I had dreamt about an epic first day and oh yes, I have got myself one. Pilgrims leave early, so this morning I woke up at 6h30. The morning air was fresh and cool. I had a nice breakfast with Caat and then drove to my starting point in Saint Jean d'Aulps. Some of our Alikats friends came as well which was amazing. Thank you Rachelle, Rod and Tiff. Rod put the first stamp in my passport. Yesterday, I had asked for a stamp in the Morzine tourist office, but the lady refused. Sorry, I can't do that, it is an official stamp. So what? I have an official pilgrims passport. Do you think I'm going to come back saying: look at the stamp, I own Morzine now. I couldn't convince her. At 9h, it was really time to go. Caat went for a yoga class at Lake Montriond which was on my route. So I would see her again after my first 5 kilometers. First I followed a path along a river. There I got immediately company from horse flies, as annoying as normal flies but these ones bite, even through your tshirt. Thank you deet! The climb towards the lake was in full sunshine, amazing but hot. The roads were busy due to the arrival of the Tour de France in Morzine today. But I was heading away from the hustle and bustle. Lake Montriond is a stunning place. I'm so happy that I have got the chance to say goodbye to Caat here. Very grateful as well that she supports all my crazy adventures. As she drove away in our camper, I realised it was just me, my backpack and more than 1000km now. The path next to the lake went very steep uphill. I didn't expect that it would have been so difficult for me. Looking back, I probably underestimated the heat and the altitude. I took it easy, heat stroke is a real risk on these days. Luckily the path levelled out after 50min. It took me along hamlets like le latay and la maison neuve. These are often only a couple of chalets where nobody lives permanently. By 13h, I was ready for my big climb to get to an altitude of 1800m. Only 15min into the climb, I was surprised by thunder. On my phone, I saw a thunderstorm coming. Climbing higher could put my life in danger and I didn't want to get soaking wet. So I decided to put safety first and descend again towards a couple of chalets. I found shelter under the porch of one of them. Time for lunch. It rained very hard for 20min, but nothing more. So looking back, I didn't need to come down boehoe! Around 14h, I climbed back to where I came from and higher. Once above the trees, the views where stunning. I could see the whole valley including Lindarets village and Avoriaz. But it was tough! The heat of the sun was intense and the horse flies kept circling me. No complaints though, I loved every minute. Around 16h, I reached the highest point. I probably looked like I fell in a swimming pool, but I felt like I was the king of the world. After that, the path goes up and down for 30min and ends up at coll de bassachaux. You can drive up here from Chatel, so suddenly I was surrounded by cars and tourists. But the fun thing is, there is a bar at the top. Whatever the price, I wanted a cool drink. The view over lake montriond deep below made it perfect. Time to go down. And it was a long way down. I had to descend almost 700 meters. Tough on the knees after a long day. A wild deer jumped away just in front of me. After a couple of steep switch backs, I arrived at the Chatel bike park. From there, I I could follow the river until the 1861 hostel. I didn't book, because they don't accept bookings for 1 night in weekends. But I thought, let's ask anyway. And yes, I got myself a bed in a 14bed dorm room. The shower was heaven. On top of that, there was a food truck in front selling burgers. Life has never been better. I sat down at the river next to the hostel for a while before going to bed. And yes, I will sleep well. Everybody can snore, I won't hear. My first kilometers are done and except for being tired, I feel fine. Let's do some more tomorrow!
