Day 17 - Briancon to Brunissard - Three Degrees of Separation

Today's stage isn't very long and is relatively simple - a climb over the Col des Ayes and a stroll down the other side. So there's no rush and I have a leisurely breakfast with Murray before preparing some sandwiches with the contents of his fridge. Murray drops me off back on the hike and it's back to work!

The weather is excellent - clear but cool - and the scenery is very pleasant - the meleze forests are light and airy. As I lunch on the col a couple of ladies climb up and join me. I leave them and descend to my gite. Once there it seems deserted, so I phone and say I'm outside. The woman on the other end tells me she is outside too, but can't see me! I had to try several gites before reserving one, and it turns out that I got a bit mixed up. I wrote down the correct phone number but the wrong name once I made the reservation. The correct one was 20 minutes walk away (back the way I had come) and by the time I arrived the two ladies were there!

Over the evening meal I found out that they were gardiennes in a refuge that had just closed and they were doing the hike. They knew Murray's girlfriend (who is also a gardienne) - it's a small world.