Backpacking Through the Alps: Our Tour du Mont Blanc Adventure

There are some adventures you dream about for years and others you love so much you decide to do them again.

The Tour du Mont Blanc is one of those for us.

In late August, our PowPow team of six set out to hike through the Alps, traveling on foot through France, Italy and Switzerland beneath the massive peaks and glaciers surrounding Mont Blanc. Over seven hiking days, we crossed high mountain passes, walked through wildflower-filled valleys, stayed in remote mountain refuges, ate some very memorable meals and spent long days surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery we have ever experienced.

And somehow, we were lucky enough to have almost perfect weather for the entire trip.

The Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) is one of Europe’s classic long-distance treks, circling the Mont Blanc massif through three countries. The complete route is roughly 170 kilometers, but there are endless ways to create your own itinerary using mountain refuges, villages, alternate routes, buses and lifts along the way.

We created a seven-day version that gave us plenty of serious hiking while also allowing us to enjoy the places we were passing through.

Day 1: Notre-Dame de la Gorge to Refuge de la Balme

Approximately 3 miles

After flying overnight into Geneva, we traveled to Les Contamines and began our trek at beautiful Notre-Dame de la Gorge.

It was the perfect introduction to the TMB with a short hike to combat the jetlag.

The trail climbed gradually through the forest, alongside rushing mountain water and past the centuries-old Roman bridge. We stopped for a wonderful lunch at Refuge de Nant Borrant before continuing upward toward Refuge de la Balme.

After a long travel day, arriving at our first mountain hut felt like officially stepping into another world.

One of the great surprises of hiking in the Alps is the refuge experience. These aren't simply places to sleep. Many are in spectacular locations that can only be reached on foot, with welcoming hosts, warm meals and groups of hikers from all over the world gathered around communal tables at the end of the day.

Day 2: Refuge de la Balme to Refuge des Mottets

Approximately 8 miles

Our second day took us higher into the mountains, crossing Col du Bonhomme and continuing through an increasingly dramatic alpine landscape.

This was the beginning of the rhythm that would define the trip: climb for hours, reach a mountain pass, stop and take in an extraordinary view and then discover that an entirely different landscape was waiting on the other side.

We took the higher Col des Fours variant before descending toward the Vallée des Glaciers and Refuge des Mottets.

Mottets sits by itself beneath enormous mountains at the head of the valley. After hours on the trail, arriving there felt almost cinematic: boots off, cold drinks, dinner, conversation and the satisfaction of knowing that everything we needed for the night was right there.

Day 3: Refuge des Mottets to Courmayeur, Italy

Approximately 15 miles

This was one of our longest and most beautiful days.

We climbed from France toward Col de la Seigne, crossed the pass and suddenly walked into Italy.

And Italy did not disappoint.

The trail carried us through the Val Veny with glaciers and the southern side of the Mont Blanc massif towering above us. We continued past Lac Combal, climbed toward Arp Vieille and followed the spectacular high balcony trail around Mont Favre.

The views seemed endless.

Eventually we began the long descent toward Courmayeur, where a very different reward was waiting: showers, a real bed and Italian food.

After several days of refuge meals, Courmayeur felt wonderfully decadent. Pasta, pizza, wine, espresso, gelato and Italy may have won the culinary portion of the Tour du Mont Blanc.

We stayed for two nights, giving ourselves a much-appreciated rest day before heading back into the mountains.

Day 4: Courmayeur to Rifugio Bonatti

Approximately 8 miles

Leaving Courmayeur meant climbing again, this time a relentless straight up.

The trail rises quickly above town toward Rifugio Bertone before joining one of the most spectacular sections of the entire TMB: the Val Ferret balcony trail.

For much of the day, Mont Blanc and the Grandes Jorasses seemed to be directly across the valley from us.

Our destination was Rifugio Bonatti, perhaps the most spectacularly situated hut of the entire trip. I think this was perhaps our favorite view from a hut.

Perched high above Val Ferret with enormous mountain views from the terrace, Bonatti is exactly what you imagine when you think of hiking from hut to hut through the Alps.

And because we were in Italy, the food was excellent too.

There is something wonderfully simple about these days: walk all day, arrive somewhere beautiful, take off your pack, order something cold to drink and sit outside looking at the mountains.

Then eat. Sleep. And do it again.

Day 5: Rifugio Bonatti to La Fouly, Switzerland

Approximately 12–13 miles hiking, followed by a transfer to Champex-Lac

This was another big mountain day.

We left Bonatti and continued through the Italian Val Ferret before climbing steadily toward Grand Col Ferret at 2,537 meters which is more than 8,300 feet.

At the top, we crossed our second international border on foot.

