Valais Lifestyle
Outside
When the mountains are around the corner, you make grateful use of them. This is how the people of Valais are. Whenever possible, they head out. On skis but increasingly on snowshoes, on foot or on touring skis. We are following their example in Saas-Fee and Region Dents du Midi.
On touring skis to the ultimate silence
From the station of Saas-Fee, the bus takes us to Saas-Almagell. Free, because with the SaastalCard, that you get with your stay, you can use regional public transportation free of charge. And like everywhere else in the country, it is punctual and reliable like Swiss clockwork.
The ski tour to the Mattmark reservoir is also excellent for beginners. And that’s fine as more and more winter sports enthusiasts want to try this form of skiing. The route – over two hours up, 500 altimeters – leads to the end of the valley and if the trail is cleared, then it is avalanche safe.
In the past, traders and smugglers used to travel over the Monte Moro pass into Italy
Initially, we can still talk to each other easily. We follow the water upstream. The harder the route climbs, the shorter the sentences. Until you get into that addictive rhythm of breathing and walking step by step uphill on skis with skins underneath that prevent you from sliding back.
As we climb, we see the elevator for the modest Saas-Almagell ski area, pass a chapel and the Eiu alp, an alp where cows graze in summer. The terrain gets steeper, the climb spicier and the turns sharper. Above us, we finally see the wall of the reservoir. Continuing. Step by step.
The biggest surprise left until the last minute. Only when we rise headfirst above the wall do we see the lake, an untouched white plain surrounded by mountains like the Stellihorn (3,436 m) and Joderhorn (3,035 m). In the past, traders and smugglers moved on over the Monte Moro pass. To Italy.
Skis off, lunch out of the backpack, sit and listen. It is unimaginably quiet. Occasionally, only the wind whispers. Perhaps the serene atmosphere is not a coincidence, but a tribute. During the construction of the reservoir (1958-1987), 93 workers disappeared under two million cubic meters of ice and debris dumped from the mountains onto their barracks. 88 of them died in the process. The youngest was 17 years old, the oldest 70.
Today, it is primarily a salubrious place. When we start to get cold, we clip on the skis for the descent. Spectacular skiing it is not. We follow the route we came. It’s just faster now. For the last stretch, we speed up so that we have to walk as little as possible on the flat part.
Skis off, lunch out of the backpack, sit and listen. It is unimaginably quiet
I save the hiking for Hohsaas, a mountain station at 3,200 meters elevation and beloved by visitors whose main goal is to enjoy the views of eighteen four-thousanders across the valley. I leave my skis in the valley and take the gondola to the top. There I walk the panorama route that lives up to its name. The view reads like a topographical atlas for mountain admirers: Strahlhorn, Allalinhorn, Rimfpischhorn, Alphubel, Täschhorn, Dom, Nadelhorn….
On the way back, I get off the gondola halfway up to walk to the Triftalp, a collection of houses with a chapel at about 2,000 meters above sea level. Abandoned in winter, inhabited in summer by cows and a cheesemaker. Far away from the crowd. I sit there with my back against an ancient wooden chalet as the sun slowly sinks behind the high peaks. I would like to stop time for a moment.
Endless skiing and snowboarding
Valais has the highest mountains in Switzerland. That guarantees snow, dream views and that priceless winter feeling. Skiing and snowboarding can be done on more than 2,000 kilometers of slopes, as well as on treks through the wilderness.
Valais Lifestyle
On snowshoes to the border
Nature guide Nathalie Nemeth-Défago walks ahead of me along a narrow path. It goes gently uphill. On snowshoes we follow the trail of smugglers through the mountain area between Swiss Morgins and French Châtel. The snow crunches with every step, we blow clouds in the cold morning air.
On the lower part, we still hear the faint sound of a chairlift and then that of a tug. But now it is quiet and beautiful. We keep a leisurely pace. No rush, feet to the ground. Along the way, Nathalie points out the numerous passages used by smugglers in the last century. Some speak for themselves; others look completely impassable from a distance.
As the forest path turns into snowy alpine meadows, the world opens up. On the horizon are the seven peaks of Les Dents du Midi. Today in full sun. Looking closely, we can also see the major ski lifts of Les Portes du Soleil ski area. While there, skiers are logging miles, ticking off lifts and putting their turns on the slopes, on this side of the valley there is a benevolent calm.
We walk just until we see a former border post in the middle of the mountain world. This is where border guards were housed during the heyday of smuggling. They guarded an invisible line in the landscape. From border stone to border stone. Now it is our break spot and you can even spend the night there.
Nathalie takes the lunch out of her backpack. Includes a small raclette set that runs on tea lights. The tiny flames provide enough heat to melt cheese. We build a nice place in the snow and enjoy the taste: cheese, bread, dried mushrooms, sausage and more cheese from the region. After all, we are in the Swiss mountains.
The border region does not only carry the stories of smugglers. Nathalie tells the story of her grandfather who found a Polish officer in these woods, a deserter on the run from the violence of war. ‘He helped him to safe Switzerland, where the man probably sought asylum. He left his backpack with my grandparents, but he never picked it up.’
On the way back, we take a detour via the Pointe de Bellevue. Large birds of prey hover in the blue sky and in the snow we see tracks of mice and a stoat. The Bellevue lives up to its name. With the Dents du Midi once again as an eye-catcher. ‘And look,’ says Nathalie. ‘This is so beautiful. On the left you have the Grand Combin and on the right you have Mont Blanc!’
Large birds of prey hover in the blue sky
A great day should be crowned. So in Morgins, the sunny terraces are full. However, I am going for a beer tasting at the 7Peaks Brasserie. Although today the canton of Valais is known for its fine wines, there used to be dozens of breweries. Corinne and Robby Collins revived the tradition. But in a way appropriate to our times.
“We are the first and still the only B-Corp certified brewery on the European continent,” Rob says. ‘This is a reward for our efforts for nature. For example, we work with organic hops. Those are more expensive than regular ones but because of the intense taste you need twenty percent less of them. So you need to grow and transport less of it.’
Rob talks enthusiastically about his beers, but I had come to taste. So Rob serves a board containing seven glasses of seven different beers. Their names refer to the seven peaks of Les Dents du Midi. I close my eyes and taste the mountains. Tomorrow I will travel on. Now here I am. Glass two s’il vous plaît.
Discover the Lifestyle of Valais
Winter enjoyment
No, you don’t have to be a mile-eater on skis to enjoy winter in Valais to the max. The mountains, snow-capped alps, authentic villages, lakes and streams can also be discovered at a slower pace. The region excels in so-called alternative winter sports such as sledding, snowshoeing or cross-country skiing.
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