Alpine Swimming

Despite arriving in the Alps in September the temperature in the valley was still almost 30c so we decided to spend a couple of days relaxing at the beach in between hiking days.

Given that the nearest coastline is hundreds of miles away, by beach I mean the sandy shores of two large swimming lakes around a 20-minute drive from Chamonix town. .

The first is Lac de Passy,  unsurprisingly in the town of Passy, just outside the Chamonix valley and about 500m lower.  This  kilometre long lake with a large sandy beach at one end is surrounded by leisure facilities, making it a family friendly sporting complex including mini-golf, fishing, go karting and various watersports.

However, our favourite swimming lake, Les Lacs des Illetes, is a bit further away in Sallanches with beautiful views of the mountains. There are in fact three lakes here with one dedicated for fishing, one for windsurfing and one for swimming. The swimming lake has (basic) toilet facilities, a shower and a lifeguard and beach bar in the summer months but from the start of September it is blissfully quiet.

Both these lakes get very busy during the French holidays  but outside that time they are great places to relax in nature and cool off  (ok it’s not St Tropez, but it’s still the alps and the water is definitely fresh!).

We’ve even done some kayaking there. The weather has even been good enough into mid October for days at the lake soaking up the sunshine and taking a refreshing dip.

There is also a beautiful waterfall nearby which we took the time to visit.