Italy behind us. Switzerland ahead.

The descent into Switzerland was long and beautiful, eventually bringing us to La Fouly. From there, we took a pre-arranged transfer to Champex-Lac rather than adding another full stage to an already long day.

It was one of several decisions we made that allowed us to create our own version of the TMB. You don't have to hike every kilometer for the experience to be extraordinary.

Day 6: Champex-Lac to Trient

Approximately 10 miles

This section of the trail gave us yet another version of the Alps. We climbed through forests and pastures toward Bovine, with broad views across the Rhône Valley.

And then came one of the most important traditions of hut-to-hut hiking: lunch.

At Refuge Bovine we stopped for homemade soup, local cheese and apple crumble. There is very little in life that tastes better than warm food at a mountain hut after several hours of climbing.

Later we descended through the forest toward Trient, surrounded by steep mountains and glaciers.

By this point, our legs were tired, but we had also settled completely into trail life.

Wake up. Pack. Eat breakfast. Walk.

No meetings. No traffic. No complicated decisions.

Just one trail leading toward the next mountain.

Day 7: Trient to Chamonix

Approximately 8 miles of hiking before descending toward Le Tour

Our final day took us from Switzerland back into France.

We climbed toward Col de Balme, eventually reaching the high ridge that marks the border. From there, Mont Blanc came back into view and Chamonix lay somewhere beyond the mountains ahead of us.

It was also the week of the UTMB which is the famous Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc running events. Suddenly our quiet hiking trail became part of something much bigger.

Elite trail runners and racers began coming through sections of the route.

Watching athletes run terrain we had spent hours climbing was both humbling and exhilarating. We stepped aside, cheered them on and became, for a brief stretch, spectators at one of the most extraordinary mountain races in the world.

It added an energy to the trail that we hadn't expected and made our final days in the Alps even more memorable.

We eventually descended toward Le Tour and made our way into Chamonix.

And just like that, the walking was over.

Long Days, Simple Pleasures

Some days on the TMB are long.

Really long.

There are hours of climbing, thousands of feet of elevation gain and descents that seem to continue forever. Your feet hurt. Your shoulders know exactly where your backpack straps are. And there are moments when the next mountain refuge seems impossibly far away.

But then you turn a corner.

A glacier appears across the valley.

Cowbells echo from a meadow below. Perhaps you get a glimpse of border collies herding large groups of sheep across the mountain, that is priceless.

You reach a mountain pass and realize you can see into another country.

Or someone places a bowl of homemade soup, a piece of cheese and a slice of apple crumble in front of you.

And suddenly the miles don't matter very much.

The Magic of the Mountain Refuges

One of our favorite parts of the TMB was staying in the mountain huts.

Each refuge had its own personality, but the ritual was wonderfully consistent.

Arrive tired. Drop the backpacks. Take off the boots. Find something to drink. Sit outside. Watch the mountains change as the sun gets lower.

Dinner is served at a set time, often family-style. Hikers who were strangers on the trail suddenly share tables, stories and advice about tomorrow's route.

Then everyone heads to bed surprisingly early because another mountain is waiting in the morning.

The accommodations range from simple to remarkably comfortable, but the locations are priceless.

You don't stay there for luxury.

You stay because you can wake up, step outside and already be in the mountains.

And Then There Was Italy

Every country on the Tour du Mont Blanc has its own character, but Italy may have captured our hearts and definitely our stomachs.

Maybe pasta simply tastes better after hiking for eight hours. Maybe an espresso is more satisfying when you're drinking it in a refuge overlooking Mont Blanc. Maybe everything tastes better in Italy.

Whatever the reason, those Italian days were some of our favorites.

Courmayeur was lively and beautiful, and Rifugio Bonatti combined everything we love about European hiking: extraordinary mountains, great hospitality and food that makes you want to linger at the table.

Seven Days Outside

The thing I remember most about the trip isn't one particular summit or refuge.

It's the accumulation of all of it.

Seven days of being outside almost all day.

Seven days of watching the landscape change one step at a time.

France becoming Italy. Italy becoming Switzerland. Switzerland becoming France again.

Sunrise outside a mountain hut. Lunch on the trail. Packs lined up by the door. Hiking poles leaning against a wall. Boots drying in the sun. Cold drinks at the end of a long day.

And hour after hour of simply walking together.

That may be the greatest luxury of a trip like this.

Life gets very simple. You carry what you need. You know where you're going. And between here and there is another beautiful day in the mountains.

At PowPow, we've always believed the best adventures are the ones that get you outside and the Tour du Mont Blanc is hard to beat.

Designed for adventure. Styled for life. And always ready for the next trail.