180km Hiking The Epic Tour du Mont Blanc ⛰️ (Part 3)

180km Hiking The Epic Tour du Mont Blanc ⛰️ (Part 3)

For the next 9 days, I’m attempting one of the 
most iconic hikes on Earth. No need to worry. No need to panic. This is the tour de Mont Blanc. 
180 km circling Europe’s tallest mountain. This very second is one of the best moments of my life. 
My journey begins here in a small French village not far from Shaman. And the hike will take me 
across three separate countries, France, Italy, and Switzerland. [Music] Have you ever seen 
such a beautiful morning in all of your life? Along the way, I’ll face over 10,000 
m of elevation, scorching summer heat, sudden alpine storms, and the mental 
battle of putting one foot in front of the other day after day with the hopes 
and dreams of finishing this epic hike. The TMBB is just pure magic. This is 
going to be an emotional roller coaster. and I’d love for you to join me. [Music] Right, let’s begin. [Music] Hello everyone. Welcome back to the TMB. 
This is the final part of our hike. We are leaving Switzerland this morning and we’ve got quite 
the adventure going up a mountain. There’s some scrambling involved, some bouldering. It’s going 
to be very, very steep, a little bit dangerous, but it’s going to be incredibly beautiful. It’s 
one of those variants that is only accessible   in good weather, but we’re forecast for decent 
weather, so we’re going to give it a go. Although, there’s about 200 people who stayed here last 
night, and only about three or four of us are doing the variant today. So maybe that’s a sign 
that it’s a stupid idea. But you know, if you don’t risk it, you’ll never get the biscuit. I’m 
just going to say goodbye to a few of my friends   that I’ve seen multiple times on the TMBB, but 
we’ve just figured out that this will be the last time we see each other. One of the best things 
about doing the TMB, even alone like I am, is it’s so social. Every night you’re in a different 
refuge with 50 to 100 people having dinner, playing cards, having a drink, and sharing stories 
of the trail. So you’re never alone. Right guys, it’s been the pleasure. Good to meet you, mate. 
Take care, gentlemen. Yeah. And uh Yes. Take care, man. Great to meet you, man. Yeah, you too. Yeah. 
The previous night at dinner, I’d met these two young strapping lads. One 18-year-old from the 
UK who’s doing the TMB completely on his own, even though he’s still a teenager. Bless him. 
And a 23-year-old from America. Even though   he was young, he has loads of experience. and he 
was a ex-professional footballer, ex-professional ballet dancer, just an allrounder. So at dinner, 
we all thought, let’s stick together. Let’s do this dodgy, difficult variant as a team. In case 
one of us gets into trouble, there’ll at least be two more people around to help us get out of any 
sticky situation. The boulder section has begun. Oo, it feels good to get onto a little bit more of 
an advanced trail and get off onto a variant. Bit cloudy still, so let’s hope it’s clearer at the 
top. Even the people at the refuge had told us, “Be careful. Make sure you know what you’re doing 
because they know.” Lots of people who come up   here underestimate it and get into quite a bit of 
mischief. It’s good to get off the trail though, isn’t it? Yeah. It’s It’s excellent fun. You 
can see it’s gonna go up and up and up. I’m bleeding. I don’t know how. So, these markers 
are the trail for us now. You can see them painted on the sides of rocks up and around. 
The trail has now just become a rocky mess. This is the bit that uh I think most people 
are put off by because if you were up here   in high winds and in the rain, it would 
be uh quite silly. Now, I’m pushing 40, so trying to keep up with an 18-year-old 
and a 23-year-old was quite the challenge,   but I did my best to keep up with them as 
we scrambled and clambored over these rocks. Go. High five. Yeah. [Music] Maybe not. [Music] This is by far and away the most 
difficult and steepest part. You know,   that scramble across the rocks there, that 
