Chamonix - Mont Blanc, France

View of Mont Blanc from Chamonix

Three Brave Souls ~ Aiguille du Midi, France

The Alps have always intrigued me. I will never forget the first time I flew over the Alps as a teenager, mesmerized by their vastness and beauty. Having the opportunity to visit this area was an incredible experience.

Since we are not skiers, visiting in the fall was perfect. The colors were amazing, the crowds were small, and the weather could not have been better. Of course, one of the highlights of our time there was taking the cable car up the North Face of the Aiguille du Midi. This ride not only gives a great view of Chamonix and the surrounding valley, but also takes you as close as you can get to Mont Blanc without needing gear and a lot of training.



Many adventure seekers ride the cable car to the top and then begin their own excursion. These three appear to have done just that. Others, including my husband, choose to begin their journey at the halfway point, well below the snow line, where a challenging trail leads you back to town.

While this photo almost looks like a black and white photo, it is truly a color photo. Since we traveled to Aiguille du Midi in the morning, the sun was positioned perfectly to provide the contrast and shadows on the varying ridges and figures. The blue photo below was taken after the sun had a chance to move slightly higher in the sky. Zooming in a bit on the figures also allowed the camera to find more of the light to show the blue tint of the snow and ice and the detail of the ridge behind.

As we frequently say when traveling ~ we did not have enough time in the Alps.

But how fortunate we were to have this experience.






http://www.hotelgustavia.eu/en

http://www.chamonix.com/

http://www.chamonix.net/