 The AV1 starts at the magnificent Lago di Braies It is no exaggeration to state that the Dolomites AV1 is one of the world’s most beautiful treks. And it is therefore no surprise to learn that it is also very busy. In a normal year, in July and August, almost every bed in every refuge, gîte and hotel will eventually be booked up and not just by AV1 trekkers: weekenders and day walkers also want to experience this magnificent terrain. Of course, Covid changed the world and 2020 was a very different year. Travelling to the Dolomites was a challenge for those who did not reside in Continental Europe and few English-speaking trekkers have walked this year. Even the number of UK trekkers willing or able to cross the English Channel was very small. Those that did find a way to get to the Dolomites had an overwhelmingly positive experience: walker numbers were far fewer than at any other time in recent years and you could sometimes book accommodation at the last minute. Often people had to move heaven and earth to get there but they were richly rewarded, enjoying an exceptional Alpine ‘honeypot’ without the crowds. Italy had its serious Covid outbreak before other western countries and as a result, it was one of the first to recover. Whilst Covid is still present, it appears that the situation is being kept under control. Those that did trek in 2020 have mostly reported that they felt very safe. The rifugi, by all accounts, handled Covid very well and the sanitary and distancing measures that they put in place seemed to please most.
However, I think that those desperate to walk the AV1 should not put plans completely on hold. The Dolomites trekking season is very short (approximately 10-12 weeks depending on the year). With a popular trek like the AV1, it can be difficult to get the stars to align to get on the trek within this short period. And these days, it is very difficult to plan the AV1 at the last minute if you are not camping. We do not get much notice when governments change rules or when airlines start up flights again. If you have not done some planning and preparation before that happens then you will probably miss out. Those who have already done their homework will be able to move faster. Furthermore, because so many people missed out in 2020, there is going to be massive pent-up demand for the AV1 in the next few years. And the rifugi will probably continue to run at reduced capacity in the next few seasons. Accordingly, AV1 accommodation for the foreseeable future is going to be like gold dust.  An AV1 marker on the route to Rifugio Pramperet So, this is what I think you should do: Plan your itinerary now: buy the guidebooks and maps; work out how many days you want to spend on the trek; design an itinerary that matches your capabilities and vacation schedule; and make a list of the places you want to stay. Take your time. Get yourself into a position to be able to start booking accommodation the moment that you feel it is right to do so. Forget about flights for now: those can be booked later on, if and when, they become available. If they do not become available, then you have not wasted any time: your itinerary planning work will still be good for the following season. Consider booking AV1 accommodation: there are ways of booking accommodation so that it can be cancelled later or moved to future dates. Most of those who booked for 2020, but could not travel, obtained refunds or were permitted to shift their dates to subsequent seasons. If done right, you should not lose any money if you have to cancel or postpone. If booking accommodation independently, choose rifugi/hotels that allow cancellation or amendment. Or book with a self-guided/guided tour company that allows you to cancel or change your dates. In any case, most accommodation requires only small deposits of €15-20 so the risk is not huge. If you start booking in October 2020, then you should get the choice accommodation: private rooms, etc. If you wait until flights open up next year than you may get nothing. If travel is impossible next year then you should have lost nothing more than a little time. On the other hand, if you do not put the work in now then it seems likely that you will miss out with the accommodation operating at such reduced capacity. Please feel free to ask me any questions!
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 Finish the TMB on this incredible balcony below le Brevent It is no exaggeration to state that the Tour du Mont Blanc is exquisite. And it is therefore no surprise to learn that it is also very busy. In a normal year, in July and August, almost every bed in every refuge, gîte and hotel will eventually be booked up and not just by TMB trekkers: weekenders and day walkers also want to experience this magnificent terrain. Of course, Covid changed the world and 2020 was a very different year. Travelling to the Alps was a challenge for those who did not reside in Continental Europe and few English-speaking trekkers have walked this year. Even the number of UK trekkers willing or able to cross the English Channel was very small. Those that did find a way to get to the Chamonix Valley had an overwhelmingly positive experience: walker numbers were far fewer than at any other time in the modern TMB era and you could sometimes book accommodation at the last minute. Often people had to move heaven and earth to get there but they were richly rewarded, enjoying an exceptional Alpine ‘honeypot’ without the crowds. Those that did trek in 2020 have mostly reported that they felt very safe. The refuges, by all accounts, handled Covid very well and the sanitary and distancing measures that they put in place seemed to please most.
