Geog a Blog On Tour – Day 2

Hi Geog-a-Bloggies,


Day two was definitely a physically strenuous day, but immensely satisfying. Today we climbed to the top of the Aiguilles Rouge, in order to survey the Mont Blanc Massif. In total, we walked over 18km today up a rocky and steep incline, often with no clear path and up snowy areas, causing the occasional slip. The strong sun at the high altitude made the climb particularly difficult, but we eventually made it to the top where the Lac Blanc was situated, and celebrated with a hard-earned lunch of sandwiches we made from ingredients we had bought earlier at a local shop. Buying these ingredients proved to be much more difficult than we had originally thought, as our total amount to pay was far beyond our budget, and required us to awkwardly request for some items to be put back.



After lunch and a quick break, we climbed slightly further up the snowy slope, where we sat and observed the relict glacial environment. The Aiguilles Rouge is named after the red colour of the iron-rich gneiss mountains, and with the highest summit being just 2965m high, nearly 2000m lower than the Mont Blanc massif, there are no longer any significant glaciers. After this, we also walked up to the Lac Blanc, where we got to fill up our water bottles with the mountain water and look at the beautiful scenery.

We then began our descent, which was much more exciting than the ascent. We slid down the steep snowy incline, which was by far the most fun part of the day, but also resulted in most of our clothes and bags being covered in snow. Descending the mountain was much quicker and a lot more enjoyable, as we hopped down the rocky areas whilst appreciating the scenic view around us.

Once we arrived back at the hostel, after enjoying dinner at a restaurant in town centre, we had some free time to enjoy the hot tub and sauna, before turning back to geographical discussion. We discussed human activity in relation to Chamonix, and how sustainable the tourism is in the area. We also enjoyed a debate, led by the Geog-a-Bloggers Ella and Daria, on ‘Will environmental governance in the UK improve after Brexit’, which inspired conversation on how environmental policies are made and managed, as well as how Britain will attempt to strike a balance between environmental sustainability and economic competiveness.

Today may have been exhausting, but was ultimately a beneficial learning experience.

Love,

The Geog a Blog Team





















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