We spent the weekend in the family chalet. It is located in a remote valley at the heart of the Massif des Ecrins. It is a beautiful, wild setting, facing the Ecrins and it is a good place to rest and meditate. There is no electricity, but running water and gas to heat the water and cook. The weather forecast was good. We had planned a walk on Saturday and drove up on Friday afternoon, after school. But early in the night, one of the boys hurt himself. He fell in the dark and hurt his left arm.
I sent him back to bed but he was still hurting after several hours and couldn’t sleep. His elbow was swollen so I thought I needed to take him to the nearest hospital. Except the nearest hospital was in Grenoble, over 80 km away, the first 30 km of the journey being on a narrow, dark mountain road, with impressive drops at places. But there was no choice. It was about 3 am. We drove down and saw plenty of wild life: deers, foxes and badgers. 2 of each.
We got to the hospital at 4:30 am and checked in the Emergency Unit. It seemed quiet. the staff was quick and efficient. We were able to leave at 7. We were back in the chalet at 8:30 am. Not bad. We spent more time on the road than in the hospital.
Maxime now has a plaster on his left arm. We are not sure what the problem is. The doctor couldn’t see any broken bones on the x-rays. But we will check in a week time in the hospital in Chambéry. He is fine. Thanks to those who showed concern.
The rest of the weekend was uneventful. We weren’t able to walk much on Saturday but we made the most of the mountains. On Sunday I went for a quick walk with Jean-Baptiste before packing up and driving back. It was sunny and there wasn’t a cloud in sight.