But what the hell do I know?! Well, while I cannot profess to be an expert on contagious disease or economics, I do know that the current environment is deterring most people from making travel plans, especially in places like the US where Covid has continued to spread over the summer. Most people will wait for flights actually to open up before starting to plan a trip. There is of course common sense to this: what is the point of planning a trip if there is no way of getting there? However, I think that those desperate to walk the TMB should not put plans completely on hold. The Alpine trekking season is very short (approximately 10-12 weeks depending on the year). With a popular trek like the TMB, it can be difficult to get the stars to align to get on the trek within this short period. And these days, it is almost impossible to plan the TMB at the last minute if you are not camping. We do not get much notice when governments change rules or when airlines start up flights again. If you have not done some planning and preparation before that happens then you will miss out. Furthermore, because so many people missed out in 2020, there is going to be massive pent-up demand for the TMB in the next few years. And the refuges will probably continue to run at reduced capacity in the next few seasons. Accordingly, TMB accommodation for the foreseeable future is going to be like gold dust.  Col de la Croix du Bonhomme on the TMB So, this is what I think you should do:
If travel is impossible next year then you should have lost nothing more than a little time. On the other hand, if you do not put the work in now then it seems likely that you will miss out with the accommodation operating at such reduced capacity. Please feel free to ask me any questions!
Walking Chamonix Mont Blanc
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​The 20 hikes in the Chamonix Valley that need to be on your Bucket List. No fillers. Only must-do hikes are included. ► Real IGN Maps inside: 1:25,000 ► Detailed information on public transport, including cable cars ► Our secret tips on how to get away from the crowds ► Numbered waypoints linking the Real Maps to our clear descriptions ► Graded routes to suit all abilities ► Everything the hiker needs to know: route descriptions, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more ► Information on Wildlife and Plants Our walks have been carefully selected to enable easy access by public transport, including the Chamonix Valley’s incredible cable car network. Chamonix is the most famous mountain town in the world. It is where mountaineering began. ​ Its peerless reputation owes everything to the mighty Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Western Europe: our hikes will take you to the finest viewpoints of the mountain and its glaciers. Walker's Haute Route: Chamonix to Zermatt
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Real maps for each stage: 1:25,000/1:50,000. No need to carry a separate map! Also includes:
Trekking the Dolomites AV1
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Available Now! The only guidebook exclusively for the AV1. Real maps inside (Tabacco 1:25,000): the finest maps available for the Dolomites. ​ Everything you need to know to plan and walk Italy's most popular long distance route. Also includes: Numbered waypoints linking maps to text Unique Itinerary Planner: plan a bespoke itinerary to match your ability and vacation schedule. All difficult calculations of time, distance and altitude gain are done for you 7 Proposed Itineraries of between 6 and 11 days Everything the trekker needs to know to plan the route: route descriptions, costs, budget, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more    Full accommodation listings: spectacularly situated mountain huts Section on Camping Exciting variants to the main route Information for both self-guided and guided trekkers ​ Edge to edge colour: the most modern and beautiful guidebooks Tour of the Ecrins National Park
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Real maps for each stage: 1:25,000. No need to carry a separate map! Complete guidebook for planning and trekking the Tour of the Ecrins National Park. The GR54 is arguably the finest trek in the Alps. Unique Itinerary Planner: plan a bespoke itinerary to match your ability and vacation schedule. All difficult calculations of time, distance and altitude gain are done for you Everything the trekker needs to know: route descriptions, costs, budget, difficulty, weather, how to get there, equipment and more Full accommodation listings: spectacularly situated mountain huts, villages and hamlets Full information on camping ​ Exciting variants to the main route! Tour du Mont Blanc
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Complete guidebook for planning and trekking the Tour du Mont Blanc, the world's most famous trek Real maps for each stage: 1:25,000. No need to carry a separate map! Unique Itinerary Planner: plan a bespoke itinerary to match your ability and vacation schedule. All difficult calculations of time, distance and altitude gain are done for you Everything the trekker needs to know: route descriptions, costs, budget, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more Full accommodation listings: spectacularly situated mountain huts, villages and hamlets Full section on camping: a complete list of camping locations 10 exciting variants to the main route! Information for both self-guided and guided trekkers As an outdoor writer and photographer, I spend a lot of time on the trail. Long days with a fully-laden pack is part of my job so I am constantly looking for products which help me lighten the load, without a reduction in performance. Often one of the heaviest things a backpacker carries is the backpack itself and the differences in weights between products can be large. The very