Finally, a good night of sleep! I hit my sleeping pad at 8:30 pm yesterday evening and slept through most of the night. There was some light rain as we packed up our tents this morning but it did not last long. No special breakfast pastries this morning but, once again, a nice coffee service was provided by Daniel!

Twenty minutes after starting out we again were on a steep climb up our mountain for today. Our hope that the forecasted storms would not materialize quickly faded just as we got above the tree line. In only a minute or two there was a cold torrential downpour, with very strong winds and thunder/lightning that seemed only feet away. Fortunately, the storm passed after thirty minutes and we finished making our way to the top where there was the best mountain hut (Col du Balme) we have seen so far. Inside it was cozy, warm and dry. And to top it off there was a fantastic little kitchen putting out some wonderful food and drinks. Daniel and I got coffees and split a cookie and brownie. After 30 minutes we then began the downhill portion of our hike. 

Despite the heavy cloud cover there were still some nice views occasionally on the way down. The wind gusts were very strong, and at one point, blew my backpack rain cover off and it landed off the trail, on the side of the mountain, which made for a tricky recovery. 

Before reaching the bottom of the mountain we crossed over the border back into France. Our original plan was to camp in our tents tonight, but due to the forecasted storms this evening, Daniel was able to reserve the last two beds in a hostel-like facility (Auberge La Boerne) in the village of Tre-Le-Champs. The room we are in has eight bunk beds and, I am sure, will be a tight and busy place tonight. Overall the facility can accommodate around 30 people. There is a small restaurant and we will be provided dinner with our stay, as well as breakfast tomorrow morning. The weather forecast for tomorrow looks very good as we will begin day 11 of our journey.