Alps
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Fall holidays (3)
1. This high valley of the Clarée is just magnificent at this season!
2. Back from our hike to Long Lake, we still walk along the river.
3. Emile takes the opportunity to play one of his favorite hobbies:
4. … throw stones in the water!
5. I enjoy the superb views over the valley.
6. What a beautiful alpine river!
7. Last look on the way back down to Bardonecchia.
8. Back in Italy, we take a trail to Fort Jafferau, a former Italian fort built at the top of Mount Jafferau, at 9,150 feet elevation.
9. While the west slope climb is steep and requires the use of short gears for several miles, a pipe from VLV’s cooling system cracks, forcing me to stop for two hours to make a makeshift repair. But we still get to the top at the end of the day.
10. As the wind is still blowing strong, we descend a few miles on the other side for the night.
11. The end of the day offers beautiful views.
12. The sun has already set when I light the fire. A red fox comes and watch us from just a few feets away while I cook on the campfire.
13. Dusk…
14. … before a night lulled by the wind.
that’s it for today. I have one last article to be published soon, which will close this 2021 season in VivaLaVida. 🙂
Fall holidays (2)
Continuation of these few days of relaxation and discovery…
1. To descend from Mont-Cenis to Italy, VivaLaVida discovers a trail, an old border road, some passages of which are spectacular.
2. Passage near the pretty little lake of Roterel…
3. … as the sky clears.
4. The larches are already gorgeous with their yellow-orange hue…
5. Turns…
6. Another small lake, Arpon Lake, just after the Italian border.
7. We make a little stop for the lunch…
8. … near a pretty mountain pasture already closed this season.
9. While waiting for the grocery store to open – it is closed at nap time – Emile improves his cycling technique! 🙂
10. We take the direction of the upper valley of the Claree via the Col de l’Echelle (Ladder Pass).
11. Wake up at the end of the road on a beautiful fall day ideal for a mountain walk.
12. At 5 years old, Emile is a good walker, 5 or 10 miles uphill doesn’t frighten him!
13. Climb to Long Lake in the midst of the fall colors.
14. Arrival at the lake where the temperature hardly exceeds 32°F.
15. Immaculate tranquility…
16. Break sheltered from the strong North wind.
17. Lac Long in a setting of blueberries reddened by autumn.
18. Meeting with a beautiful cricket a little numb by the cold.
19. Going back down to VivaLaVida
More soon… 🙂
Fall holidays (1)
As Emile is on vacation with me for a week, we decide to go enjoying the fall colors without traveling too far since we only have 5 days to travel. The destination will be the Hautes-Alpes, between France and Italy.
1. After half a day on the road, we arrive in the Mont-Cenis region and its lake at the end of the day.
2. While the weather is fine all along the road, the east wind blows fog from Italy which gradually rises, enveloping VivaLaVida.
3. Climbing up to 2,200 m, we have time to make a shot hike outside the nimbuses.
4. But half an hour later, the fog catches up with us.
5. The time to find a boondocking site for the night and we are isolated by the clouds for a quiet but cool night.
6. The disturbance of the night removed the fog and nicely sprinkled summits with fresh snow.
7. A few openings in the couds let in the light…
8. … and VLV takes the trail again to reach the lake.
9. We take the trail that goes West of the lake…
10. … trail that we couldn’t drive in July, a barrier now blocking access from July 1st to September 15.
11. The showers follow one another and the wind is still blowing strong.
12. But we anyway go for a walk by the lake, just to play with Emile and, for me, to look for some picture composition.
13. …
The continuation of the story in a few days…
Week-end in Haute Savoie
At the end of August, Emile and I are going to spend the weekend in the mountains.
1. Hike to the Col de Balme.
2. We discover a pretty altitude pond…
3. … that cottongrass highlight.
4. Highland…
5. From a ridge, we can see VLV far below…
6. On the ridge…
7. The goal of the hike.
8. Too bad the clouds hid the light…
9. Altitude marsh.
10. On the way back, the clouds set the mood…
11. Reaching VLV for the night.
12. Campfire to prepare diner.
13. A last ray sets the Bossons glacier ablaze in the distance.
14. Red needles of Chamonix in the clouds.
15. Nice viewpoint over the Chamonix valley when we wake up.
16. Picnic near Emosson.
17. Aiguille Verte and the Drus from Emosson.
Some images of other weekends coming soon… 😀
Italian Alps (2)
1. After the Sommeillier, we reached the Pass delle Finestre. Arrived in late afternoon in a thick fog, we decide to sleep there in the hope of better weather the next day.