lightest packs are light because they incorporate the lightest products available and these are pared down to the bare minimum. Very light materials tend to be very thin. And very thin material is often not very durable. The holy grail of backpacks is therefore one that is light and durable and still performs well. I have used a lot of packs over the years and have never found the very lightest packs to be very good. Sometimes the straps are too flimsy to be comfortable. Sometimes the material just does not last very long. Well the Zpacks Arc Blast 55 has changed everything for me. Over here in Europe, I had been hearing great things about Zpacks, a US manufacturer, for a few years now. So, I was very keen to get my hands on one of the packs. I chose the Zpacks Arc Blast 55 which has a good reputation in the US as an ultralight option for multi-day treks. Normally, I travel long-distance trails with a 45-litre pack which requires very careful packing to ensure that overnight gear and food fit in. The Arc Blast 55 would give me a little more space and yet at 569g it was still much lighter than 45-50 litre packs from other manufacturers.  Zpacks Arc Blast 55 Backpack on the South Downs Way
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Conclusion The Arc Blast 55 is now my ‘go-to’ pack for long-distance treks. It is easily the lightest pack that I have ever used. In fact, it is almost unbelievably light. Yet I found it to be stable, durable and very comfortable. Unlike most other packs, it is almost completely waterproof. Despite the lightweight construction, it performed extremely well. At $325 it is not cheap but if you like to travel ultralight then it is a price worth paying. But can I not find any faults at all? OK then, I have just one: please Mr Zpacks can we have a whistle on the sternum strap?! Honestly, that is the only fault I can find with this exceptional backpack.
So here is my advice:
Depending upon how events play out and exactly when the refuges open, it is possible that the TMB and AV1 are the quietest they have been in decades. And that is something that I am going to see. NEVER STOP DREAMING!!!
 Last summer I set out to hike the Tour du Mont Blanc again. But this time I was aiming to complete it in less than 7 days. Did I succeed? I tell all in my article: just click on the link below. This article was originally published in TGO magazine in October 2019 
TMB Booking Strategy: Which refuges on the Tour du Mont Blanc get booked up most quickly?21/10/2019 TMB Accommodation ‘Pinch Points’  Refuge du Col de la Croix du Bonhomme on the TMB It is no exaggeration to state that the TMB is exquisite. And it is therefore no surprise to learn that it is also very busy. In July and August almost every bed in every refuge, gîte and hotel will eventually be booked up and not just by TMB trekkers: weekenders and day walkers also want to experience this magnificent terrain. However, some accommodation options on the TMB get booked up more quickly than others: the TMB has ‘pinch points’. What I mean by this is that there are certain places where the available accommodation is massively insufficient for the demand creating booking pressure. For example, there are certain places you will reach at the end of a day’s walking where the subsequent accommodation option is too far away for most people to tag onto an already strenuous day: this means that almost everyone must overnight there. Also, there are certain places which are more popular than others due to the quality of the accommodation or the sheer beauty of the surroundings. By booking well in advance, you can ensure that you get your accommodation of choice. However, it is wise to give the booking of the ‘pinch points’ priority as these will likely fill up first. If you book everything else and then find that you cannot secure accommodation at a ‘pinch point’ then you may have to go back to square one and rebook everything again. Common ‘pinch points’ are as follows (clockwise from the start at les Houches): 1. Refuge de la Croix du Bonhomme (‘RCB’), les Chapieux and Refuge des Mottets (Stage 2c, 2d and 3a): not wanting to push too hard at the start of the trek, most break their first day at les Contamines. This means that the natural stopping point on day 2 is RCB or les Chapieux (14-19km). If you push on from les Chapieux, it is another 6.5km to the next refuge which makes for a very long day. If you cannot get a booking at les Chapieux or RCB then you will probably be faced with one very long day followed by one very short one (or vice versa). Accordingly, these two places often get booked up very quickly. Refuge des Mottets takes the overflow and so it can be hard to secure too. Try to get this section booked as a priority as very long days can be problematic near the start of a trek when you are not yet ‘battle hardened’. 2. Rifugio Walter Bonatti (Stage 5b/v5b): this refuge is well placed between Courmayeur and la Fouly so, from a scheduling point of view, it is fair to say that it is probably the best place to stop for the night. Furthermore, on the trail you often hear people talking about their future stays at Bonatti with a kind of reverence. And the older guidebooks certainly seem to have contributed to its excellent reputation. And this reputation means that it is almost always booked up (except at the start and end of the season). Personally, I find it to be a bit of a ‘TMB factory’, processing TMB walkers in an austere manner albeit offering clean and largely comfortable facilities. And it has to be said that the location is spectacular. Nevertheless, there are other good options not too far away and I prefer to stay at Rifugios Bertone or Elena (which are admittedly both 2 hours away, one before Bonatti and one after). However, if you have your heart set on Bonatti then get it booked as soon as they start accepting bookings.
