Every year the jeûne genevois holiday seems to sneak up on us (surprise vacation day). I won't get around to making the traditional plum pie today since we headed out early for a big hike up Mont Buet. Labeled as the 'Mont Blanc des Dames', Mont Buet is popular with hikers, and its rugged trails are often used by mountaineers preparing to climb the white mountain. For us, it will be our first single day hike reaching above 3000 meters.
Starting from Le Couteray, we made a quick climb through the forest before following a long river valley to Refuge de Pierre à Bérard.
From the refuge, we begin the steeper ascent up rocky trail to Col de Salenton and Arrête de la Mortine.
Just when the switchbacks seem endless, we can see the trail stretched out to the summit not too far ahead and breathtaking views below.
We arrived at the summit in a little over four hours. Time to take a seat, have some lunch, and enjoy the view...even if Mt. Blanc is behind the clouds, before breaking out the poles for the long descent.
At the summit:
Snaking down the trail and looking back up:
One of these things is not like the others...
Luckily the predicted rain never came. We started to feel the hours on rocky terrain in our feet as we made our way down the glowing green rocks. We gathered some blueberries and raspberries for stamina, visited a huge cascade, and finally passed through a tiny cluster of wood chalets for the finish.
