Chamonix 1: The Valley
The Chamonix valley runs from north-east to south-east, and is watered by the river Arve, which springs from Le Tour. The Arve is joined by the torrent l'Arveyron, which springs from the magnificent Mer de Glace just above Chamonix. On the south-east. towers the snow-dressed chain of Mont Blanc, and on the north-west the less imposing, but still very rugged chain of Le Brévent (2525m) and of the Aiguilles Rouges. Small villages huddle along in the cozy valley; they all belong to the Chamonix commune, including Les Bossons (1012m), Les Praz (1060m), Argentiere (1252m) and Le Tour (1462m). The valley is connected via the Col de Montets (1461m) to Martigny (Switzerland) in the Rhône Valley.
The Vallée Blanche glacier runs down from the Aiguille du Midi mountain - attached to Mont Blanc - to the town.
The winter Olympics in 1924 were held in Chamonix.
Two interesting facts: the valley was first discovered in 1091 and from the 60s of the last century, each year it has been visited by 5 million tourists.
Chamonix 2: Skiing opportunities
The lifts located in the bottom of the valley give access to blue and green ski runs. The ski run complexes accessible from the valley are:
Le Savoy - it is an easy piste at the foot of Brevent. Usually it is maintained with artificial snow. It has two tows - Le Savoy and La Samaran. It is a very good place for beginners and for children.
Les Chosalets - another ski run for beginners, situated 500 metres from the cable car in Argentiere.
La Vormaine is the biggest piste for beginners and it also has an enormous playground for children; it is well-protected from wind, and is ideal for any conditions.
Les Planards - this is an all-year-round leisure park, equipped with 2 green runs, 1 blue and 1 red one.
Generally, in the Chamonix valley, there are ten areas for ski, namely: Aiguille de Midi, Brevent-Flegere, Montenvers, Les Planards, Grands Montets, Les Bossons, Tramway Mont-Blanc, Monte-Bianco -Palud, Domeine de Balme and Les Houches. Of these, only Tramway Mont-Blanc and Les Houches don't offer green and blue ski runs.
For the cross-country skiers there are 2 well-groomed trails - one in Argentiere and one from centre of Chamonix to the village of Les Bois. (it is good to know that pedestrians are allowed only in the yellow-marked trails.)
Chamonix 3: Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc, also known as the "White Lady" (La Dame Blanche) or "The European Everest" is the highest peak in Western Europe - rising at about 4810 m. Part of the mountain is in France, part of it - in Italy, but France claims the ownership of the peak itself. There is a strange fact about Mont Blanc - its height varies in different years, because of changing snow fall and climatic conditions. Completed in 1965, the famous 11.6-kilometer Mont Blanc Tunnel goes through the mountain and is of the major trans-Alpine transport routes. This mountain is bed to numerous glaciers. The "Glacier des Bossons" and the glacier "D'Argentiere" can be seen streaming slowly down Mont Blanc's cliffs and crags; the Mer de Glace is the largest of these.