DAY 40 - ST-PIERRE-DE-CHARTREUSE TO GRENOBLE

We had a very simple day's walk today - up from St-Pierre-de-Chartreuse to the Col de Porte, and down to Grenoble.

Scenic walk in the Chartreuse 

As we were leaving St-Pierre-de-Chartreuse we were approached by a lady we had met last Friday outside Villars-les-Dombes. She was then on a cycling excursion with her husband; today she was on a walking trip in the Chartreuse with some friends. She recognised us (we are fairly distinctive here) and came over for a chat. It was quite a coincidence, and a nice start to the day.

Heading up to the Col de Porte 

We climbed the 8 kilometres to the Col de Porte on the road. There was not much traffic, and the views made the walk quite pleasant.

Descending towards Grenoble 

From the Col de Porte we joined a long-distance walking path for several kilometres of descending through a forest.

Hardly a day goes by without a walk in the woods

We rejoined the road for a few kilometres of steep descent. At the Col de Vence we turned off on to the GR9, the long-distance path that had taken us into the Chartreuse a few days ago. We now followed it out of the Chartreuse, up at first (of course) and then down towards Grenoble.

Descending towards Grenoble on the GR9

We stayed high above Grenoble as we approached it, and were treated to some fantastic views of the city and the mountains which surround it.

We had wonderful views of the city and the Alps

Eventually the path led us down to the Bastille, a fortified area overlooking the city. A cable car links the Bastille to the city.

Heading down to Grenoble 

We didn't take the cable car, but walked down through the fortifications to the Isère river, and from there made our way to our hotel.

We went through many tunnels during the descent 

Day:  40
Distance: 28.02km
Walking time:  6hrs 15mins
Elevation gain:  699 metres
Cumulative distance:  1045.7 km