Up at 6.15am, having been awake since 4.30am clicking refresh on the BBC app as England played Mexico in the last 16 of the World Cup over there.
As I tuned into it (no video allowed when abroad), we were down to 10 men and Kane then scored a penalty to make it 3-1. They got a penalty almost immediately afterwards and then it was backs against the wall for the last 20 minutes. No way I should have been staying up for it, but it was intoxicating and somehow we managed to hold on and defend the lead and win. So, along with Norway beating Brazil, we now play them in the quarter-finals on Saturday night, which should be good.
Anyway, enough of that – we're here to hike the TMB... Tour du Mont Blanc!
Down for breakfast at 6.30am with everyone, plenty of nervous chatter, and then we left whatever luggage we didn't need at the hotel as we'll be back again in a week. Team photo done and then we were off.
Bus to Les Houches and then onto the gondola up the mountainside. Last checks and then we were on our way.
The first part was a comfortable hike downhill through woodland terrain, eventually coming down to a rickety wooden bridge over the glacial torrent. Decent photo opportunity and then, once over the bridge, we embarked on a slow, long incline through the hills towards what's known as the saddle.
There were plenty of stops along the way as Manu pointed out flowers, fauna and various stories of interest. As time went on the group got a bit stretched out, but it was fine – it was obvious what the trail was, so nobody was going to get lost or left behind.
For this first part I was admittedly a bit slow, but I was stopping to take in the scenery, which you have to do every now and then. That's what we're walking through these mountains for, and the scenery didn't disappoint. It's spectacular and breathtaking.
You can take as many photos or videos as you want, but they're never going to do justice to the scale and scope of the surroundings. Being there, dwarfed by these mountains and ice and water that's been here for so long, is a great experience. You just need to soak it all in, while still remembering to look at the ground so you don't trip over tree roots or loose stones!
We had a 15-minute break at the saddle and then started on our way down the slope to a "village" at the foot of the valley. It wasn't really a village, more like five chalets and a bar!
The hike down the mountainside was quite tough. The stones were often loose and the gradient meant a tough workout for the knees and thighs. Quite quickly our snake of 11 people had broken up and I stayed at the back to help with the stragglers, as going downhill I feel fine with.
Soon it became apparent that Kathy, the Canadian lady who hadn't done any training, was struggling quite badly and tiring quickly. Before long the pace of me, Mary-Lou, her friend, and Kathy became painfully slow. She slipped a few times, lost confidence, went dizzy and had to keep stopping. She didn't even have any snacks, so I was sharing my jelly beans with her to give her some energy.
By now we were left a long way behind and people were passing us. I messaged Tash and Steve saying not to worry, but they didn't see their phones. I even offered to carry Kathy's bag at one point. I would have had to wear it on my chest, but I realised I'd not be able to see my footing, so was quietly relieved when she said no!
Anyway, we made it to the bottom after over an hour. When you looked back at what we'd just done, you could see why it had taken so long – it was a very steep slope. Thank God we weren't walking up it.
Kathy made quite an entrance when arriving at the meeting point as she fell down quite dramatically. Manu didn't seem too phased by it!
Managed to get a few decent photos of the group on the way, so I was pleased with that.
We had a brief stop behind the "village", topping up our water from the mountain spring, which was lovely and cool, and then we were off again.
This time I moved ahead and let the three Canadians work together, and we set off upwards again for about 45 minutes to a plateau where we had lunch at the picture-postcard cabin at Le Truc, overlooking the mountains in the distance.
We had an hour there, so it was nice to relax for a bit and have some good food before getting back on the move.
Now it was downhill again for an hour or so to Les Contamines. We kept taking it in turns to lead – no agreement, just the natural rhythm of the group – and we made it to our destination in time for a bus trip at 4.30pm.
We needed this bus to remain on schedule and there was a group of kids from the US with all their gear, but we weren't going to be left behind and all squeezed in like sardines in the stifling heat.
Got to our final starting point and, after a quick chat about the Notre Dame church there with its baroque carvings, we set off again for the last hour of the day.
This was through woodland again and it was uphill, causing quite a sweat, but we plodded on in what was becoming little groups – Maysie, Tash, Mary-Lou and Victor, sometimes Ching, me in the middle on my own or Melinda nearby, then Tong, Ang and Kathy with Manu moving between us.
Eventually we made it to the refuge. It looked like a typical wood cabin/lodge, with people relaxing outside looking over the mountainside. We sorted ourselves out, found our rooms and got showered and changed.
Once sorted, we relaxed outside for a bit and had a pint. Manu shared out some cheese with us all and explained that it was tax-free cheese, along with the story of how the farmers and monks worked together to produce it.
Then dinner. The food was really good and very typically French – more cheese, bread and vegetable soup, followed by potato gratin with sausage and finally apple pie. It all went down very well indeed.
We had a quick chat outside where Manu explained what tomorrow involved, and we all looked at each other and basically said, "We're knackered. We're going to bed!"
It was 8.30pm.
I've stayed up another hour typing this and the guy in the opposite bed is snoring like a trooper. Thank God for earplugs, although the rumbling is still getting through! It's going to be a long night.
What a day. It's been fantastic.
Hoping not to ache too much in the morning. We'll find out in nine hours, as breakfast is at 6.30am.
Thoughts/notes on the hostel
You have to leave your bags and boots downstairs, understandably because of the smell but also because of bed bugs. Yep! Having the bags in the room runs the risk of transferring them. We have a bed liner, basically a very slim sleeping bag and pillow case, to combat them. It makes me itch just thinking about it. Really hope there's nothing in it. We'll see.
There are three dorms/rooms, about seven people in each.
Phones can be charged in the hallway.
There's a lot of trust going on here.
Everything else about it seems fine – hot shower and all that.
Just fingers crossed that in the morning I'm not itching and covered in bites... will I actually get any sleep?!?
End of day summary
What a first day on the TMB. An early start made even earlier by staying up for England's dramatic win over Mexico, followed by a full day of hiking through some absolutely spectacular scenery. The first proper descent was harder than expected, particularly with loose stones and steep ground, and I ended up helping Kathy along with Mary-Lou after she started struggling badly. It slowed us down considerably, but we eventually made it down and regrouped.
From there it was lunch at Le Truc, more climbing and descending, a very hot bus ride and then the final uphill section to the refuge. By the time we arrived everyone was shattered, but the food, beer and atmosphere were excellent and it felt like a proper first day of the adventure.
The scenery has already been incredible and it's only Day 1. Physically, I feel okay at the moment, although tomorrow morning will tell us more! The only slight concern is the dormitory, the snoring and the thought of bloody bed bugs... fingers crossed for a decent night's sleep.
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