Day - 4 TMB Trek
Sunday, August 6th
Last full day in Paris before heading to the Alps. Today was more casual and relaxing than the previous 2. We started the day back at the Eiffel Tower at 9am - this time to climb the stairs to the 2nd level and then take the elevator to the top. I was fired up to do this - as I’ve never actually been to the top in my visits to Paris in the past. 674 steps went by pretty fast to the 2nd level - a little training for our upcoming hike. We then took a 82 second elevator ride to the very top. We had incredible, amazing views of the city - as we had our best weather morning so far. Side note on the weather - it’s been in the 50’s-60’s - actually feeling pretty cool most of our visit. I’ll take it - as the heat has been pretty brutal at times in the past
After our Eiffel Tower climb, we had breakfast and walked back to the Champs-Elysees. We then hiked through the Tuileries section back to the Louvre - effectively connecting our steps all the way from the Arc de Triomphe to the Louvre.
By this time it was early afternoon. We had completed pretty much everything we had targeted before hitting Paris. We had a couple more areas to try - so we hit the Metro to the Catacombs. The Catacombs are a series of mazes and tunnels 20 meters below ground - containing the remains of several million Parisians. This hadn’t been on my radar in the past - but was something suggested by my friends on the AT. Unfortunately- when we arrived at our metro stop in the southern portion of the city - we learned they were sold out for the day. No problem - this was a flyer.
We hopped back on the Metro to hit the Museum d’Orsay. This is another really popular art museum that we had as an option if time permitted. Unfortunately- we were denied again - with the museum being sold out for the day.
No worries- we pivoted to a Seine River cruise instead. We got our tickets and grabbed a couple beers waiting in the adjacent park next to our cruise boat. Seeing the city from the water brings new perspective- and a relaxing way to bring it all together.
To end the day - we headed back to our hotel in Montmarte and went out for a traditional French dinner recommended by the hotel staff. The dinner did not disappoint. We had some onion soup for an appetizer, a steak dish for the main course, and a lemon tart for dessert.
Called it a night about 10pm. An awesome 3 days in Paris to get rid of our jet lag and get some miles under our belts. Today we hiked 9.1 miles. So 11.8, 13.2, and 9.1 miles in 3 days - not too bad!
Here’s to a transition - the Mountains are calling!!!
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