was pretty pretty sketchy. I hope you can see this on camera. It’s like that. And yeah, 
this was definitely the hardest scrambling, the hardest hiking I’ve ever done. 
Coming up here was a challenge and I   was really glad that I wasn’t alone. Just 
that’s the top. My car saw absolute fire. If this was wet and slippy, all this 
mud would be coming away. there’d be a lot more rocks falling down. We just had a 
really scary moment where he kicked a rock and it started running down the hill and he 
shouted at us and we we saw it coming. A big   rock flying towards us and we ducked down and 
it flew over our heads. Very very fortunate. Almost there, lads. Almost. Last push. Yeah, just 
up over this edge would be the highest point of the variant, and we would have finished this 
brutal, this difficult climb in these freezing conditions up here at well over 2,600 m. 
Normally, any hike where you gain 1,000 m of elevation is really difficult, but doing 
it in less than 90 minutes, it felt like it   was practically vertical the entire time. But 
hey, we had made it. All right, welcome to the top of the Varian. We made it all the way. It’s 
a pity that there isn’t any view, but what can you do? The mountains can be temperamental. 
2,600 m up here. This is the highest point, and we’ve been scrambling now for best part of an 
hour. It was tricky. I did get the drone up for, but uh wasn’t the best footage in this fog. up 
here. As you can imagine, it’s quite bitter. So, we’ve got layers on. There’s a few other people 
here who are having their lunch. And uh we have   to scramble all the way down into the next village 
of Triant. High five, buddy. Good job. Let’s go, guys. It’s clearing up just as we’ve come down 
the summit. Look. Oh, there’s a lake over there. What a beautiful world. [Music] Yeah, we were so lucky. Just as we 
were coming down from the summit,   the clouds and the fog cleared, revealing the 
beautiful glacia that we had been scrambling and climbing right next to. Hence why 
it had been so cold up there. [Music] I hope the French guys got to see 
this. They looked freezing. [Music] Of course, it was difficult coming down, 
but with these views and the fact that   we can now see properly where we were 
going, this descent was just beautiful and fun. And yeah, we just had the best 
time coming down this valley. [Music] By early afternoon, we had made it down the 
variant and back onto the TMB itself. And it was beautiful. Wow. And eventually we arrived 
at Triant, the home for the night. And I was struggling at this point. Trying to keep up 
with those two lads had certainly taken its   toll. I was completely knackered. This was my 
refuge for tonight. A beautiful hotel, actually. But the second I put my head 
down for a little nap, I did   not wake back up until the following 
day. I was that knackered. [Music] Good morning. Welcome to day eight. Day eight of 
the TMBB. I am shattered, but I’m feeling better now. I’m leaving very late. It’s 9:00 in the 
morning. Everyone at the hotel left at 7:00. I just didn’t feel like getting up and at them 
today. Oops. Daisy. No, I’m okay. Thank you. Oh, she nearly wanted to pick me up. Bless her. Give 
me a Give me a ride. Because what I’m going to   do is I I’m actually instead of going up this 
mountain and then down to go up another mountain, I’m just going to go around today. It’s 14 
km um around instead of 7 km up and down. So, I’m adding distance, but it’s going to be 
relatively flat. and I just don’t feel like doing a big climb first thing in the morning 
after yesterday and a very very poor sleep. So, long story short, I’m gonna add distance 
by going around this mountain because I’ve got to climb up a very steep section 
later and I want to save my energy. Yeah, the plan was a 14 km detour to save 
energy. You would only ever say this on the TMBB. My biggest surprise for this 
morning’s session actually was   even though I was following the main 
road, because this is Switzerland, the path for pedestrians is actually 
