Aiguille du Midi: Part II: the fun stuff

We got on the gondola at 8.30am and arrived back down at after 4pm. So, what did we do for all that time? We did take lots of photos.

And watched people ice walking.

And paragliding off the mountain.

And rock climbing

And stepped into the void. This a glass box suspended out over a drop of 1000m. 

 These are our feet- Pete, Loretta and Jill.

 See? Proof that these are our feet and we did do it.

There were also displays about history, crystals, extreme mountain sports and  altitude sickness which can effect people at 3000m. Both Sheryl and I were feeling some of the effects of stage one, which include dizzyness, nausea, and muscle fatigue when walking up stairs. I don' t think I will ever be trekking the Mt Everest base camp.

And then there were the views!

How does that snow stay up there?

This is actually the top of Mont Blanc.

The top of the Mer de Glace glacier.

I took 279 photos. Be thankful they are not all on this post!

On the way down we stopped at the half way point to pat two donkeys that seem to live near the gondola station.

It really was a fabulous day for all of us. Unfortunately, not so fabulous for those stuck on the gondola which we knew nothing about until Sheryl's son messaged her at 1.40am to check she was ok.

Aiguille du Midi: Part 1

The big gondola trip! This is the Aiguille du Midi, which we look up at from our chalet. It is the main tourist attraction in Chamonix. It takes you up close to Mont Blanc. Up to 5,000 people go up per day!

It involves two cable car rides on large gondolas, standing crammed in with about 60 other people. The first one takes you to 2317m where there is a cafe and alpine walks.

 Then you get on to the second cable car which is almost vertical near the end, very steep. There is a driver in each car. This second one travels up to 45km per hour.

It arrives here at 3842m.

 Then you walk over this bridge...

 To this section. That is a tv transmission tower on the top, like Mt Wellington in Hobart, but way, way higher up.

 There are numerous viewing platforms.

 And internal tunnels and enclosed walkways with windows.

Then you hop onto small gondolas, each seating four people for an amazing journey above glaciers, into Italy. This is the one that got its cables tangled about an hour after we returned on it, and stranded dozens of people overnight!

 At this point the gondolas move quite quickly and a bit joltingly, over some rollers which are suspended via cables connected to mountain tops.

 Then you arrive in Italy, at the Point Helbronner station.

 We had lunch with these views.

 Lorretta just had to lean backwards against the sloping window, which I also did.

 Looking down to Courmayeur, Italy, on the opposite side of the mountain range to Chamonix.

 Mountain views at the Italian end.

After lunch we repeated the whole journey in reverse to return to Chamonix. Note the swirling clouds that started to come in at the Italian end as we were leaving. Possibly the cause of the tangled cables? But our whole journey was remarkably still and clear.

Another gondola, another view

There are so many gondolas in this valley, it is ridiculous. This one is Brevent, and is just a short walk behind our chalet. The first gondola takes you up to a high point, then the second one, which you can see coming up in the bottom of this picture, takes you across a chasm, in one single span, to an even higher point.

The family arrived yesterday. My brother tried to push me off the mountain side today!

A cold drink on the terrace which is litierally built suspended out over the edge of the mountain. We were actually hot after a walk down to a little lake and back up to the gondola.

Although there was no alcohol involved on this photo, there may have been a slight lack of oxygen from the 2525m altitude, and certainly some jet lag!

Different types of mountains on the other side, looking away from Chamonix.

Sheryl on our walk with Mont Blanc, and yet more glaciers across the other side of the valley.

Mont Blanc in a tarn.

Tomorrow, we go up here!

Listening to the glacier

If you sit quietly beside a glacier, it will talk to you. It speaks in deep groans and loud cracks as it drags itself across rocks, sccouring them out as it goes. Then, occassionally, quantities of these accumulated rocks will tumble down one of the sides, and chunks of ice will crack and crash down the glacier and on to rocks.

This is the tongue of the Argentiere Glacier.

We took two gondolas up to the Grands Montets at 3275m, near the source of the glacier. Stunning views!

Mont Blanc in the near distance.

Looking back down the valley to Chamonix, where we are staying. 

Part of our view for a rather French lunch of soup, with cheese and bread.

 Watching the ice climbers, anout 16 of whom had been in the gondola with us. They look like little ants up on the ice.

Looking back down some 2 km (yes, 2 km!) in altitude down to the valley floor.

At the bottom of the top gondola, at around 2000m, we went for a walk to the bottom of the glacier.

Can you see the tiny sightseeing helicopter?

An amazing day!