WONDERFUL TIGNES

CHAPELLE SAINT-GUÉRIN –> TIGNES 2100

VIA ALPINA DAY 59 – WEDNESDAY 19 AUGUST 2026

DISTANCE HIKED: 17.0  km
ELEVATION GAIN: 510 m

TOTAL DISTANCE HIKED: 1,491.83 km
TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN: 79, 068 m

I lay awake for some time in the middle of the night, staring at the stars and the glacier. The stars above me just didn’t have the sparkle I’m used to seeing in the night sky.  Lots of rambling thoughts about grief and loss were keeping me awake. What kind of legacy do we leave behind when we die?

Maybe it was being near a small mountain chapel, surrounded by this grand cathedral of nature, that got me thinking about what it means to live a good life and how that might be manifested in our everyday lives.

At some stage I fell asleep again, only to wake hoping it wasn’t 5am so I could sleep a little longer. It was quarter past five. Startled, I woke Hammer and we started breaking camp. By 6am we were on our way.

The plan was to hike to Tignes 1800, get something to eat and then catch a free shuttle to the larger Tignes 2100. Our hope was that my phone charge would last until we got there. We did have a backup—Hammer’s phone, which he only uses when he has Wi-Fi. It has all the maps, so at least we could get ourselves out of trouble if needed.

Our campsite by the Chapelle Saint-Guérin was not far from a cable car station, which we walked past early this morning. It was deserted, but I could imagine what it must be like in winter. We were on a well-made trail and really enjoyed the quiet of the morning, especially watching the sunrise illuminate the glacier.

We had no food left, so we were really looking forward to reaching the store. We walked through several small hamlets—some totally derelict, some with houses undergoing renovation, and some derelict houses with “For Sale” signs. We shared the path with bike riders, although we passed no hikers or mountain bikers this morning.

Being in such a steep valley, it was a long time before the sun reached us. Once we were in the sunshine, it felt warmer on our skin than it had for the last couple of weeks, when humidity at lower elevations had been more of an issue. We really felt like we were heading towards the Mediterranean.

As we moved closer to Tignes 1800, and before we started descending, we had an uninterrupted view of the Glacier de la Savinaz, with waterfalls of glacial melt streaming down the mountainside.

Tignes was chosen as the site of a dam to supply power to France in the 1960’s. The old town was flooded and several new towns were created, each given the name Tignes along with the elevation at which it was founded. It is now one of France’s premier ski destinations, joined with nearby Val d’Isère. Together they provide around 300km of ski runs.

Every 10 years the lake behind the dam is drained for maintenance and the old town reappears. What an amazing thing that would be to witness.

We descended off the trail to Tignes 1550. The dam wall and the steep mountains dominated the view. We knew it was a couple of hundred metres of elevation gain before reaching the store. We were on a road, with not much traffic, and in full sun.

Such a relief to reach the Spar store—our first store since we left Champex-Lac. We got sandwiches, cold drinks, pastry and coffee, and we were restored.

We also met up with Clément, whom we had met on Col de Mont yesterday. He was with his hiking partner, Renee, from the US. Both are heading to Monaco on a similar finishing timeline to ours.

As we were in dire need of a solution to our charging problem, we caught the shuttle bus to the much larger Tignes 2100, where we had booked a hotel room. The bus took 30 minutes, bypassing 5km of trail and 350m of climbing.

Tignes 2100 is a full-on ski town. Mind-blowing after our quiet start by the mountain chapel this morning.

The shuttle stopped at the Tourist Office, so I said to Hammer, “Let’s go inside and ask where we might be able to buy a UK-to-European converter plug.”

And the universe provided again.

The very friendly tourist officer said, “I think I have one that was left behind.”  Five minutes later, our charging problem was solved.

The universe continued to provide when the super-helpful hotel concierge took pity on us and found us a room ready for an early check-in. By 1pm, we were clean, fed and feeling restored.

What is there not to love about France?