, etc) and German names (Klausen, Mühlbach). In  contrast, the southern part of Switzerland is an entirely Italian area. Each one speaks its language, regardless of his/her nationality. This situación doesn’t generate the slightest conflict between the three countries, nor amongst the citizens of each territory. I witness this with envy: in Spain, there is a feeling hostility in the regions which have a autoctonous tongue versus the common land, something that goes against the spirit of Europe. Why do we need to break down a country, just because there are several languages? The Swiss would be appalled. It is clear to me that traveling opens the mind…

I start the day in Chamonix with some “tartines” (baguette bread with butter) and a café-au-lait. A taxi takes me to Saint Gervais, departure point of the Tramway du Mont Blanc. An hour later, the train drops us a few hundred meters below the “Eagle’s Nest” the final station. It is sunny, and I am at an altitude of 1,900 meters. Some people starts running upwards, but I am in no hurry: my goal is to acclimatise and store energy, so I walk slowly, reciting the old Tanzanian mantram: “pole, pole” (slowly, slowly in Swahili).

I go across long extensions of rocks, cut through a glacier, and three hours later reach Tête Rousse, the most confortable hut I have ever been to. The main advantage is that there is a restaurant, so you can buy all your meals there. This spares you from having to carry food, plates, stove, etc. They also sell you water, so you don’t have to carry it or melt snow in order to drink. My philosophy is that we should take advantage of the ocassional facilities in the mountains.

There are even more benefits to Tête Rousse: heating in the sleeping quarters; each bed has a mattress, a pillow and a blanket; what else could you ask for? In the main room there are plenty of mountain magazines to read (I have left my books back in Chamonix, to save weight). Last, but not least, the bathrooms are inside the building, so you don’t freeze at night if you have to answer to nature’s call..