TMB Hike Day 8
Trient to Col de Balme
On Tour du Mont day 8 we leave Trient by walking up a gradual hill leading out of the town along a small road. The trail passed Le Peuty which has a campsite for people camping the TMB hike. Walking out of Trient we meet 4 Australians that we have been bumping into since Rifugio Bonatti, we walk with each other until we reach the crossroads of the days 2 stages, they are going the easier route as one of their party is carrying an injury from a fall.
We cut into the woodland trail and the 4 Australians went the longer flatter section. The woodland has carvings of animal sculptures on the side of the trail, which makes for nice distractions as we were climbing sharply but had no views to admire as the trees were very dense.
As we left the wooded section there was a picnic table and seat on the edge of the tree line, this is where we got our first sight of Col de Balme at a height of 2191m in the distance.
After we leave the wooded area we are walking through another meadow on the side of the mountain. After a short stage, we can look behind us and see how much we have climbed and we can even see Trient and Forclaz in the distance.
The climb up to Col de Balme is not overly tough but as you can see Col de Balme Refuge so early on the climb you sometimes feel that you are not making any significant ground while climbing the mountain. Near the end of the climb to Col de Balme, the trail starts to zig-zag up through the mountain passing old derelict buildings.
Top of Col de Balme on the TMB Hike Day 8
The top of Col de Balme was amazing, there were panoramic views, every angle gave a different perspective but when we reached the top there was an extremely large crowd there at the same time. A cable car delivers people to this beautiful spot so bear this in mind when coughing up a lung trying to reach the top, only to see soars of people running around without backpacks on. This didn’t deter us, how could it, we still sat down and had a picnic and soaked it all in. Col du Balme is the border between France and Switzerland and is the scene of historic battles.
We originally wanted to reach Col de Balme and stay the night in the Refuge instead of Trient but we lost time throughout our other 8 days but this seems to have been a godsend. The Refuge on the top of Col du Balme seemed to extremely run down, we went in for some refreshments and they were out of date and very dirty.
Col de Balme to Col des Posettes TMB Hike
Our guidebook gave us 2 options at this point, one for bad weather and the other for good weather. We chose the good weather option (obviously) which brings us over another Col and is quite exposed. We went to the right of the Refuge where there was a broken signpost for TMB Hike, showing the path to follow.
Yep, I do look Dumb when I’m confused.
As the signpost was slightly bent over we walked on with caution until we found another sign. We didn’t have far to walk before we found another signpost, this is one thing that the TMB hike cannot be faulted on. The sheer quantity of signposts on the TMB is amazing and they are placed at every junction that you could possibly require them.
The trail zig-zags back down toward Col des Posettes at 1997m passing under cable cars and beside avalanche fences. You come to a T junction that gives an option to go to Le Tour or continue up over Aig des Posettes.
Aig des Posettes to Tré le Champ TMB hike
From here we start walking up toward Aig des Posettes at 2201m so we need to climb just over 200m. The trail zig-zags up the hill initially and is quite steep but not near as steep as other climbs on the TMB. This section of the hike was very busy but the path was wide enough to accommodate everyone passing each other.
In the above picture, you can count over 20 other backpackers walking in the opposite direction so occasionally you will have to stand in to let groups of people past. The path starts to cut through the middle of rocky areas but on either side of the trail in this section, it is brimming with some of the best views of the hike so far.
It’s easy to see why it is not recommended to hike this section when the weather conditions are poor. This section of the Tour du mont blanc walks along the top ridge of a mountain and is extremely exposed on both sides with very little shelter.
We reached Aig des Posettes at 2201m, 1 hour 50 minutes after leaving Col de Balme. It was a very nice walk with amazing views of Mont Blanc to our left and the meadows were overflowing with wildflowers, when we turned around we were greeted with a view of a large mountain lake or reservoir. 
Aig des Posettes is well worth the additional climb today and not one to miss by taking the lower route or the cable car if the weather allows it. We took a small break at the top but we didn’t wait around long as there was a chill in the air due to this section being so exposed. We started our decent and it seemed like we were going to walk off the edge of the mountain.
At the edge of the mountain, we reach the top of a forest and we cut down through this fairly quick using zig-zag trails with timber steps installed. This is a very steep section and all the steps can be hard on the legs after walking uphill all day.
Walking into Tré le Champ day 8 TMB Hike
We left Aig des Posettes at 1 pm and reached Tré le Champ at 2:30 pm and that included many quick stops for photos of animals and scenery. Walking into Tré le Champ was like walking into a postcard with Mont Blanc overshadowing the town it looked amazing.
Accommodation at Auberge La Boerne TMB Hike Day 8
Walking into Tré le Champ today we had heard rumours that the Auberge La Boerne was meant to be one of the best on the TMB hike and we should try to stay there. We were also told that it was fully booked and to not even try it but sure we still went in and asked for accommodation and we were super lucky and got the last 2 beds.
Review of Auberge La Boerne on the TMB Hike
This hostel definitely has the greatest amount of character of all the hostels that we stayed in on the TMB hike. It has an amazing garden, the beds are straight out of a film set and are stacked up to the roof 3-4 bunks high and the food was out of this world. The only downside to this hostel was the toilet, there was only 1 toilet for our dormitory and it was right beside the bedroom door, I walked past a number of times and there were 3-4 people queuing outside of it. This was the only negative and it did not affect our stay in this magical hostel.
After dinner, we explored the local area the locals seem to keep the village very well and someone even made a garden of wooden head sculptures.
Impressions of the TMB Hike Day 8
It took us 2:30 minutes to walk from our hostel in Trient to the Col de Balme including stops. The initial part of the walk is nothing amazing in TMB standards but the remaining sections from today stage of the TMB are some of the best stages of the whole walk (so far).
We stayed in Auberge La Boerne, book in advance as this hostel is amazing. It cost us €40 each for half board which included dinner a bed and breakfast.
It took us 6 hours 30 minutes to walk from Trient to Tré le Champ including stops for breaks and photos. We only passed 1 hostel/coffee shop today so bring supplies for lunch and snacks along the way.
Walking advice for Day 8 of the TMB Hike
- Bring lots of supplies as shops on this stage are limited
- Have a backup plan for bad weather, as this stage is very exposed
- Take lots and lots of pictures you sometimes forget the beauty that’s in front of your nose
- Book Auberge La Boerne in advance (it’s worth it)
- Try to get to Auberge La Boerne early as the bottom bunks are the best.
Tour du Mont Blanc Day 8 – Walking time
- You would want to allow 6-7 hours including breaks.
- We started walking out of Trient at 8:00 am and we arrived in Tré le Champ at 14:30.