quite the route for adventure. Okay, in typical Swiss style, this has surprised 
me. So, yes, we’re walking along the side of the road and then quickly going under the road, 
alongside the road, but actually most of it is like this. I can hear the road. I can’t see 
it, but we’re going through the valley and we’re still doing elevation up and down, up and down. 
But it’s so beautiful. Can you hear the road? So, this boring little walk has actually turned 
into a little side quest and I’m thoroughly enjoying thoroughly enjoying being on my own. 
It’s been great the past few days. It’s been quite social hiking with the boys, hiking with other 
people. Lots of communal breakfastes, lots of communal dinners, lots of chitchat, talking about 
the trail, talking about where you come from, what   do you do, where do you live? It’s nice to just 
have no one around. Not a soul to hear, to talk to, or to annoy me. One thing I’ve learned on this 
hike, guys, especially staying in that hotel last night. Not everybody does the whole loop, and most 
people don’t. Most people do half three through quarters or they do the whole thing but they use 
buses. They use cable cars and they try to do it in 5 days and they skip large sections. Some tour 
companies do the best of. So you might do 5 day hikes and you don’t really overexert yourself. 
It’s kind of like a vacation, a hiking vacation. But, you know, that’s one thing I’ve learned. 
I thought everybody would be doing the whole thing on foot. Not many people do. Not many 
people do. Look, this is what I was talking about. They’ve got these little metal wires that 
they’ve engineered up into the rock to help you get up. This is actually quite the adventure. I 
thought this would be a a cheeky little shortcut. in terms of uh up and down, but 
it’s turning into quite the ordeal. Yeah, it had been a pleasant morning and it spat 
me out on the train tracks heading back through into France now to the beginning of the difficult 
variant that I had chosen today. Hence why I decided to do this 14 km detour just to save some 
energy. We were going to need it for what’s coming up. Okay, so we’ve made it to the proper section. 
We’re back on the TMBB on an alternative or a variant, I should say. Only on the TMBB would you 
do a 14 km, 3 and 1/2 hour detour to save energy. So, this trail will take us up onto a plateau 
where there are several lakes and my refugeio, but it will be very steep, over 1,000 m 
in elevation. Over the next 2 to 3 hours, we’re going to a place called Lake LeBlanc, 
I think. And on the sign there, it’s 2 hours 45 minutes. And I think what I’m going to do, 
actually, is just have a little bit of lunch. I did nip into a little pub along the way. So, 
I’ll have my little croissant. I have my little pineapple juice squashed in my bag. So, the reason 
why people do this variant, it’s not technically on the TMB, right, is because there are some very 
scenic ladders that are bolted into the side of a cliff and it just adds a new experience 
and something quite thrilling to the TMB. It seems as though we’re soon to approach the 
ladder section. It’s starting to get very, very steep. So, let’s just prepare. Okay, 
here we are at the ladder section. Now, there are three ladders straight away. So, 
that’s the first three to count straight   away. A small one, a long one, a medium one. 
So, let’s do the first three and we’ll count them out together so we can uh learn how many 
ladders are there. Let’s start with number one. Nice and easy. And here’s the beginning of 
number two. Mojour ladder number two. Now, these aren’t like any ladders in Thailand. 
They’re bolted into the rock. Look at that. Proper good engineering. No 
need to worry. No need to panic. [Music] Easy. Easy peasy. Ladder number four. Look how big this one 
is. No, it’s just a few steps. We’re going to count this one. This is ladder number 
five. Very cute little ladder. Obviously, if you’re afraid of heights, don’t 
come up here. I had the number six. You can balance, but you can 
