Tour de Mont Blanc – Day 8 – Rifugio Elena to Rifugio Bonatti

The previous day we’d crossed the jagged mountain peaks from Switzerland into Italy. Now, on Day 8 of our Tour de Mont Blanc walk we were ready for more magnificent mountain views. It was our third year of walking, as we tried to complete another section of this 180km long distance mountain trail around Mont Blanc.

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Leaving Rifugio Elena

For walkers like us on the Tour de Mont Blanc, the routine was “early to bed and early to rise”. As we left our bedroom in Rifugio Elena for breakfast at 7.30am, the cleaner was waiting outside with vacuum cleaner at the ready.

We’d found the mountain refuges, on our trek though France, Switzerland and Italy, were a mixed bag. At Rifugio Elena it seemed that they couldn’t wait to see us on our way.

By 8am we were putting on our walking boots outside the door, with the refuge in shadow. The sun rose over the jagged peaks of Grand Col Ferret, the pass from Switzerland to Italy, which we’d crossed the afternoon before. Read about the previous day’s hike from Ferret to Rifugio Elena.

A rough path now took us downhill, alongside a stream that was headed to join the river Po and eventually end up in the Adriatic.

Reaching Chalet Val Ferret for coffee

In less than an hour we reached the bottom of the valley where there was a car park beside the river. We ordered our cappuccinos at the very pleasant Chalet Val Ferret, a small hotel with restaurant and garden cafe. The delicious local torte was filled with sweet fruit puree scattered with pine nuts and a lattice of pastry across the top. 

A large guided group of Americans came in just as we were leaving, before heading in the direction that we’d come, towards Grand Col de Ferret. I didn’t envy them, knowing that they had a long, arduous day ahead of them, while we had a relatively easy one.

The muddy track snaked up behind the Chalet Val Ferret, through rather unattractive scrub. Once we got above the treeline, however, the views opened out on the hillside.

It was an easy, open path with fabulous views. I could count four or five glaciers on the opposite side of the valley, hanging below the rocky peaks.

By late morning our side of the valley was bathed in sunshine. Every so often we played hop scotch across a stream, that carved a channel of grey stone through the grassy green of the hillside.

Views above Val Ferret

After walking a couple of hours from Val Ferret, the balcony path gave us a grandstand view from one end of the valley to the other. The peak of Mont Blanc itself was in sight.

Whenever we stopped for a break, we could hear the crickets chirping among the scrub and wildflowers. Butterflies flitted between silver thistles and patches of purple flowers.

A mule passed the other way, laden down with baggage in support of a small group of walkers. Each walker had their belongings in a red cylinder bag and they were all being unloaded for a lunchtime stop.

Continuing a little further, we found our perfect picnic place. We ate the local sausage and cheese we’d brought with us, with chilli flavoured olives and bread that was getting a bit stale.

Our view was of grey mountain peaks and glaciers backed by a blue sky. From the bottom of the valley we heard the river rushing as it snaked along the bed of shale.

Arriving at Rifugio Walter Bonatti

By mid afternoon we rounded a spur and saw villages in the valley stretching out before us. Just beyond a group of old ruined buildings was Rifugio Walter Bonatti.

Another half an hour and we were on the sunny terrace of the refuge. We joined the walkers who had come up from the valley on a day hike as well as those who were walking the Tour de Mont Blanc.

Leaving our rucksacks in our room, we exchanged our walking boots for slippers provided by the refuge. A cold beer in hand, we basked in the late afternoon sun, backs against the stone wall.

Even though today’s path had been undemanding, it felt like the perfect reward for our day’s walk on the Tour de Mont Blanc.

Read about our next day’s walk: Tour de Mont Blanc – Day 9 – Rifugio Bonatti to Courmayeur

Watch my Tour de Mont Blanc Video

This video from our third year of walking on the Tour de Mont Blanc covers Days 6, 7 and 8 of the walk.

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Resources for the Tour de Mont Blanc

We used the Cicerone Tour of Mont Blanc guide by Kev Reynolds. It’s an excellent guide for both the clockwise and anti-clockwise route. There’s a detailed route guide, maps, accommodation information and points of interest along the route.

This day’s walk started at Rifugio Elena in Italy where we had a twin room with en suite bathroom which included dinner and breakfast. The Refuge has room for 130 people in both dormitory accommodation and private en suite twin rooms. There is an e-mail address given on the website but we did not get any response to our e-mail reservation request. If you have similar problems, you will need to telephone them for a reservation or ask one of the refuges to phone for you. Tel (+39) 0165844688

We ended the day’s walk at Rifugio Walter Bonatti, which I would highly recommend and one of the nicest we stayed in on the whole walk. The Refuge has a dormitory and private twin rooms with the shared bathroom just across the corridor. Dinner and breakfast is included. The refuge can be booked by e-mail [email protected] and by telephone (+39) 335 68 48 578 or use the form on their website.

Bookings for some refuges can also be made on the Mon Tour de Mont Blanc website. To avoid disappointment and a long walk, you should book your place in all refuges. You can normally do so a day or two before, or from the previous refuge.

The Autour du Mont Blanc website has useful information to help you plan your Tour de Mont Blanc walk.

Read Next

Read about our next day’s hike: Tour de Mont Blanc – Day 9 – Rifugio Bonatti to Courmayeur

More tales from the Tour de Mont Blanc

• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 1 – Les Houches to Refuge la Bellachat
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 2 – Refuge de Bellachat to la Flegere
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 3 – Refuge Flégère to Lac Blanc
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 4 – Flégère to Refuge Col de Balme
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 5 – Col de Balme to Champex
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 6 – Champex Lac to Ferret
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 7 – Ferret to Rifugio Elena
• Tour de Mont Blanc Day 8 – This article
• Tour de Mont Blanc – Day 9 – Rifugio Bonatti to Courmayeur

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com

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