Started stage 1 of the TMB from Les Houches. Took a bus from Les Pelerine and took the Bellevue Telepherique up to Col dear Voza. Had a short break at Auberge dear Bionnassay. The amazing views of the valley made up for the mediocre hot chocolat though. Met a couple of hikers along the way. Met Pierre, a 60 yr old guy doing a day hike from Le Champel. It was fun communicating even though I do not know any french, and his English wasnt that great either. Haha. Well sometimes communication can go beyond words, this is pretty true.

After Le Champel, it was a relatively easy section of passing through wooden houses in Tresses, Le Quy and then Les Hoches. I passed by this lady who did the TMB clockwise (so it was her last day) said the first day is always the hardest… I kind of get it because it’s always about getting used to the pack and stuff. Wanted to head to Les contamines for a comfy hotel but because the last stretch was a slope… I decided to continue along the main trail for about 40mins according to my initial plan, to Camping Du Pontet. Luckily it only started to rain upon my arrival.

Set up my tent and took a shower. Man, it was cold and wet. It also rained through the night. thank goodness for my -20 degrees sleeping bag. It’s the heaviest item in my pack, but also the most important. The cold can be so depressing. I also had a headache so it was quite miserable.

Looking forward to day 2 though! The views will be amazing.

Photos of the day (with captions):

I stayed at Les Pelerins, in a cosy Airbnb. I left my hardcase luggage there while I hiked the TMB for 10 days. After my hike, I returned to stay 1 more night there. I’ve heard most hotels allow free luggage storage while hiking the TMB.

I took the bus from Les Pelerins to Les Houches, the starting point of the TMB.

These are some sights along the way to the Bellevue telepherique aka chairlift.

Bellevue telepherique ticket

I took the standard route, passing through Bionnassay to reach Les Contamines. I passed by several peaceful grasslands and heard my first cow bells. I was so excited!

The views were already superb on Day 1.

Took some timer selfies for entertainment… this is what happens when you hike solo!

Stopped by Auberge de Bionnassay for a hot chocolate! It was the first auberge I saw that was opened. It was too cute to skip! The views were amazing.

After passing more gorgeous views, I arrived my Camping du Pontet, which is about 40 minutes past Les Contamines.

Check out my other articles on the Tour du Mont Blanc: