Seeing the refuge in the distance, smelling the stew simmering, the excitement of a new season lost in the heights, hours away from civilisation. Noé gets this feeling every spring as he prepares to start his season as a warden at the Croix du Bonhomme refuge. An exceptional refuge nestling at an altitude of 2443m. It's a refuge with a very special history for Noé, as his uncle was the warden for 37 years.
CHILDHOOD, TRANSMISSION AND ALTITUDE
What kind of life path leads a young man, born in 1997 in the Bouches du Rhône region of France, to become, at the age of 22, the caretaker of one of the biggest mountain refuges in the Alps?
‘I spent my early childhood in the Bouches-du-Rhône region near Marseille, where I grew up until I was 5. Then my parents decided to move a few hundred kilometres further north-west to the mountains of the Ubaye valley. It was there that I discovered the joys of the mountains as I hiked the surrounding peaks. It was a world that would lull me to sleep until the age of 15. To continue my studies, I was forced to move to Arles, where I took a science baccalauréat. Wishing to continue my studies in the field of geography, I opted for a degree at Montpellier University, where my days were punctuated by lessons, friends and partying. At that point, the mountains took a back seat. This was reinforced by my move to Paris when, after obtaining my licence 3 and a university diploma (science po prep and journalism school), I decided to go up to the capital to do a master's at the Sorbonne. It was a very unpleasant 2 years, exacerbated by missing the mountains and my family. What's more, when I finished the Masters, I still didn't know what to do with my future. So I found a happy medium by going into exile in the capital of the Alps, Grenoble, to take up a master's degree in social economy at Science Po’.
Despite moving house, Noé's passion for the mountains remains intact, because even far away geographically, this passion is visceral to him. In 2022, much to his surprise, Noé obtained his refuge keeper's diploma. A first sign of destiny.
A FAMILY STORY
Why did Noah choose this refuge? Sometimes history seems written in advance. All you have to do is accept it and let yourself be guided towards your destiny.
‘I first climbed the Croix du Bonhomme refuge when I was 2 years old. My uncle, Tristan Guyon - Le Bouffy, was the refuge's former warden. He spent 37 years of his life there. I've been going up there every year since I was a kid, much to my delight. As soon as I was old enough to work, at 16, he didn't hesitate to take me on. When he decided to end his caretaking contract, I wanted to seize the opportunity. I was only 22. Everyone told me that it was totally utopian to believe that I could become the caretaker of a refuge of this size with my limited experience. Nevertheless, I decided to give it a go. To give myself the best possible chance, I decided, along with a close friend, Jason, to submit a joint application. A few weeks later, against all the odds, our application was accepted by the CAF. ’
A dream come true for Noé.
‘This refuge is clearly my 2nd home. I have a very special relationship with this place, it's grafted onto my heart, I know all the paths by heart, I love it here and I'm in love with the surrounding mountains. What's more, the Croix du Bonhomme refuge is a central point for a number of legendary routes: the Tour du Mont-Blanc, the Tour du Beaufortain and the GR5, at the crossroads between Savoie and Haute-Savoie, very close to Italy’.
Despite everything, he knows that this new life brings with it new responsibilities. And he's ready to take it on in full, without a hint of apprehension.
‘It's a refuge that's still complicated to manage because it's very old, and there's a lot of renovation work to be done. It's also a long way from anywhere and very difficult to get to... Life as a refuge warden is far from easy, and in the end you don't get to enjoy the mountains very much, as you spend a lot of time indoors. Nevertheless, the fact that I go out every day to get some fresh air and contemplate the fabulous environment around the refuge instantly reminds me why I'm here and why I'm coming back. What's more, the purpose of today's refuges is tending to evolve: they're no longer just there for people to take refuge in bad weather. Nowadays, you can find a catering service with a complete menu to suit different diets; showers; toilets; comfortable bedding; a luggage storage system... Today, we're treated like a hotel and people expect the same service.’
But more concretely, how does a refuge perched at an altitude of 2443m work?
‘At the height of the season, there are around thirty employees working in shifts, with around ten people present at the same time. The big advantage is that very often it's people who come back. It's a crazy rhythm and atmosphere: we get up at 5am, we stop working at 10pm, the days are long and tiring with very few breaks, sometimes there's no hot water, we live on top of each other but despite everything, we're happy to be here, to get up every morning and welcome people. There's a real sense of cohesion and solidarity between everyone in my team. If there's the slightest problem, we'll all be there for each other. We're all one and we're united. The refuges are the pillars of the mountains and we're proud to be part of that.
