Ever wondered where the walking pros love to go? Hiking on the hush-hush will let you in the secret of some of my favourite places. First up are two quiet valleys in the middle of the Canton of Valais, in Switzerland. To the east lies the busy Mattertal, with Zermatt and the iconic Matterhorn, to the west the Val de Bagnes with ski resorts such as Verbier. Val d’Hérens and Val d’Anniviers are snuggled in between quietly welcoming walkers and mountaineers and continuing age-old Valasian traditions.

My first visit was in 2007 partly as preparation for my International Mountain Leader assessment in 2008 in the Val d’Anniviers. I passed through both again on the Walkers’ Haute Route from Chamonix to Zermatt in 2014. Three years later I dropped down into Arolla after a fantastic triple hut tour starting near Verbier. My last visit to both valleys was in 2018 on an Alpine mountaineering course.

There’s always a great reward for the effort hiking in these valleys. In Val d’Hérens the path from Arolla to the top of the Pas de Chèvres at 2855m is a classic hikers route (the ladders, unstable lateral moraine and the Cheilon glacier crossing en route to the Cabane de Dix shades into mountaineers territory). Other paths bring different pleasures. The beautifully maintained footpath from Arolla to Lac Bleu passes through flower strewn slopes to a small shimmering mountain lake, a perfect picnic spot.

Mountain huts are some of my favourite walking objectives. A morning start from Arolla on a steep path, initially through shady, fragrant woodland, leads to the Cabane de la Tsa and elevenses of strong swiss coffee and freshly made cake. The Cabane des Aiguille Rouges is a tougher objective sitting at 2800m in a wild rock and scree covered landscape. Even here though it’s worth looking carefully at the ground, delicate flowers like this King of the Alps (below) grow in the toughest terrains.

These quieter wild areas benefit the wildlife as well. The bird-like warning call of the marmots echo off the steep sided valley walls, mountain crows, known as choughs, glide and wheel and squabble through the high passes, chamois teeter up the vertiginous cliff faces. And if you’re incredibly lucky, as I was once below the Cabane de Moiry, you can watch the Ibex clash horns.

The Cabane de Moiry sits high at the end of the western branch of the Val d’Anniviers, overlooking the Moiry glacier. It’s not the only mountain hut with an incredible view in this valley. The Cabane du Petit Mountet sits above the Glacier de Zinal dwarfed by the 3668m high Besso mountain. No need to stop the night here as it’s only  about a couple of hours walk from Zinal either along the valley floor, or via an airy balcony path after a cablecar ride up to Sorebois. Then there’s the historic Hotel Weisshorn with it’s delectable tarte aux myrtilles.

In short, these valleys are a walkers’ paradise. I’ll leave the last words to guidebook writing legend Kev Reynolds “… an ever-varied vegetation, dashing streams and cascades, glistening tarns, a high grassy col to cross, attractive and isolated alp huts along the route, and some of the most delectable mountain scenery one could possibly wish to gaze upon.”

Suggestions for travel to and accommodation in Arolla, Val d’Hérens, Switzerland.

Grand Hotel and Kurhaus ***  https://www.grandhotelkurhaus.com/

A beautifully situated hotel with lovely grounds and an excellent breakfast. Double en-suite rooms with breakfast approx £167 per night per room (2022).

Hotel du Mont Collon** tel: 027 283 11 91 email: info@hotelmontcollon.ch

A huge old hotel dating from Victorian times. Rooms can be a bit ‘characterful’ but the staff are really friendly and the breakfasts and evening meals are delicious. Prices per room per night are approximately: Double / Twin rooms from 88CHF, Double room with shared bathroom from 60CHF, junior suite from 102CHF (2022).UPDATE 7/23 – THIS HOTEL NOW SEEMS TO BE CLOSED

Camping Arolla https://www.camping-arolla.com/en/

Apparently the highest campsite in Europe. Prices for a night (2023) will be approximately 8.70CHF per person + 10.20CHF per medium tent pitch + 1CHF for a shower token (optional?!).Campervan pitches are also available with electric and there are glamping options. I would expect places to book up really quickly even for the start of the season. UPDATE 7/23 CAMPSITE PITCHES ARE NOT BOOKABLE, BUT THERE’S LOADS OF SPACE. RECEPTION SELLS COFFEES AND BEER, CAMPERS CAN ORDER BREAD / CROISSANTS ETC.

7/23 NEW RECOMMENDATION – APARTMENTS TO RENT https://www.arolla-vacances.ch/site/index.php MANAGED BY THE VERY HELPFUL PATRICIA BOURNISSEN.

7/23 NEW RECOMMENDATION – HOTEL DU GLACIER https://hotelduglacier.ch/ ROOMS AND DORMITORY SPACES.

How to get to Arolla

I have usually flown to Geneva via EasyJet (as you would expect loads of other airlines fly there too) then caught the train from the airport to Sion (usually about 2 hrs straight through with no changes) and finally the postbus from the train station to Arolla (about 45mins to Les Haudères, change buses then about 20mins to Arolla).

Useful websites are:

The Man in Seat 61. Simply the train travel guru. https://www.seat61.com/

Swiss trains and buses timetables https://www.sbb.ch/en/timetable.html

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