Refuge de l'Arpont-day two

The second day's hike appeared leisurely starting with a long downhill stretch and a lot of lateral traverses. In the morning we passed ski lifts, crossed ski runs, walked on a paved road for a while, and passed glacial moraines and lakes. At times we could see the edge of the glacier high above our path and feel the cold breeze blowing down slope off the ice. On the traverses we crossed many small ice melt streams by stepping on large rocks above the water, but in the late afternoon we came to a wider, swifter stream that required fording--walking through the water! Unfortunately we then hiked the remainder of the day in wet shoes.

Every day in the late afternoon we would watch ahead for the refuge, hoping it would be close. Many abandoned rock shelters abound in this area of the Alps, and we often had to judge from a distance whether we could see the refuge or just another abandoned rock shelter. When we finally reached Refuge de l'Arpont we were really tired, hungry for the meal, and ready for sleep.

This last photo is the multinational crew we ate dinner with that night. Many non-French Europeans were hiking and the common language was often English. Table cards dictating which table we ate at were put out at every meal. It seemed that the non-French speakers were often placed the together. We shared many of our meals with a couple from the Netherlands, a couple from England, a mom and daughter, Karen and Morgan, from Florida and Andrea, a man from Italy.