We did this official stage in two halves with an overnight stay in Liddes.
14.km and moderately hard with steep ascents
Part 1: Orsieres to Liddes
We anticipated it would only take 3 hours at most to reach Liddes so instead of setting my alarm for 6 am ready to get fully packed up to meet Russell and Roza at 7 am, we had a lie in!
After a leisurely breakfast in the hotel, some careful packing and even time for a quick selfie, we checked out and departed at 10.00.
We were still incredibly fortunate with warm sunny weather and at 10 am it was around 17 degrees with clear blue sky.
We crossed the River Dranse and headed south, out of the town.
The first section was steep as it took us higher into the mountains but as we followed this wide track of wide hairpin bends it didn’t feel steep at all.
It was really enjoyable walking through the spectacular alpine countryside in perfect walking weather.
As we climbed higher we looked back at panoramic views of Orsieres.
We passed an idyllic log cabin while walking up the mountain track.
Not seen since Sumatra back in May!
Another water fountain with an attractive flower display.
This was the first Rome signpost we had seen on this trip since being in Switzerland.
More lush alpine scenery…
We walked through meadows adjacent to the river and saw warning signs against flash floods caused by water being released by dams higher up.
When we reached a shaded section we removed our packs and had a break for about 15 minutes.
Then went immediately into a steep climb! This short section was tough, especially while carrying a heavy backpack.
*At this point I was glad that I had trained in preparation and my legs were strong enough to haul my weight and an extra stone of backpack directly upwards! I’m also thankful to have purchased the hiking poles which helped too.
*At the end of this trip I’ll publish a ‘preparation and kit list’ type of post.
Once we had completed the steep difficult bit we crossed a bridge high above the river before descending through the forest dropping down closer to the river again.
As we reached the outskirts of Dranse a dog ran up to us with a small branch and dropped it at Chris’s feet. Chris picked it up and hurled it down the road. The dog shot off to retrieve it but rather than return to us for another go, we watched in surprise as it ignored us and trotted happily back to its garden, mission accomplished!
We passed the village of Dranse and immediately began another steep climb.
Shortly after Dranse we arrived at our destination.
We reached Liddes at 1 pm and as our rooms were ready we were able to check in early.
Actually, one of the views from our sunny dual aspect room on the second floor!
By now it was about 25 degrees so Chris and I dropped our packs into our room and had a (German) beer in the bar of restaurant La Channe across the road.
Come and buy your £50 cheese! Yep, after the beer we had a walk around the village and came across a vending machine selling a range of yogurts and different types and sizes of cheese, including a large one for 55 Swiss Francs, or about £50!
We called into the church in search of a VF pilgrim stamp. We were not disappointed and not only was a stamp available but we were warmly welcomed with a lovely message!
As my previous ‘Road to Rome’ Via Francigena passport was full, before this trip I had pre-ordered one each for Chris and I from Canterbury Cathedral, the official start of the entire 2000 mile ancient pilgrim route to Rome.
We found a small shop and feeling a bit peckish we purchased some snacks and took them back to our room to eat.
Not the most exciting lunch but it reminded us of times spent during our 2016 year of backpacking. Sometimes, in expensive countries (such as Hawaii or New Zealand) we would purchase room snacks or supermarket salads to save on meals out!
This evening Chris and I made a return visit to ‘La Channe’ where the 4 of us had dinner – pizza this time!
Part 2: Liddes to Bourg-Saint-Pierre
With less than 2 hours of walking this morning we left our Liddes hotel at 10.00 am.
The weather was cloudier today and about 5 degrees less than yesterday which ensured our walking was very comfortable.
Although we gained height during this section much of it was along a grassy trail which was easy and comfortable under your feet.
Walking past huge scented pine trees.
We saw many beehives in Switzerland.
In the winter this entire area would be covered in snow and today we walked past the bottom of a ski lift.
This sign shows we had climbed an elevation of around 300 m since leaving Liddes.
Loretta is a tiny hamlet just before Bourg-Saint-Pierre.
Bourg-Saint-Pierre is the last village before the Great Saint Bernard Pass.
We arrived at the auberge (pilgrim hostel) at midday and were able to check into our rooms early.
We obtained our pilgrim stamps in the Bourg-Saint-Pierre church. The bell tower dates back to the 11th century.
And there is a Roman mile marker which is from the 4th century and demonstrates evidence of 2000 years of the history of travellers and pilgrims!
Many wild flowers covered the grassy pastures.
There wasn’t too much to do in Bourg-Saint-Pierre so Chris and I walked around the quiet village and had a drink and shared some fries in a nearby hotel.
The sun was shining for the afternoon and with our early arrival this was an opportunity to do some more washing.
Actually, throughout the week I’ve generally hand washed the days’ clothes each afternoon and with the exception of socks, my super lightweight walking trousers and tee shirts are dry enough to wear the next day.
Socks however are easy to deal with as I’ve simply pinned them to my backpack to finish drying the following morning!
Tonight we had dinner in the Auberge Les Charmettes. We all agreed we would need a decent meal tonight ready for the tough climb to the Great Saint Bernard Pass ahead of us tomorrow.
I ordered what I anticipated to be a chunky regional speciality soup filled with fresh root vegetables, macaroni and topped with a handful of local cheese.
What arrived was a watery green liquid that resembled a packet soup. This was accompanied by chunks of cheese balanced on the plate around the edge. I had to ask for some bread just to make it a little more substantial.
I don’t want to remember this negative experience of the worst meal of the trip especially when it cost 16 Swiss francs (£14.61). Thankfully all other meals so far have been excellent.
VF characters
During our multi day hikes we always meet people and often the same ones unexpectedly re-appear!
One such fellow pilgrim was an older lady from northern France who we first met on day 2. We met her again having breakfast in the Martigny youth hostel. We hadn’t seen her for a couple of days but we bumped into her at the auberge in Bourg-Saint-Pierre.
We exchanged our customary stories, and she explained she lives near Arras in France which is close to the VF. Like us, she has done several stages although mostly in France. This time she had left her husband behind and is doing sections, booking a couple of days ahead towards Rome.
This is easier if you don’t have a fixed flight and job to go back to as you can’t guarantee a room for the night with limited accommodation.
We repeatedly bumped into a friendly Aussie man with a dodgy knee. Like us, he started in Lausanne and was making his way through Switzerland.
And there was the Aussie couple we met in the Martigny hostel who were guiding themselves on the Tour de Mont Blanc, another well known Swiss trail.
Summary
As aluded to, sometimes the location of overnight stays are dependent on the availability of accommodation which generally needs to be booked many months in advance, especially when you are in a group of 4 or more.
While we could have easily done this stage in one day rather than two, this did give us two days of half walking and half resting in preparation for a couple of tough days ahead.
And below is the Google translate from French to English of the warm VF pilgrim welcome:
frombluetogreen.com 