lean on this. Number seven. I think he’s starting to understand 
why I wanted to save my strength   today. This fell looks like he’s on 
a day climb. I’ll let him go first. I think that was seven. 8 n 10. [Music]
[Music] Okay. 11. We won’t count these. But I love these 
little steps. They’re very good. Very handy. How fun was that? Look at this. 
We’re still not even at the top yet. Down there is a village and down 
there is Shamine. We’re nearly there, guys. This time tomorrow. Oh, we’re nearly 
finished. That was another highlight. The TMB, by the way, just never stops, does it? 
It never stops. I’ll see you at the top. [Music] [Music] Okay, we made it to the top. There’s a little 
monument here and there uninterrupted views across the mastiff. There’s Mount Blancc. 
Now we’re seeing her from the backside. I can say her backside is 
just as lovely as the front. Yes, safe to say I was knackered. A long 
morning session and then a difficult ascent and the ladders. I was so glad to be up 
here on the plateau. Up here there are four or five small lakes and they are just 
absolutely beautiful. You’ll see eagles, you’ll see marmmets, you might even see mountain 
goats up here. But by far the best reason to come   up here is just the incredible views and the 
reflections in the water of the mastiff itself. [Music] You’ll see lots of dayhikers 
from Shaman up here because it’s quite accessible. There’s a chair lift not too 
far away. And with these views and these   lakes and the distant mountains, especially on 
a day like today, it was busy, but oh my god, what a beautiful site. Definitely one of 
the highlights of the TMB. And if you’re in Shamine and you’re just looking for a 
day hike, come up here. Look at it. [Music] Almost there. That’s where we’re 
staying. Can you believe it? There’s the refuge, Lanc. There’s the 
lake, Lap Blanc. This is our playground for this evening. Not bad views. 
Probably understatement of the year. [Music]   Hey. [Music] Okie dokie. Welcome to the final refuge of 
the trip. And uh quite an interesting refuge. So big room with bunk beds. I’ve chosen 
one. We’re all kind of squashed in there, so it’ll be quite interesting. Let’s 
hope there’s no snorers tonight. Um   the other interesting aspect is there’s 
no shower up here. Absolutely no shower. So hoping that we don’t smell too 
bad. This is the outside area. Is that music? Oh, that is 
music. How weird. As you can see, quite the view. They’ve got cold beers, but no 
cold shower, unfortunately. Dinner’s at 7:00, breakfast at 7:00. So, this is us tonight. 
No Wi-Fi, no showers. Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] Okay, good morning. And quite the sunrise we’ve 
had up here this morning. I watched the first half from my bed because there was a view of 
a window. Now I’ve come out here and uh oh my god it is I mean look at it. Have you ever seen 
such a beautiful morning in all of your life? Today is the last day of the TMBB. It’s day 
nine. Woo. Back to Louch. Back to the start point. Back to that sign that we saw 9 days ago 
when we set off. and we will complete the loop and we will finish the TMBB. Let’s have some 
breakfast. Let’s have a lazy morning up here. Enjoy the views and then we’ll get cracking. Even 
on day nine, the TMB just doesn’t stop. [Music] Looks like two females and a baby 
because the male has huge horns. This is awesome. That’s it. [Music] Beautiful. I finally got to see them in the wild on 
the last day. It’s amazing how the weather can change on a dime here because after that 
beautiful sunrise, a little bit of breakfast, it has worsened quite significantly. Lots of 
rain on the big peaks and forecasted storms. So, I am covered up. It is a bit nippy up here. 
So, let’s just take one last look at the view. I’m sure we’re going to have lovely views on the 
way down, but this would be the last time we can   really enjoy it because obviously on the way 
down, you’re checking your feet, making sure not to slip and fall. It would be a disaster. It 
