Soaring Above Chamonix

Chamonix France

August 26th and 27th

We had a smile on our face as we left Avignon not just because we had such a wonderful time decompressing in Provence but we were heading to the long awaited village of Chamonix. Once we arrived in the picturesque valley engulfed in the Alps we knew we were “home”. It is truly amazing how when we arrive in any mountain ski town we just fit right in and feel comfortable. I don’t know if it is the clean air, slow pace, or the fact that everyone is wearing gortex and sports apparel, but we love it and may just have to settle down in one, perhaps Chamonix. As usual when we exit the train or bus we have our moment of confusion trying to find out where we are going. The train station attendant did not know where our hotel was located and directed us to the tourist information office at the end of the main street in town. This probably was our favorite walk as we headed straight toward Mont Blanc down the pedestrian only walkway with swiss chalet hotels and street cafes with people hanging out enjoying a coffee or beer with the sun shining and glistening off the glacier snow on the mountain. We could have been lost for hours for all we cared at the moment. I knew we had to be close to our hotel because I remembered in the description on the internet that it was located right at the base of Mont Blanc. We were splurging for our last two nights. We got the Superior Junior Suite at the Croix Blanche. As we were walking toward the information center we stumbled upon our hotel and it was indeed at the base of the mountain. Our view from our balcony was spectacular similar to the one we had from when we were in Italy near the Dolmites for our honeymoon. We even could see the mountain laying down in the bed. Although we could have stayed in our room and been happy we needed to explore the rest of town. Unbeknownst to us Chamonix was hosting the North Face Ultra Trail Runs that weekend. It was a set of runs over Mont Blanc ranging from 92 km to 250 km over a three day period. No wonder there were so many athletic looking people wandering around town. It definitely was a wake up call to us that we needed to get back in shape. So, the next morning we were out and about and heading up the mountain for a hike. We wanted to do a portion of the 100 mile Mont Blanc Trail because we were going to miss out on meeting our friend Steve from Kauai who was coming over in the next few days to do the entire trail. At the top we took a picture and emailed it to Steve to get him excited for his trip. (Amazing how good the cellphone service is in Europe). The view was indescribable with the white fluffy clouds, sunshine, crisp temperatures, and towering snow-capped mountain peaks. Heck we could even see Italy from our window!!! We headed down the trail which turned out to be a bit technical at the beginning. We had to use several ladders to climb down because the trail was too steep and had to do our fair share of boulder hopping and scrambling but all in all it was a great hike. Half way we decided to take a break and have lunch perched on a plateau with a million dollar view of the glacier on Mont Blanc. I hate to keep using the word amazing but it is so difficult to call it anything but. The glaciers are immense and traverse down the entire side of the mountain almost coming all the way down into town. There is even a tram which goes through a tunnel directly through the mountain up close and personal to the glacier. We could see it from our lunch spot. Realizing we could not stay up there forever we decided instead of turning around and retracing our path we would hike down the mountain and pick up the last gondola to the bottom.

To top off our evening we would shower and put on our good jeans (oh how nice it was to put on our jeans and fleece jacket) and enjoyed a wonderful dinner and great music out on the patio of our hotel. Then we took a walk through town and had our last Nutella Crepe reminiscing about our wonderful trip through Europe.

The next morning we were scheduled to go paragliding over the Chamonix Valley with our launching spot being the top of the Plan Praz Gondola at about 7000 feet in elevation. We had watched several flights the day before and decided we needed to do it. Unfortunately, just before we were to go we received a message from Roby’s brother that his father had passed away that morning. We decided that we should go and fly on the wings of Angels over God’s country and say a little prayer for his Dad. Our guides were great and prepped us for a whole two minutes on the techniques before the first one said, ok, one of you come with me and the other go with Enrica. So I said which one of you is the better pilot and he said that he was bad at the takeoffs and Enrica was bad at the landings so for us to pick. Great - that gave me a lot of confidence as we stood at the top of this 7000 foot bluff with the wind in our face. Once we were hooked in there wasn’t much time to think about it; he just told us to run forward and stay standing until we ran off the top of the mountain and were aloft. It was effortless and happened so quickly you did not even realize your feet had left the ground. Normally the sky is crowded with other flights but Roby and I were lucky and had the whole world to ourselves. His guide flew right by us so he could take some photos and video. A truly breathtaking experience and probably the best place in the world to soar over. We both looked to the heavens and smiled to Papa Snow.

The wonderful peaceful serene ride turned a bit tumultuous when our guides decided to show us some fun. About half way down they decided to put us in a tailspin. They asked us and both of us said sure why not have some excitement. After about 10 seconds we had to make them stop. I don’t think my head has ever spun so fast in my life. Now I know what a fighter pilot feels like when his plane gets caught in a jet wash. We landed softly and safely and bid our farewell to our guides and Mont Blanc. Before we headed to the bus we had to take a break in the town park and lay down so we could unscramble our brains and settle our stomachs. We gathered our belongings, had some lunch, and set off to Geneva. We were heading home.