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EXCERPT FROM SARA’S JOURNAL August
31, 1999
Die, The Vercors
The French Alps
The mountain range stretching south from Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean climaxes at
Europe’s loftiest peak. The 4,800 metre Mont Blanc towers on the border of France and
Italy and not far from the Swiss frontier. The French Alps encompass the old regions of
Dauphine and Savoie, once remote and independent (Savoie only became a part of France in
1860). Over the last century these regions have prospered with the popularity of skiing
and alpine holidays, but remain conscious and retentive of their distinct identities with
festivals, newspapers and cultural events.
The alpine summer season begins in late June and lasts until early September when most
resorts close up for the October-November interim between hiking and skiing. After the
spring thaw, meadows of blue and yellow gentians, bellflowers, lilies, saxifrages and
orchids, and snow-fed mountain lakes flank hundreds of kilometres of marked trails. In the
Chamonix-Mont Blanc area alone there are over 310 kilometres of hiking trails including
the long-distance Tour de Mont Blanc – a 10-day hike via France, Italy and
Switzerland. The Grand-Randonee 5 (GR5) traverses the entire Alps, passing through
the Parc National de la Vanoise and the southern Parc Regional du Queyras. Telerifiques,
or cablecars, give access to the highest trails, where hikers can compromise with altitude
sickness and rapidly changing weather conditions for the most awesome of views. |
 
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