ADDING FLAVOUR TO THE STEW
As Noé pointed out, the status and missions of refuges have changed considerably over the years. Today, in addition to providing an irreproachable welcome, the quality of the food on offer is a major issue.
‘It's becoming a central issue, much more so than before in the sense that people used to arrive and make do with what was on offer. Nowadays, people have a lot more expectations and they let us know, which means we have to be aware of this and adapt accordingly. We still have a single course in the evening, but we adapt to special diets: vegetarian, gluten-free, lactose-free, etc. During the day, we offer a much more comprehensive menu. In fact, this is where the refuge makes its biggest turnover, thanks to the restaurant business, because as the price of overnight stays is regulated by the French Alpine Club (CAF), that's not how we earn our living. Thanks to our popularity and increased visitor numbers, we're a real showcase for what mountain refuges represent, so we have a real responsibility and the opportunity to send out a strong message about the quality of the food we offer people.’
This has been Noé's hobbyhorse since he took over the refuge. It's a way of preserving the mountain's identity.
‘I'm really proud to be working with local producers. We're not going to change people's lifestyles, but we do educate them. It's a real choice and a real social project. I know that if one day the refuge is no longer economically capable of operating like this, I'll leave. So I attach a great deal of importance to the quality of the products, essentially organic and local produce from the Biocoop in Chambéry and Bourg St-Maurice, where I go once a week. We also work with fresh produce that we collect almost every day. We store them in cellars further down the mountain, accessible by road, and go back and forth to bring the supplies up to the refuge. It's clearly not the easiest or the most practical, but it's part of our identity.’
How does the kitchen work?
‘We bake homemade sourdough bread every morning. For the evening meal, we rotate every 3 days, with a ‘chef’ and an ‘assistant-cook’. Why 3 days? It allows us to keep an eye on stocks and manage them better. At lunchtime, things change a lot more depending on what we feel like doing in the morning and what we've started cooking: pizza, Beaufort pie, Italian specialities (thanks to the Italians in the team). This removes any sense of injustice, gives everyone their own skills and puts everyone on an equal footing. Finally, it's also a good way of making up for the eventuality of someone in the team falling ill. With this way of working, as everyone knows how to do everything, there will be no worries about replacing them.
TRAIL, BAOUW and GOURMANDISE
As you can imagine, Noé places great emphasis on the quality of the products that his team cooks and serves to customers. With this in mind, he decided to start selling Baouw products this summer.
‘Personally, I do a lot of trail running and ultra running, and it was through that that I discovered Baouw. I wanted to be able to offer my visiting customers products that were tasty and nourishing. Why Baouw? Because it's a French brand, which uses a maximum of organic products of the highest possible quality and which sources its products locally. So it fits in perfectly with the vision, state of mind and values that I'm trying to put in place at the refuge. It's a mountain brand. I buy the brand's products with my eyes closed. It's a brand that pleases me, that's original and that breaks away from the classic tastes you find in other brands. We also sell cereal bars that we make ourselves, which are very complete and dense, but which take up a lot of our time. Baouw products complement that and, above all, save us time, while offering the same quality of finished product to our customers’.
A way of reinforcing his convictions and passing them on to as many people as possible.
‘I think it makes sense to involve companies like Baouw, which are visible on a large scale in places like ours, to introduce everyone who loves mountains and hiking to a brand that conveys great values. I think that the Croix du Bonhomme refuge is a real showcase, both for local producers and for people who think that it's impossible to produce quality food in refuges that are very difficult to access. I want to show that it's possible, and it is, even if it means doing 1000m of ascent with 45kg of vegetables on your back on the way back from the Biocoop’.
LIVING ON LOVE AND FRESH WATER
As the refuge is only open from June to September, the job of refuge keeper doesn't allow Noé to work all year round.
‘The refuge warden job lasts 4 months from June to September, which leaves me a lot of time for myself the rest of the year. We're lucky in that a babysitting contract is open-ended, so it gives me a certain amount of security. I can afford not to work the rest of the year. I moved to the Beaufortain in the winter of 2023 and was able to discover all its treasures. For the winter to come, I'd like to discover life in a refuge in winter, but that may have to be put on hold as my partner and I are expecting a happy event. In future years, I'd like to spend most of my year in a refuge, or at least in the restaurant business.
Noé is part of a new generation of people who place their convictions and values well above any logic of profitability. Above all, through the various activities he carries out in the refuge, he promotes these values and puts them at the service of others. Noé, see you next summer.
All the information about the Croix du Bonhomme refuge: Accueil, Refuge de la Croix du Bonhomme
