So we did climb the Col des Fours. 2710 meters and quite cold when we woke up and started. It was actually a closed trail given the amount of snow but we went anyway. Of the 200 people we saw walking in various directions yesterday, on the Col trek we only saw 3 others.
Luckily we were warned earlier to buy crampons. We needed them. The descent is so steep that if you fall forward you will roll down. I fell backwards twice. Even with crampons you slide.
So we made that and walked all the down to the valley. From cold to very warm. Then walked up another high mountain back in snow territory on the way to the Elisabetta refuge.
That’s where I really felt like an old man. Energy just disappeared but managed to snail crawl up. People stopped to make sure I was ok with nice small talk questions.
Once I got to the top I had a snack of a sweet protein bar and quickly recovered. Took some electrolytes as well.
Funny that I never felt hungry till the top. I have learned that I can climb or digest but not both lol.
We finally arrived at the Elisabetta hut and had a sandwich and beer and a rest.
The hut was full and there are no campgrounds. And the next destination was 6 hours away. Oops.
So we had to wild camp. 500 euro fine if caught. We did not get caught BUT we also could not find a flat piece of land to pitch a tent. so we searched for 2 hours and finally at 9 pm pitched a tent. Sun sets late here.
It was almost 12 hours of walking. Very tired.
Stay tuned for todays write up.