The plan was to go from le Desert over col de Cote Belle to Valsenestre but we had been troubled for a few days by the prospect of a bad forecast for the following day. Anyway, up we went, above the stream & then zigzagging up, in the upper part on much wider zigzags than shown on the map, presumably a new path, to the col. Descent began below slate formations, variously known as the organ pipes or the bookshelves, which appeared quite unstable in places and exposed above steep eroded slate cliffs below. Sight of the next col, the Col de la Muzelle, ahead was unnerving. It appeared to be vertical black shale & the thought of doing it in the poor weather forecast tomorrow was rather worrying. As we zigzagged down through trees, we both seemed to have the same thought, that we might miss out the overnight in Valsenestre & go straight over this second col today, 'a monster day' according to the guidebook. Conviction grew that this was the only sensible option & we tried & failed to phone or text the gite in Valsenestre.
So, up we went, together with 2 men we had met on the Col de Cote Belle who we later learned were having the same thoughts. In fact we left them for dead as Margaret led steadily & efficiently up the valley, past barking pastous to the foot of the shale where I took over. Well, it wasn't vertical as it had looked but you certainly wouldn't stop if you fell, up a path cut into the slate. But it went steadily on and in under 3 hours we reached the col & were relieved to find that the north side looked much easier. And so it was, down to Lac de la Muzelle & the friendly guardienne who teased us 'Mais vous arrive aujourd'hui' but promised dinner & phoned the gite. The refuge was not busy at this end of season & she was preparing to leave in the next days, including flying out her chickens by helicopter.
