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Les Alpes Maritimes - from Saint-Etienne-de-Tinée to Monaco
All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware. -- Martin Buber Click and drag on map above to see area around trail. Click here for large zoomable map. Now that the high Alps are behind you, you might expect the hiking to become easier… but you would be wrong: except for the last ten days, there are no easy sections of the H2H! The air may not be quite as thin, but the days and distances are just as long, and although the mountains and passes are not so high, the total amount of ascent and descent each day is comparable to what you have done so far. You now head down to the Mediterranean, through a drier, browner (by now it is the end of summer), and increasingly more populated country. The rarified pleasures of empty, glaciated landscapes will be gradually replaced by the scents, history and cuisine of Provence. And with the bustling, glittering city-state of Monaco at the end, this will be another thoroughly enjoyable section. This will also probably be the section in which you have the keenest feeling of accomplishment... for it is when you will reach the goal of almost every other Alpine crossing: the sea. And although not the ultimate goal of the H2H, it is the most important of the intermediate goals. But because I'm a contrarian, always disinclined to go with the flow, I can't help but ask: what next? The rest of the H2H to St.-Rémy, yes, but that just defers the question: what then? Other long hikes, perhaps even more difficult than the H2H? OK, but what next then? Sooner or later you will have done the longest hike you will ever do... and then what? Perhaps what I'm really asking is: why are you doing this? Some of my answers are here, yours will differ, but there will be one answer that will be the same for all of us: for memories. Because that's what we will be left with after all the pleasure and pain is over and we are back in our arm-chairs gazing out of the window... memories. And here's the rub: most of us don't remember things very well. When I think back to long hikes I did ten or twenty years ago, I find that I can remember a few isolated images, some vague feelings, and general information about the hikes... but not most of what made the hikes special. That's why several years ago I started keeping a journal during each long hike, and then writing up a detailed trip report afterwards, when I had more time and energy but while the memories were still fresh. The hikes for which I have trip reports are those for which I still have clear memories: when I reread those reports, it is as if I relive the hikes, and my memories of them are reinforced and rejuvenated. I plan to take the same approach with the H2H in order to be able to still remember and enjoy it decades from now... how about you? Stages
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H2H: The House to House Hike