would be a shame to get injured on the last day. So, let’s just take our time. And look at the mastiff one last time 
uninterrupted from this incredible view point on this rock. Storms are due late 
afternoon. So let’s just uh let’s not linger. This has been without doubt, and I’m not saying 
this just to say it, but the best hike I have ever done, bar none. And it’s also been the hardest 
hike. I mean, we’ve done 10,000 m of elevation. That’s like climbing Mount Everest and another 
oneird of Everest in nine days, which is no mean feat. Just another one of the epic views here. And 
do you know what? I normally would never say this, right? But we’re about to finish and all I want 
to do is carry on. Like I would I’d love to do it again. I would love to reach Louch. Don’t get 
me wrong, I’d love a shower in my own bed for   a night cuz that’s probably the hardest thing 
is like the constant staying in a dorm room cuz physically it’s such a challenge, but for me it’s 
like you know there’s people snoring, it’s you’re quite claustrophobic every night. That’s the only 
big struggle other than the physical challenge. I have never felt stronger. If you remember on day 
one, I was in a big mess. I was going up that hill and I was thinking I’m not going to be able to do 
this. I just felt so out of shape and and that’s   quite normal on a big hike to feel out of shape 
on day one. It is a bit of a shock to the system, but I I felt sluggish. But with each day, I grew 
stronger. My legs didn’t grow weary. They grew in strength. And here on day nine, I’ve never felt 
better. My back just feels ripped. My legs are not sore. They’re strong. My feet are not aching. 
They’re primed. I would honestly love nothing more than just to do it all again. But yeah, let 
me just leave you with some some scenes as we go down and then we’ll finish the entire video and 
the series down by the the final point in Lahouch. [Music]   Never underestimate the TMB. 
I thought it would be easy, but no. That is where we were hours ago. And 
I thought we’d be in the tree line by now, but it’s taking us back up. I don’t 
know where we’re going, but the TMBB, the easy day, ain’t so easy. They’ve even 
got us climbing ladders on the final stretch. Only on the TMBB do you climb the equivalent of 
Ben Nevice, the tallest mountain in the UK in Scotland. Right. Only on the TMBB would you climb 
Ben Nevice on the way down. Bloody hell. [Music] Do not ask me where I got the 
energy to run the last 3K. I mean, I’m just just jogging it, but I just feel Yeah, I don’t know where I got the energy from, 
but towards the end of the day when I was 3 or   4 km away from Lahouch, away from the finish 
line, I got this sudden urge to start running Big finish. TMBB. Yeah. Completed it, mate. All right, we have two ice cold beers. 0.0 uh 
on deck with a little bit of ice. Don’t hate me, but that’s how we do it here uh in Asia. even 
though we’re in France. Right, let’s actually um go over the distance and figure out exactly 
how far we walked doing the TMBB. Right, I’m going to do this live on my fitness 
app. This is the thing that’s been tracking   my steps and my distance today. Well, every 
day in my pocket. So, day one on a Wednesday, we did 20.6 km. That’s the day I thought I 
was going to quit. Then on Thursday 13.18k Friday 20.82 km Saturday 21.3 km Sunday 23.53 
km Monday 24.58 Tuesday easy day that day 14.78 yesterday Wednesday 21.07 km and today 
the final day it was a bloody old slog 23.42 42 km. And um you can see as well on each one 
of those days the activity line. So you can see which like like we were hiking from 6 till 
like four most days pretty much. It were big days. And I’ve gone to the little um I’ve gone 
to the trouble of screenshotting. It was 183.28 kilometers. 183 we did. Everyone will 
be slightly different. Some will do 170, some will do 190. We did 183 
and we also did 290,000 steps. Cheers, big ears. Thank you so much for joining 
me on the TMB. It was absolutely incredible and I wish I could do it again. But someone’s got to 
go back to Thailand and have some adventures.

