Solo, clockwise TMB in 10 days
Last week I completed the TMB going clockwise, hiking solo. Sharing my route and some reflections for anyone thinking of going clockwise, especially since I found so few resources online to help plan.
Context: I’m 43F and while reasonably fit, this was the first multi-day hike I’d ever done, and I don’t live near any hikes that come close to the type of terrain I encountered on the TMB. Suffice to say this trail kicked my ass and I found it incredibly challenging and humbling.
I stayed in refuges and a few hotels along the way and tried to book private rooms wherever possible, and succeeded about half the time. My favorite refuges were Cabane du Combal, Refuge des Mottets, and Refuge Nant Borrant, and Hotel Mont-Lac was an incredible proper hotel experience (but $$$).
My route and trail notes:
Day 1: Brevent (took cable car up from Chamonix) to Lac Blanc
Refuge: Refuge Lac Blanc
This was a good start to the hike, not covering too much ground while giving me a good crash course on the terrain I would be dealing with. Refuge Lac Blanc was basic, but great, and the views are unmatched.
Day 2: Refuge Lac Blanc to Trient
Refuge: Hotel du Col de la Forclaz
This day was a total failure and I almost quit the entire hike. Due to a mapping error (more on that below), I ended up spending way too much time doing an incredibly challenging, steep descent from Lac Blanc (started at 8 AM and got to Tre-Le-Champ at 1:00) and still had another 1000m ascent and 1000m descent ahead of me. I didn't have my trail legs yet and knew there was no way I could do that before they gave my bed away at 6p, so I decided to have a nice long lunch at Auberge la Boerne, regroup, and take a taxi (about 60 EU) to Trient. (I'll note that I think I could have gotten from Tre-Le-Champ to Trient by taking 3 buses, but it was a Sunday and the schedules were tight/too risky.) I also injured myself on this incredibly long, steep descent more than I realized at the time. More on that later too.
I was very lucky to have such a bad day where I was, because taking a taxi would just not have been possible for much of the rest of the trail. I am also grateful to my dining companions that night who suggested I start my days much earlier--7 at the latest--and that helped me a TON for the rest of the hike.
This refuge was basic, but good! Highlight for me was the tofu curry (vegetarian entree) and French fries at dinner.
Day 3: Trient to Champex-Lac
Hotel: Hotel Mont-Lac
This was an incredible day where I regained my confidence. I know a lot of people skip parts of the Switzerland sections, but I really cannot imagine not having done them! The terrain was milder, more dirt paths and less loose rocks, and it was just a nice change of scenery and pace. There was more shade as well. I had a life-changing omelet at Le Bovine.
I cannot say enough good things about Hotel Mont-Lac. It was a splurge, but I had an apartment with a private patio with a lakeview, and the restaurant was incredible. I think I chose this spot based on prior Reddit reviews--the eggplant lasagna was truly memorable, as was the apricot tart dessert. Staff was super friendly as well.
Day 4: Champex-Lac to La Fouly
Refuge: Hotel Edelweiss
A gorgeous day on the trail that wound through lots of forests and across streams; also the day that goes through adorable Swiss hamlets. Again, I cannot imagine skipping this section! There is the most delightful creperie on this stage too, which I highly recommend stopping at.
Hotel Edelweiss was nice and I had a private room and bathroom. The vegetarian options at dinner were hearty. There is also a small grocery story in La Fouly where I was able to replenish electolytes, sunscreen, etc.
This was the day I realized just how badly I had injured my toe on Day 2. At the time, I decided to wrap it and just keep going.
Day 5: La Fouly to Bonatti
A long and tough day, especially because it ended in a steep and seemingly never-ending ascent to Bonatti in full sun. I stopped at Rifugio Elena for lunch and highly recommend the blackberry tart.
Bonatti was crowded and was more of a hostel vibe than the other refuges, especially with the "4 minute" shower token that was definitely not more than 2. But the food was great and, of course, the views were incredible.
