TMB – Day 0
After a long flight to Geneva, an overnight stay, and a long a van ride, we made it to our first stop, Hotel Saint Antoine in Les Houches.
It is a comfortable little place with good food and cozy rooms, but no air-conditioning. Actually, no hotel had air-conditioning the entire trip. I suppose one would not expect air conditioning in the alps. Summer is likely just a brief gap in winter and gone before you notice. But this summer Europe had a severe heat wave, and it was nearly as hot as late spring in Arizona. Everywhere was hot and sticky, and there was no breeze to move air around the hotel room. The hotel had provided a standing, oscillating fan which helped somewhat. I would later learn that this was a unique amenity, as subsequent hotel staff would appear to act as if my request for a fan was ludicrous.
Les Houches sits at approximately 3000 feet of elevation, which undoubtedly helped somewhat with the heat. The evening cooled off quite a bit so we took a walk through town to find the official start of the hike.
A pair of hikers arrived at the gate around the same time as us. But unlike us, they were carrying full packs and hiking poles and looked worn from the trail, having finished their multi-day circuit that evening. A mild anxiety washed over me while I prepared myself for tomorrow.
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