After getting down to Plan de l’Aiguille from Aiguille du Midi, instead of going back down to Chamonix directly, I went to Lac Bleu then hiked the Grand Balcon Nord (Great North Balcony) to Montenvers above the Mer de Glace glacier.
At the beginning of summer, I went to Chamonix to visit Aiguille du Midi, a mountain next to Mont Blanc and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the area: It can easily be accessed by cable car from the valley and, with the highest viewing platform located at the 3842m summit, it offers the best view on the Mont Blanc, the surrounding glaciers and the Chamonix valley.
At the beginning of summer, I went on a hike to Chalets de Charbonnière and Chalets de Varan, above Passy.
Last summer, I went on a hike to Mont Clocher and Mont de Vorès, in the Beaufortain mountains.
Last summer, I went on a hike to Le Brévent, Lac du Brévent and Aiguillette des Houches, above Chamonix.
During summer, I went on a hike to Aiguille Croche and Mont Joly, in the Beaufortain mountains above Saint-Gervais.
At the end of the summer of last year, I went on a hike to Col d’Anterne and Lac de Pormenaz, in the Giffre mountains not far from the Mont Blanc. I basically followed this itinerary (in the other direction).
Last summer, I went on a hike near Chamonix to the Baraque Forestière des Rognes, a tiny emergency hut located between the much bigger Refuge de Tête Rousse, where most mountaineers stop on their way to the summit of Mont Blanc, and Nid d’Aigle, a hut at the terminus of Tramway du Mont Blanc. I followed this trail direction (except I started and ended at the Bellevue cable car station): Sentier des Rognes on the way up and a path along Glacier de Bionnassay on the way down.
The hike from Plan de la Lai to Ville des Glaciers was one of the best hikes I did this summer. It starts at the Refuge du Plan de la Lai, between Beaufort and Bourg Saint-Maurice, in the Beaufortain. It then goes through the Refuge de la Croix du Bonhomme, a usual stop on the Tour du Beaufourtain, then continues to Col des Fours, before finally going down to the Vallée des Glaciers. I basically followed this itinerary (with map), with a detour to Rocher du Vent and the Roches Merles at the beginning and through the Têtes Nord and Sud des Fours near Col des Fours.
