Tiring of crowds we chose a blank spot on the map (literally) and ended up in a place almost to beautiful to believe. Ailefroide is a tiny village at the end of the road and is situated within one of the nine National Parks in France, Ècrins National Park. If you have time, check it out on Google Earth, as well as Camping Ailefroide On the web. For the past two days I have been wondering how I would compare it to Yosemite and I have to say it is Yosemite's more beautiful sister, if that is even possible. We are camped in a glacially carved valley with mountains rising thousands of feet all around us. We are free to camp and have a campfire anywhere we want within a 20 acre area of woods, meadows and streams. There are no rangers with guns and ticket books, signs saying no (fill in the blank), no corporate concessionaire, no mobs of tourists or any of the signs of being a National Park except the occasional gentle reminder to treat the place nicely. There are young rock climbers, hikers of all ages, happy families, older couples like us and one is greeted everywhere with a happy "Bonjour!". This will be another one of those hard to leave places but we intend to stay a few more days to prolong the ecstasy of the mountains bring. There are fresh baguettes and pastries in the little store every morning along with fresh fruits and vegetables of which we have enjoyed many, and a couple of little restaurants should we want more than camp cooking.
The hiking is nothing short of awesome. Think Alaska, Glacier National Park and Yosemite all rolled into one and you will begin to get the picture. We took an all day hike and "mountaineered" up to Refuge Sèlè. The last section of trail was aided with cables, not Bobbies favorite, and was not for the faint hearted. If one dared to look down, terra firma was 500 feet straight down just past your toes. The Refuge's access is so difficult it is supplied by helicopter drops to the roof.
French drivers are very courteous if compared to the Italian drivers. As far as driving goes, it is a pleasure to have crossed the border into France. The autostrada drive into and out of Genoa, Italy, was one of the most harrowing yet. We came to countless toll booths but thankfully they were all manned by humans. If you are considering driving here your vehicle must be in excellent condition. Traffic is fast and roads are narrow, often with no shoulder. Tunnels can be over 1Km long and breaking down inside of one would truly be a nightmare.
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