👉 I booked my TMB hike with Adventure Base – use code PADDYDOYLETMB for discounts: https://adventurebase.com/journal/paddy-doyle-tackles-the-tmb/

The Tour du Mont Blanc is over 180km through France, Italy, and Switzerland, I explore breathtaking mountain trails, picturesque alpine villages, and stunning glaciers. In this multi-part series, I share the challenges, highlights, and unforgettable moments from this world-famous trek. Whether you’re an experienced hiker or planning your first long-distance hike, this series is packed with tips, gear insights, and real experiences to inspire your own TMB adventure.

Join me on an epic adventure across Europe’s most iconic hike – the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB)! Over 180km through France, Italy, and Switzerland, I explore breathtaking mountain trails, picturesque alpine villages, and stunning glaciers. In this multi-part series, I share the challenges, highlights, and unforgettable moments from this world-famous trek. Whether you’re an experienced hiker or planning your first long-distance hike, this series is packed with tips, gear insights, and real experiences to inspire your own TMB adventure.

From climbing steep passes to wandering through quaint villages, the Tour du Mont Blanc offers a unique mix of natural beauty and cultural charm. In each episode, I cover the trail routes, scenic viewpoints, accommodation options, and local food discoveries along the way. Follow along as I navigate unpredictable weather, meet fellow hikers, and capture every jaw-dropping panorama with cinematic footage. This series is your ultimate guide for hiking the Tour du Mont Blanc in 9 days.

If you love mountain hiking, adventure travel, Europe trekking guides, and bucket-list experiences, this TMB series is for you. Don’t forget to subscribe for all 4 parts of the journey and hit the notification bell so you won’t miss the next episode. Join me as I take on one of the world’s most beautiful and challenging hiking trails and uncover everything you need to know to plan your own Tour du Mont Blanc adventure.

Chapters:
00:00 – 1:28 – Introduction
1:29 – Crazy High Variant
9:24 – My Long Cut Idea…
14:00 – The Ladders
18:33 – The Lakes
22:24 – Tricky Last Day
30:12 – Conclusions

✈️ Where I get my TRAVEL INSURANCE 👉 – https://safetywing.com/?referenceID=24896498&utm_source=24896498&utm_medium=Ambassador

🧳 Need an itinerary for your trip to Thailand?
the THAI TRAILBLAZER Itinerary – https://tinyurl.com/j4p5m9z7
the SOUTHERN SUNTAN Itinerary – https://tinyurl.com/2dzdtr7n
the NORTHERN MONKEY Itinerary – https://tinyurl.com/38jmb4xk
🧳 These itineraries are perfect for a 2 – 4 week trip!

🇹🇭 My Southern Thailand Guide – https://tinyurl.com/82r9hnv7
🇹🇭 My Northern Thailand Guide – https://tinyurl.com/4wrzmsar
🇹🇭 The COMBO North+South Thailand Guide – https://tinyurl.com/3k24dtmm

Get the COMPLETE 🇻🇳 Vietnam Motorbike Tour Guide here 👉 – https://paddy-doyle-merch.creator-spring.com/listing/vietnam-travel-guide-2022?product=1227

🎥 LEARN YouTube with me – – – https://tinyurl.com/ypeh2nmn
✅ — HOW TO FILM video for YouTube
✅ — HOW TO EDIT video for YouTube
✅ — HOW TO UPLOAD & YouTube Masterclass
✅ — 💲 💲 Get a $100 discount code here – https://tinyurl.com/yb349upz

✈️ Cool TRAVEL products I recommend (with discounts) – –
⭐ Get $$ OFF your eSIM card with Airalo (code: PADDY3) – https://www.airalo.com/?code=PADDY3
☞ Stay safe online with Nord VPN – https://nordvpn.com/paddydoyle
☞ Build a Website with Squarespace – http://www.squarespace.com/paddydoyle
☞ Download Klook and use the code PADDYDOYLE at checkout for exclusive discounts.

👉 Ways To Support Paddy Doyle –

🤙🏻JOIN my Patron Production Team
🔗 https://www.patreon.com/paddydoyle

✅ Get 1 on 1 Help on Your Own YouTube Channel (Production CEO Tier)
https://www.patreon.com/paddydoyle?fan_landing=true&view_as=public

☝🏻 UNLOCK the next episode RIGHT NOW by becoming a channel member
🔗 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU1wi0E8d98o0KTaOGJbieg/join

💕 Contribute Directly
🔗 https://tinyurl.com/uuyvnfql

💪🏼 Support the Channel Here –
🔗 https://www.buymeacoffee.com/paddydoyle

🙋🏻 Get Next Level Adventures MERCH
🔗 https://paddy-doyle-merch.creator-spring.com

🔔 Subscribe here – https://tinyurl.com/5fpytmaf
make sure to hit the 🔔 notifications bell 🔔 and never miss an adventure!

🎧 Where I get my music (FREE TRIAL) – https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/o1nwys

#PaddyDoyle #travel #adventure #TMB #tourdumontblanc