Bourg St. Maurice

We have just finished three days in the Alps, staying at refuges and we are taking a day off here. The scene at the refuges is really wonderful.

The last night in the mountains we stayed at Refuge Le Presset next to the Lac of the same name. This place is very remote and has composting toilets and no showers. The people who run it, members of the Club Alpin Francais, pack the food in by back pack from the Refuge one and a half hours away.

There are two rooms besides the staff quarters. One a combined kitchen dining room and the other a sleeping room for 22. The sleeping room is probably 18 X 24 feet, cozy. Toilets are outside and down some stairs and a short trail, tough for the person that gets up every night. Dinner included fresh pears with chocolate sauce. Amazing how they cook such meals on a three burner stove. We had 11 for dinner and late arrivals made 20 overnight.

Late arrivals included two couples and their three kids, all under 6. It is amazing to us that these little kids make it over the Cols to these places. We had people from England, Scotland, Austria, Germany and France in the cabin.

The next morning we got up and had our coffee, tea, bread and jam and watched the weather deteriorate. We left in a light rain and when the thunder sounded and it started to pour. Luckily enough we were next to Refuge La Balm, where we dried out, ate our cheese and bread, and watched it storm. It soon abated and we set out again in sunshine. Caught Patrick from England on the trail and ate dinner with him last night in Landry.

Rhonda is a mountain chick.