Day 1, Pont Saint Martin to Pontboset

Total ascent 1830m.
Monday, 20th July.

Along up up up up up down down down down.

Allow me to explain. I am going to describe the profile of each day's walking in no more than 10 words. There will be very few 'along's, and today's 'along' was only to get to the official start of the walk. As a rule when I do these summer walks each day's profile is more of an 'up down up down up down', but that isn't going to happen here (see below!).

Last night's meal had been staggeringly good. I'd ordered the Menu Completi to guarantee I got to try everything, and despite sleeping badly as a result of being too hot and too stuffed, it was worth it. So this morning I left my B&B, Mandoué, at 8:30 after a continental breakfast which, as I'd been on my own in the room, was also now my packed lunch. Old habits die hard.

I walked along the road to the next village, Donnas, an uninspiring place aside from the primary school, which occupied the second and third floors of a grand old building. The ground floor however was a wine museum, surely a fine venue for staff meetings. I crossed a peculiar zebra crossing which had a wall on the other side, so there was nowhere to actually walk to, hugged the wall as traffic hurtled past, walked over the railway and beneath the main road. I was now on the Alta Via 2.

Last year the first morning was a stroll across Ilkley Moor. This year the beginning was described in my book as, "a continual climb of 5 hours and 35 minutes to Col Pousseuil, an ascent of 1800 metres", or 5905 feet!!! That's ridiculous!!! Well I've got nobody to blame but myself I suppose. The thing is, these things are never as bad as they sound. I'd say that two thirds of it was painfully hard (and hot - from my experience at the gym I estimated that my heart rate was 160 bpm or more throughout - actually that does sound quite bad), the other third minus a bit was very enjoyable (but still hard and hot), and the other bit was why I do these walks; the Eureka moment!

Coincidentally (and only apparently) 'alp' translates as both 'a high mountain' and 'a grassy pasture', and with 400 metres left to climb I came across the respite of a grassy pasture type alp. And what an alp it was! In the space of half an hour I wandered past at least a hundred cows (all wearing bells) and two donkeys, saw a chamois and passed very close to a grey and black snake, in one of the most beautiful settings imaginable.

A grassy pasture alp and a heavily populated mountain alp.

Some of a snake.

When I did reach the col there was quite a lot of cloud around, so the temperature was a pleasant 20 degrees and perfect for a stolen lunch. Peaches and plums taste fantastic at 2120 metres! All that was required now was the 1400m descent to my destination.

Pontboset sits in the middle of the Italian Alps and feels so far removed from modern life I can scarcely believe it. Most of the houses look they're falling down but the village looks beautiful. Nobody speaks English but I feel really at home. And as I'm having to do tomorrow's walk backwards (due to a shortage of accommodation further up the valley, so a bus trip is needed) I'm staying here for two nights.

A typical Pontboset house.

There is of course a hotel, or I wouldn't be here at all. It's more basic than last night's, but I've got a balcony to watch the kids playing IN THE STREET, IN THE DARK BECAUSE IT'S SAFE AND NOBODY'S PARANOID. And somehow it's also got wi-fi. Dinner was a hoot. The owners both came to get me and looked quite concerned about my welfare. Which is why I've just had a(nother!) enormous meal, including my beloved Fontina cheese, local to this region and even tastier than Tesco's finest. But the starter was soup, lots of soup. When I'd half emptied my first bowl the owner filled it again. He then did it a second time. I now wasn't sure how to stop him serving me soup. He was carrying round a huge vat of the stuff and it occurred to me at the start of bowl three that he was not going to stop till his vat was empty. And as 5 of the 9 tables were unoccupied it could last quite a while! I decided to slow down, but at one point near the end turned away to read something and he pounced one last time. With a satisfied look he returned the empty vat to the kitchen.

There followed the pasta course (pasta), the meat course (possibly pork with gravy and boiled courgettes), the cheese course (Fontina!!!), the dessert course (cake) and coffee (expresso - buzzzzzz).

So all I've got to do now is ask the owners what time breakfast is, what time I can catch a bus up the valley and whether they can make me a packed lunch. Using my iTranslate app. I feel inadequate.


-- Posted from Kev's iPhone