CHAMONIX, FRANCE

                            Famous for its Mountain

      Established in the11th century by Benedictine monks, Chamonix is situated in the north-westerly part of the Alps, just 15 km from the Swiss border via the Col des Montets and 15 km from Italy via the Mont-Blanc tunnel. The natural border, where these three countries converge, lies at 4138-feet on the summit Mont Dolent.

French Alps

      Chamonix, with a population of 10,000, and its valley are dominated by the Mont Blanc chain to the south and the Aiguilles Rouges (red peaks) to the north.  The community of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc includes 16 villages and hamlets. One of the oldest ski resorts in France, during the winter season the population swells by an additional 80,000 people! The first winter Olympics were held in Chamonix in 1924, and now the area receives 5 million visitors a year.                                                     

      The Arve, the main river of the upper Savoy, starts at the Col de Balme and flows a 107 km through the Chamonix valley on down to Geneva where it joins the Rhône.      

      The glacial valley measures 17 km, from the northern most point at Col des Montets to the Taconnaz torrent. The town center is at an altitude of 1121-feet; the highest village at the top of the valley is Le Tour at 1585-feet.

       It was a 2-hour drive from Cogne, Italy to Chamonix. We stopped in Courmayeur, Italy for a gelato break before entering the 11-mile long tunnel connecting the city to Chamonix (3500’). Because of previous fatal accidents now all vehicles are checked for temperature before entering the tunnel. There is an escape route about every kilometer throughout the tunnel. The toll tunnel saves drivers 160 km if one had to drive around. 

Top of Mont Blanc

       On arrival it was unusually clear and sunny so we all agreed we’d visit Mont Blanc immediately after lunch rather than taking weather chances the next couple of days. It was an excellent choice. The weather was not bad the next couple of days but was intermittently more cloudy.     

      Mont Blanc, the highest European mountain west of Russia, holds a special allure for climbers. Chamonix is famous for its spectacular cable car up to the Aiguille du Midi (12,605’). Constructed in 1955, it was then the highest cable car in the world.

Receding glacier from hotel balcony

      The growth of tourism in the early 19th century led to the formation in 1821 of the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix to regulate access to the mountain slopes. This association held a monopoly of guiding from the town until it was broken by the French government in 1892; thereafter guides were required to hold a diploma issued by a commission dominated by civil servants and members of the French Alpine Club rather than just being local residents.        

      Two famous statues are in the centre of Chamonix. One commemorates Horace Bendicte de Saussure who, in 1760, offered a substantial cash prize to the first person to reach the summit of Mont Blanc, but the prize was not  claimed until 26 years later by Jaques Balmat. The other statue is of Dr Gabriel Michel Paccard, Jacques Balmat's partner on that historic ascent. 

       In winter months the area gets only 3-4 hours of sunshine a day. The glacier which we saw so well from our room balcony originally reached the city.  It has receded over 2 K in the past ten years. Of the original 107 glaciers in Europe, 93 remain and in 60 years it is predicted that only two will remain! A scary thought indeed!