5. Refuge la Flégère/Refuge du Lac Blanc (Stage 10/v10): if you cannot get one of these two refuges booked then, unless you are camping, you are faced with a massive double day all the way to les Houches or you have to take the cable car down to Chamonix for the evening. In my opinion a stay at one of these two places is a TMB highlight: they are the best locations for sunsets on the whole trek as the sun lights up the whole Mont Blanc Massif. They both fill up fast.
 Stage v5b of the Tour du Mont Blanc
 Stage 3 of the GR221 was a complete contrast to the epic panoramas of the previous two stages. The path took us slightly inland to see a Mallorca hidden from most: balmy, aromatic Holm Oak forest and a wonderful historic mountain village. On this stage you really start to understand why the GR221 is known as the Drystone Way...... 
The Mourne Mountains: 30 best hikes
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AVAILABLE NOW! 30 epic walks in Northern Ireland's highest mountains. ​ The only Mournes guidebook with Real OSNI Maps inside (1:25k): no need to carry separate maps! The only Mournes guidebook written by a local walker with decades of experience. Also includes: ▶ Numbered waypoints linking the Real Maps to our clear descriptions ▶ Graded routes to suit all abilities ▶ Everything the hiker needs to know: route descriptions, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more ▶ 4 different ways to summit Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland's highest peak ▶ The 21 mile Mourne Wall challenge walk ▶ List of Irish place names ▶ Information on Wildlife, Plants & Geology ▶ Game of Thrones film locations ▶ Section on accommodation 
Northern Ireland: the Unmissable Hikes
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Available October/November 2020. Pre-order now and we will dispatch as soon as the books arrive. The definitive guidebook for walking in Northern Ireland: 35 epic walks hand-picked by a County Down local. The only guidebook for Northern Ireland with real OSNI maps inside: this makes navigation easy. The Causeway Coast, the Glens of Antrim, the Mourne Mountains, the Sperrins and much more. Also includes:
Walker's Haute Route: Chamonix to Zermatt
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Real maps for each stage: 1:25,000/1:50,000. No need to carry a separate map! Also includes:
Tour du Mont Blanc
£14.99
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Complete guidebook for planning and trekking the Tour du Mont Blanc, the world's most famous trek Real maps for each stage: 1:25,000. No need to carry a separate map! Unique Itinerary Planner: plan a bespoke itinerary to match your ability and vacation schedule. All difficult calculations of time, distance and altitude gain are done for you Everything the trekker needs to know: route descriptions, costs, budget, difficulty, weather, how to get there, and more Full accommodation listings: spectacularly situated mountain huts, villages and hamlets Full section on camping: a complete list of camping locations 10 exciting variants to the main route! Information for both self-guided and guided trekkers  This is everything I am bringing on the GR20 (except for boots) Multi-day trekkers carry all their worldly possessions on their backs so it is not surprising that one of the most common topics of conversation is pack weight. Ultra-light backpacking is very much in vogue these days, fuelled by thru-hikers from the US on long-distance trails like the Pacific Crest Trail. The gear manufacturers are riding this trend by making some incredible kit that makes it easier and easier for us to carry less weight. Less weight means less strain on the body and this enables us to travel further and faster. These days, on hut to hut treks (where no camping equipment is required), I can achieve a pack weight of around 5kg (excluding water). For camping treks, I now carry 7kg (excluding food and water): and that is without having to get rid of some luxuries. I am starting the Corsica GR20 this week and will be camping all the way. I thought some of you would like to see what I will carry so I made this video.......
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Andrew McCluggageblogs about life on the Knife Edge Archives
August 2020
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