Chamonix Activity Review: 30th July 2013

Despite the fact that the Petit version of the race is 12km shorter than the Marathon du Mont Blanc it felt way more brutal and took me a whopping 57 minutes longer to complete! The course is challenging to say the least; the trails are steep, the terrain is tough but the scenery is stunning. As a hiking route it is still hard work but much more enjoyable when you give yourself time to stop and take it all in. All the refuges along the way were staffed with lovely volunteers who kept our spirits up with food, drinks and good humour. You can find maps of the trail and details of the refuges here, if you are thinking of hiking all/part of the route this summer then be sure to book your refuge accommodation in advance, they get busy!

The event has 2 races on the same day, the Petit 30km and the Grand 60km, both starting and finishing at Plaine Joux above Passy. Big congratulations to everyone who took part - I can testify that it wasn't easy, particularly on such a scorching hot day! Which is why I am feeling far too broken to even consider shaking a leg to all the great live music that will be playing in Chamonix over the next few days - or I could just man the fluff up and get on with it...

The festival has already officially started with a concert up at the Emosson Dam on Sunday with the Erik Truffaz Quartet, the first time that they have included the dam in the festival programme and I can imagine it would have been a spectacular venue with great acoustics. The full line-up kicks off tomorrow with free concerts in the centre of Chamonix, in Chamonix Sud Village, in Les Houches, up all the lift-accessible mountains and in many of the bars and restaurants in the valley.

Artists from all around the world will be playing a wide range of music alongside local singers/musicians, with the emphasis on jazz in all its various forms. However, there's also a bit of rock, pop and funk thrown in there for good measure! You can find the full schedule here. The mountain concerts take place at Brevent on Wednesday (11am), Grands Montets on Thursday (11am), Mer de Glace on Friday (1pm and 2pm), Le Tour on Saturday (11am and at 2pm) and Planpraz Brevent on Sunday (11am and 2pm) - you can either hike up for free or buy a lift pass, there is no charge for the concerts themselves.

A new addition to the programme is the addition of a new stage in Chamonix Sud, near the Aiguille du Midi lift station. There will be live music every evening with an outdoor bar and BBQ; where else can you listen to a Bulgarian gypsy folk band, a French/Swedish jazz quartet and a multicultural soulful hip-hoppy rocky funky trip-hop 5 piece band in the same place?!

I guess I'm going to have to get my leg muscles back in action - I've got some dancing to do...

All upcoming events can be found on our What's On Calendar.