Practical Appendix

The operator. Self-guided package through Grand Angle. They arranged the hotels, route notes, and daily luggage transfers, so we carried only daypacks.

Luggage transfer. Handled by Taxi Besson. One soft-sided bag per person, 15 kg maximum, left at hotel reception by 8:00 a.m. Kept the daily carry light.

Where we stayed, night by night:

Night                            Town                                                  Hotel
Jun 20–21                  Saint-Gervais-les-Bains       Hôtel Cœur des Neiges
Jun 22                          Bourg-Saint-Maurice              Hôtel l'Autantic
Jun 23–24                 Courmayeur (IT)                          Hôtel Bouton d'Or
Jun 25                          Champex-Lac (CH)                    Hôtel du Glacier (half-board)
Jun 26–27                  Argentière                                      Hôtel Le Dahu
Jun 28                          Chamonix                                       Hôtel Lyret

Route-choice note. On Stage 5, took the Col de Bovine rather than the higher Fenêtre d'Arpette, which was still snow-blocked in late June — the standard early-season alternative.

Water, stage by stage. Last reliable sources before each big climb: Refuge de la Balme (Stage 1), the fountain below Rifugio Elisabetta (Stage 2), Rifugio Elena (Stage 4), the Alpage de Bovine refuge (Stage 5). Fill up, don't ration late.

Packing list, the things that mattered:

  • Trekking poles

  • Knee brace

  • Well-broken-in waterproof boots

  • Sun hat and light sun hoody

  • Electrolyte mix

  • Rain jacket, staged and ready

  • A daypack you can wear all day

  • Soft-sided transfer bag, packed under 15 kg

A few things I'd tell a friend:

  • Take taxis over peak-hour buses to trailheads

  • Sip water from the first step, not when empty

  • On Stage 6, have the taxi drop at the La Forclaz col, not the village

  • Buy bus, train, and cable-car tickets day-of

  • Keep Swiss francs in cash for buses on the Swiss stages