Day 6: Bonatti to Bertone
This was my version of a "rest day," just a couple hours on the trail without any major ascents or descents. I thought I had booked a private room at Bertone, but the room had a bunk bed and I had a bunkmate for the night. Not a problem at all, just something to know when booking.
Day 7: Bertone to Cabane du Combal
This day began with a long and steep descent into Courmayeur; I opted for the Dolonne cable car and I'm glad I did. There was a lot of construction on the route at this point and I don't think I missed much by taking the lift.
I cannot say enough good things about Combal. I shared a room with 3 others, but it was spacious and we had our own bathroom and shower. There were dressers and shelves for our things. The food was incredible, and it just felt more intimate than some of the other refuges.
Day 8: Combal to Refuge des Mottets
This was my second shorter/easier day, but unfortunately didn't feel that way because of my injured toe. This was the day that I had to decide whether to end the hike early or find some other workaround for this injury.
Refuge Mottets was another standout refuge--incredibly charming with great food (best soup on the TMB, plus amazing bread and cheese at dinner), live music at dinner, and this horse in the pasture outside that doesn't even seem real. I had a private room here.
Day 9: Refuge des Mottets to Refuge Nant Borrant
With my injury, my options as far as I could tell were: find a way back to Chamonix from Mottets; or cut a hole in my shoe where my injured toe was rubbing and causing a lot of pain. But then a couple I had run into a few times suggested a third option: I try hiking with one shoe and one sandal.
If you've read this far (thanks!!): THIS WORKED better than it had any right to. I did the last 22 miles (35 km) and 2000m ascent and 2000m descent with one trail runner and one Teva (with hiking sock). And I did the Col du Fours like this. Day 9 was probably my toughest day of all in terms of mileage, elevation gain and loss, and altitude, and I'm so glad I tried the one sandal thing because I don't think I could have completed the hike. The descent from Bonhomme was brutal and I thought it would never end. I stopped at Refuge de la Balme for a very memorable tomato and cheese sandwich. And early in the day, I stopped at the dairy stall in des Glaciers for an amazing piece of cheese that was my reward after climbing the col. Absolutely do not miss this.
Nant Borrant was another standout refuge. Just incredibly charming, with a gorgeous outdoor area to sit and have a beer after your hike. The food was wonderful too: more amazing cheese, soup, and gratin for the vegetarian option.
Day 10: Refuge Nant Borrant to Les Houches
This day was long, but not as hard as the previous day. I didn't end up seeing the shuttle bus at all (was planning on cutting some km off this morning) and got lost just after Les Contamines (completely my fault) and lost about an hour getting back on the trail. Of all the pies and tarts on this hike, the blueberry pie at Refuge du Fioux was the winner. I took the Bellevue cable car down though I think I could have just finished it on foot. I took the bus to Chamonix.
Overall reflections on going clockwise and solo:
These two things are interconnected. While there was a lot I liked about going clockwise, namely having very quiet trails to myself early in the day (I rarely encountered anyone for the first few hours) and in the afternoon, I'm not sure it offset some of the challenges, namely around planning, navigation and troubleshooting. I used Traileasy for navigation and while overall it was a super helpful app/resource, it did have me going off the main trail in many instances (including on Day 2, which lost me a couple of hours). I know the creator of the app is on here and I'm happy to say more over private message; a lot of my navigation issues were due to my inexperience as well.
Not having someone to troubleshoot with made all of this harder, and adding onto that being injured and not really knowing how to handle it was hard. By far the hardest part was from Combal to Borrant, as I had no cell signal and there was no wifi at the refuges, so I was unable to research alternatives, whether cutting into my shoe would work or would backfire, etc. So I was kind of faced with "keep going or find a way to quit" each day.
Overall, as much as I loved doing this hike solo, I would definitely not recommend going clockwise alone unless you are a more experienced hiker. Happy to answer any questions!