Day 3 We packed our bags and left sunny Chamonix for the next leg of our tour. The weather was sunny and warm all day. The van took us to a small town called Les Houches. We rode the cable car to 7000 feet and disembarked for our first pass crossing. Since we had come up so high, we began our hike going down hill. We were hiking beside a glacier and could hear the rushing water beneath it. Once we got below the glacier, we had to cross the river using a Himalayan bridge--yikes! Our guides are educating us about glaciers, they stop as we pass interesting areas, always pointing out clues that show the area was once all glacier. This crossing was followed by a super hard uphill to our pass, accompanied by the sound of cowbells. When we reached the narrow pass, we had a view of our very steep downhill trek, which led to a valley where we had lunch (and an hour's rest). The last part of our hike took us to Les Contamines, a sweet little town. About 4500 feet downhill today, 8 miles total, hard on the knees! Our accommodations are in a family run hotel. We've had our rest, had a nice dinner together, and are getting ready for an early start tomorrow. Tomorrow brings the longest hike (11 miles) and the largest elevation gain (4200 feet), and two mountain pass crossings. Wish us luck!!! Tomorrow is the day where we will only see "hikers & cows", so no phone calls or internet will be available