Tour du Mont Blanc

In July 2018, I tackled the uber-famous Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) as a warm-up for the also-famous Walker’s Haute Route (WHR). Though I planned to do it solo, I linked up with another hiker on day 1, SpiceRack, who ended up being an awesome partner for the entire trail and then the Haute Route.

I started in Champex in Switzerland, then we hiked clockwise to Argentière, France. Here, SpiceRack and I were joined by my good friends Gryllz and Alamo for the final days of the TMB. The section from Argentière to Champex is also the beginning of the aforementioned Haute Route, so the first three days of their trek overlapped with the TMB’s grand finish.

But it was really just the start. Not only did the adventure continue until the whole crew made it to the Haute Route’s terminus in Zermatt, 11 days later, but my life was undeniably and profoundly impacted. It wasn’t just the mountains, laughs, and thunderstorms that knocked me off-kilter, but something deliriously powerful and bigger than Mont Blanc or the Matterhorn.

What happened next was beyond my wildest dreams. SpiceRack and I have since hiked over 6,000 miles together, including the Continental Divide Trail, Sierra High Route, and much of the Eastern Continental Trail. And it all started here, in Switzerland, next to the gnomes.

Daily blog posts are below, along with my photo album. Bon voyage!

A pretty awesome view on day 9 of the TMB, which was also day 1 of the Haute Route.

What’s your style?

The TMB was definitely a hike for days. Around 10+. Though we did it in the “American” backpacking style (wild camping outside, carrying our food, cooking for ourselves), one of the great benefits of hiking in the Alps is the access to warm food and beds as one hikes past mountain huts and through villages. In 2025, SpiceRack and I returned to the Alps with my family to experience the TMB this “other” way. With a self-guided itinerary, booked a year in advance, we slept inside every night and ate a hot meal at least twice a day.

If the idea of planning your own TMB hike (or any other in Europe) feels overwhelming, I get it. It’s one thing to camp as we did in 2018 (and it’s actually really easy), but booking huts and hotels is complex. While possible to do yourself, I’m glad someone did it for us in 2025. If you want to sleep inside (or arrange baggage transfers so you can carry less during each day), hiring the professionals is a great option.

For this, Alpenventures Unguided is my recommendation. They have multiple self-guided TMB itineraries to choose from, including 14 and 11-day complete circumnavigations, as well as quicker 5, 6, 7, and 8-day versions. Additionally, they offer lots of other European treks like the Walker’s Haute Route. Ultimately, getting out there is the most important thing. Dirtbag it like we did in 2018, or splurge on the cheese course every night (yep, that’s a thing). The Alps are awesome and absolutely worth the effort. As always, if you have any questions about any of this, please feel free to contact me.