2. Early next morning, the fog fell slightly.
3. It gradually dissipates, giving a glimpse of the trail driven the day before.
4. Last switchbacks before the pass.
5. North side.
6. South side.
7. Backlight…
I wanted to continue by the Pass dell Assietta track but a municipal decree forbids access to vehicles from mid-June to mid-September. Undoubtedly the result of intensive attendance in recent years by groups of 10 to 20 4×4 mainly from Germany (these organized tours have become very popular with Germans who don’t have such mountains in their country). Therefore, we descent the southern side of the pass and do to Sestriere where we do some shopping to fill the fridge. Emile chose a succulent sheep’s cheese there after tasting it in the grocery shop!
We go then discover the superb Argentera Valley, still wild on its upper part since a 4×4 is needed to access there.
8. We find a great boondocking spot next to the river.
9. VivaLaVida in the distance.
10. Upper Argentera Valley.
It is already Friday and I decide to cross toward the Pyrenees to enjoy these other mountains, knowing that I will land Emile in Corrèze for the rest of his vacation in two weeks.
11. After half a day on the road, another boondocking spot in la Drôme.
12. Calm sunset atmosphere.
To be followed in the next article. 😉
Summer trip 2021, start in France and Italy
Both Emile and I were eager to hit the road after two years without traveling in VivaLaVida. However, while we planned to leave on a Monday, trying to crank VivaLaVida the previous Thursday, no way to start it! I do the diagnostics and identify that it was the injection pressure regulator that was out of order. I ordered the part in the United States with express shipping and received it next Monday. The time to install it and check that everything was fine, we finally left on Tuesday at the beginning of the afternoon …
1. First stop at Fairies lake, in Beaufortain.
2. The next day, we go to the Iseran Pass, more than 9,000 feet elevation.
3. Emile building a kern.
4. View of the mountains where Isère takes its source.
5. Emile in front of an orientation table.
6. We find a place under the pass to boondock.
7. There is a torrent, Emile throws some stones at it!
87. All happy!
9. The sun hides behind the mountain until the next day…
10. The next day, direction Italy in the Rochemolles valley via Mont Cenis.
11. The pleasure of the first campfire of the trip.
12. Dinner!
13. The following morning, we go up to the Scarfiotti refuge and its small lakes. I give up going up to the Sommeillier Pass because you have to pay to take this dead end track and there was a lot of people.
14. Waterfall behind the refuge.
Continuation of the story in a few days… 😉
Tende…
1. Tende is a particular village, hanging on the slope of a deep valley.
2. Small streets are narrow…
3. … and most of the houses have views over the valley.
4. Porch…
5. A real little labyrinth.
6. Ancient door…
7. Another, with its guardian. 😉
8. The colors of the church clash..
9. Roof entanglement.
10. Up the street to the church…
11. … and its painted pediment.
12. The interior is also quite spectacular.
13. Still other doors…
14. Balcony on the valley…
15. Going down to VivaLaVida.
16. A chapel bell tower…
17. Swing for Emile…
18. Last look at the village.
To be followed in some days…
Ruta del Sale…
1. From the Tende Pass, the switchbacks of the southern side are impressive !
2. We decide to borrow part of the Ruta del Sale which connects various ruins of military forts.
3. It’s well inhabited by many marmots almost ready for their next hibernation.
4. She looks like a ranger, isn’t she? 😉
5. VivaLaVida follows ridges…
6. … with new landscapes at every turn.
7. Clouds are close.
8. Nice bridge on our trail…
9. … which spans a torrent having dug the rock.
10. VLV makes a short stop.
11. Lunch break in a pretty clearing in the larches…
12. … and some play for Emile.
In the next update, we will show you Tende, a pretty village perched on the slopes of a deep valley.
High routes in the Alps…
The next day, VLV took us to the highest paved road in Europe (this is at least what the French say 🙂 , the Pass of la Bonette.
1. Departure from our camp…
2. Ascent to La Bonette.
3. Small break in the ascent.
4. On a little pass below the head of la Bonette…
5. The panorama is gorgeous despite the light of midday.
6. VivaLaVida in her element.
7. VLV’s rack and solar pannels.
8. A valley on the other side of the pass.
9. Alpine tundra…
10. Seasonal migration…
11. Rocky edge…
12. Old military buildings in the descent on St-Etienne-de-Tinée.
Other passes to come shortly in the continuation of the narrative…
D5 Creation