Tour du Mont Blanc Current Conditions June 2015

After a very mild winter with not a lot of snow and warm spring there is no better time to experience the Tour du Mont Blanc. Due to early summer conditions accommodation has opened early and the trails are open.

We have our first self guided clients arriving this week so in preparation I have carried out a couple of day recce’s in two of the key parts of the trek, the Col du Bonhomme and the Grand Col Ferret to see for myself what trail conditions are like. There is snow above 2000m but it is passable with care. There are groups out doing the route so the snow patches have been well trodden. Although the snow is soft it is advisable to take walking poles to aid balance & give you stability whilst walking on the snow.

Col du Bonhomme: Continual snow unto the col from about 2150m, snow on the traverse between the Col du Bonhomme & the Col du Crox du Bonhomme, take care whilst traversing as a slip could send you down the slopes into the rocks below.

Grand Col du Ferret: Minimal snow on the Italian side apart from the last section, quite an amount of snow on the Swiss side but the terrain is at an easy angle so it should be easy to cross.

Where there are large snow patches and navigation could be difficult in bad weather they have put wooden stakes with dayglow markings on. If you have bad visibility follow these markers in addition to using your map & compass.

Most other days and area are free of snow, It is advisable to go via Bovine from Champex to Trient rather than Fenetre d’arpmtte where there will be a lot of snow and the terrain is very steep therefore a fall or slip could be serious.

For more information on the services and trekking holidays we offer see our website: www.montblanctreks.com

Sara Haley, UIMLA guide & owner of Mont Blanc Treks

Excellent time to take an Alps walking holiday, thanks to strong pound

Would you like to go on an Alps walking holiday, with Mont Blanc Treks? If so, you’ll be pleased to learn that it’s now far more affordable to do so, because the pound to euro exchange rate has hit a 7-year high. To be specific, sterling recently touched 1.4256 against Europe’s common currency, its strongest since November 7th 2007.

What this means for you is that, when you exchange currencies to go walking in the Alps, you’ll get far more euros than in the recent past. For example, if you exchange £2,500 to spend a fortnight in the Alps, you’ll now get +€560 more than if you’d done so back at the start of 2014, when the pound was far weaker.

In other words, that’s +€560 extra sitting in your pocket, at no additional cost to you, just because the exchange rate has risen! With that sort of money, you could extend your Alps walking holiday by a day or two, splash out, in brief really make the most of Mont Blanc Trek's range of activities!

Moreover, it could soon become even better value to take a walking holiday in the Alps, if sterling climbs higher versus the euro. The pound could exceed this 7-year high, first, if Greece exits the Eurozone, as looks entirely possible. Second, the pound may also continue to climb, because the UK economy is easily outpacing the Eurozone’s.

With this in mind, make the most of this advantageous exchange rate, and book your walking holiday in the Alps!

By Peter Lavelle

Pure FX

http://www.purefx.co.uk

+44 (0) 1494 671800

peter.lavelle@purefx.co.uk

Summer trekking in the Alps 2015

After a very easy winter in terms of snowfall and low temperatures and a very warm spring so far this year we are set for a trouble free start to the season.

This was the winter that never really happened after a disastrous Christmas with no snow it finally arrived in time for New Year. With very sparse snowfall during the rest of the season this years skiing wasn't the best.

And then for the spring... Amazingly warm with temperatures in April of 20 degrees in the Chamonix valley it felt more like summer.

This all spells good news for our forthcoming summer season as it means the snow on the high ground will clear quickly making the Tour du Mont Blanc easily accessible in June and the Walkers Haute Route from Chamonix to Zermatt doable in early July.

We offer a wide range of guided & self guided options for the Tour du Mont Blanc, Walkers Haute Route & Gran Paradiso from June to the end of September. For more information see www.montblanctreks.com