Day Four: Triumph, Cowbells, and Alpine Adventure on the TMB
I started the day eager to hike toward the Col de la Seigne, but a lack of research quickly reminded me that mountains don't always follow your expectations. Instead of a simple descent, the trail cut straight across the face of Mont Tondu, a technical traverse filled with slippery clay, boulders, steel cables, and chains. Every step was a challenge, forcing me to balance, scramble, and trust my trekking poles, while constantly scanning for cairns and double yellow trail markers to stay on course. By the time I reached the final vertical climb to the col, the feeling was not just relief, it was pure triumph. I had pushed myself and emerged stronger for it.
The Col de la Seigne itself offered breathtaking views back into France and forward into Italy. I pressed on quickly, descending with a newfound confidence I'd developed from past speed-hiking techniques, weaving past cow herders and their grazing flocks while keeping my eyes on the next ascent. Rifugio Elisabetta flashed by, and then I was racing toward the valley floor and Lac Combal, the mountains around me shifting from grasses to bushes and trees, with Mont Blanc looming silently in the clouds above.
The afternoon was a mix of ups and downs, the terrain constantly reminding me of the magnitude of the Alps. By the time I reached my destination, I was high above the valley floor again, awed by the perspective that only comes from being this far up. Mont Blanc hid behind clouds for the day, leaving me focused on the lake-studded paths and the returning herds of cows that made the trail an obstacle course of its own. Running low on water added another element of tension, but the thought of the refuge kept me moving.
Arriving at the evening's refuge was a relief in every sense. Ponies and horses greeted me at the door, curious and insistent on joining the dining room. Familiar faces from earlier in the trip trickled in, along with a hiker from Barcelona I had met days prior. The views of the valley below were spectacular, the beds welcoming, and the dinner a well-earned reward after a day of relentless hiking and scrambling.
As the sky softened in the evening, I reflected on the day's challenges. The mix of technical climbs, slippery traverses, and cow-filled paths had tested every skill I had acquired on the trail. Yet despite the physical exhaustion, there was a deep satisfaction in knowing I had met the mountains head-on. Tomorrow promised new climbs, but tonight, the mountains were quiet, and so was I.