0 Comments
One more day before I take off on foot to Rome. I'm no longer counting days, but hours. This is so exciting! Thank you for all your support messages, it means a lot to me. I'm so grateful that I can make my dream happen. But I would like to do more. I would also like to make the dream of a very sick child come true. It's not something I can do on my own, but we might be able to do it together. The make a wish foundation fulfills the dreams of children with a life threatening illness. They do incredible things, but they can't do it without financial support. Let's step in and help. I will walk 1136 kilometers to Rome. I would like to raise 1 euro for every kilometer I will walk. Wanna help? That would be amazing. Check out this link for donations: https://www.inactievoormakeawish.be/fundraisers/dimitri-lanssens The Make a Wish foundation can't tell us at the moment for what wish the money will be used, but they will let us know afterwards. If you donate, you will exactly know what difference you have made. \n I have spent the last two days with Caat on a campsite in Saint-Jean-d'Aulps next to Morzine. The weather has been brilliant. We took the time to relax and catch up with friends. I gave my backpack a final inspection, but all my gear is ready. My legs got the chance to rest, so they are burning to get started tomorrow. The plan was to start tomorrow morning at 8h30 at the Morzine tourist office. But there is a little problem. Tomorrow, the Tour de France arrives in Morzine and it will almost be impossible to reach the center of the village without being stuck in traffic jams and huge crowds. Not really the peaceful quiet start I had in mind for my pilgrimage. Making my first stage shorter is not an option. I really want to walk every kilometer. So I have come up with plan B.\n Tomorrow morning at 8h30, I will take off from Saint-Jean-d'Aulps. That allows me to walk exactly the same distance without getting stuck in road blocks or being hit by cyclists. Rodrigo, an amazing Belgian guy who works for the St Jean tourist office will put the first stamp in my passport just before I start walking. And there is more. Today, we have found an apartment where we will live as from October and it is in St Jean. So leaving from there couldn't be more symbolic. Tomorrow, they announce very hot weather and there a risk of big thunderstorms. So I'm in for a tough first hike. But that's how I like it. Let's go for it! We have left Belgium! Nothing better than to start an epic adventure with a roadtrip through France. Some people tend to rush to get to their holiday destination as fast as possible. We prefer to take our time. Holiday starts when you close the door of your house. I have made it a challenge to find cool spots close to the highway where we can spend the night. Forget about Mont St Michel or the Eiffel tower. Go for the marais of Biache Saint Vaast. This lake is situated just south of Lille. If you can reach it. We arrived around midnight, but got stuck 150 meters before the parking because of road works. Boehoe! We gave up, spend the night on the parking of a supermarket nearby and tried again in the morning. Then we found another acces road so we could have breakfast surrounded by water, ducks and birds.
Afterwards, we drove further south to end up in Lons le Saunier. Where? C'mon, you should know this place. It is the hometown of La vache qui rit. There is even a museum with lots of cheese and cows. We stopped at a nice campsite where we had the swimming pool to ourselves. We thought we were in for a very quiet peaceful night, but we forgot it was wednesday. Then the elderly French come together for their karaoke night. It was loud, but it was fun. Tomorrow, we will arrive in Morzine. Only 48h later, my hiking adventure will begin. My pilgrims passport is ready. The Belgian Via Francigena association has already put a first stamp. Collecting stamps on the way is a tradition. You should get at least one every day, mostly of the place where you spend the night. It is a nice souvenir and it allows you to proof the distance you have walked when you arrive in Rome. Some accommodation options on the route also ask for a pilgrims passport and don't allow you access without one. I can't wait to get more stamps! What a special feeling when I woke up this morning. This was the last time I will have spent in my bed in Ghent for a long time. It is time to hike and to hike a lot. They say all roads lead to Rome. But how do these trails look like? Who is walking them and why? Time to find out! Tonight I will start driving to Morzine from where I will begin my 1136km hike to Rome. Caat will come with me to Morzine. Nothing better than having the most important person in your life next to you at the beginning of such a challenge.
What I have been doing over the last weeks? On June 30th, I did my last day at work for now and said goodbye to my wonderful FCM colleagues for a while. They have all been very supportive which is just great! Since then, I have been very busy. I have been planning this adventure for months and still there is always lots to do in these last days. There is also a bit of stress involved which is normal I think. Being extra careful not to get injured or sick. Checking my backpack over and over again to make sure nothing has been forgotten. My backpack weighs 12kg. It has taken me months to make this happen. This is all I will have for two months. If you know that the backpack itself weighs 1,5kg, 2 liters of water weighs 2kg and I also have to take a tent, mattress and sleeping bag on top of everything else; then you can image that every gram counts. For those interested, I will share my packing list in the days to come. Every object has been put on a kitchen scale to make sure it's not too heavy. My first day on the Via Francigena will be Saterday. Then I will also start my fundraising for Make a Wish. If I can make my dream happen, we can all together make the dream of a sick child happen. How beautiful would that be! All information can still be found on www.dimiwalkstorome.com In a meanwhile, several friends have confirmed that they will join me for some time on the trail. Over 25 people will come to Rome to celebrate my arrival and my birthday. I'm so grateful, thank you so much. Everybody is still welcome, just contact me! Let the hiking magic begin! But first I have to clean our house before I go... |
AuthorMy name is Dimitri and I'm turning 40 in 2023. Through the years, I have tried to live my dreams. Everything is possible, the sky is the limit as long as you believe in your dreams and work hard to make them happen. Do what you never did before. Go where you have never been before. It will be scary, but it will also be worth it! Archives
July 2024
Categories |