Between the ridges and the lake
At the Col de la Forclaz, hiking above Annecy
The hour is still gray when Estelle and Pilou leave Talloires. The road climbs in switchbacks toward the Col de la Forclaz, and with each turn, Lake Annecy unfolds a little farther below, a mirror set among the surrounding hills. They do not need to talk much. It is cold, their fleeces are out, and the moment seems suspended.
Le Chalet La Pricaz: a stop above the lake
A few kilometres after setting off, Chalet La Pricaz comes into view on the level ground along the mountainside. They set their packs down. A hot chocolate, hands wrapped around the bowl, and the lake far below beginning to shimmer in the sunlight. It’s the kind of break you don’t plan in advance: you stop because the place deserves it.
Pilou pulls the SWEECE fleece over their base layer for the duration of the break. It isn’t a technical mountain garment, but a fleece you can wear anywhere, made in Europe from recycled polyester, with exactly the right weight for a high-altitude pause when your body starts to cool down.
Descent to Talloires and the Port: the hike that ends with your feet in the water
The descent to Talloires follows the more sheltered eastern slope. The trail is technical in places, with stones wet from dew. The GRAND TETRAS 3/4 Jacket remains useful until the bottom of the trail, where the light returns and the temperature suddenly rises. At the Port of Talloires, they sit by the water. The lake is blue, almost motionless. It is the same day, the same lake they had seen two hours earlier from up there, but from here it looks like something entirely different.
