TMB 8: Drowned Rat Day...but at least I was not pushing a Mountain Bike!

It rained all day, hard, with some hail and sleet at the high point for good measure. We sat at the lovely little hotel cafe eating breakfast rather slowly because we thought the rain might fade away? After an hour, we knew we better get going!  Not too many photo ops (one rainy cow) so I am including the official map of the Tour du Mont Blanc and a photo of Europe where the three countries of France, Italy, and Switzerland frame Mont Blanc. There is a TUNNEL that goes straight under the mountains between Chamonix and Courmayeur. Begun in 1957 and completed in 1965, the tunnel is 7.215 miles in length, 28 ft in width, and 14.3 ft in height. The passageway is not horizontal, but in a slightly inverted "V", which assists ventilation. As one guy on the trek said, "I took ten days to walk around this mountain and a car can drive through in under an hour!?" Very steep and rocky trails today and strangely enough, we played leap frog with two mountain bikers several times. They were ALWAYS pushing the bike - we never saw them ride. A young woman was following this guy the whole time. After several hours, I was passing her yet again and she looked at me, water pouring off her hat, and said, "This is the most futile thing I have ever done." I don't think she was too happy with her companion and have a feeling this was his idea. The trails were just too rugged for even a short ride, so they did the same thing as us, only pushing bikes the whole way. Vern accidentally left his jacket zipped open on the sides for ventilation and did not realize how soaking wet he was - wondered why his fingers were getting pretty numb! I wrung about a half cup of water out of my mittens when we arrived but fortunately the temperature was not too cold to be dangerous. As we were settled at the bar having a drink, a young American lady was brought in covered in a blanket. She had fallen on the trail and hit her head. She was camping alone but they convinced her to stay the night in the refuge. Yikes. The weather cleared after we arrived and right outside the refuge, we realized the incredible mountain view over a pink church! Met two lovely Israeli girls, both first year medical students, and learned much about their country. They had just completed the required two years of military service. Best dinner yet of soup, chicken curry (with peaches and strawberries in it!), and a vanilla flan/cherry chilled dessert. Shared bunks with two young Americans, two Israelis, and another couple from Belgium. Everyone slept well tonight.