Swiss Alps - Monte Rosa Circuit

9 Days Demanding Trekking around Switzerlands's highest peak

Although Monte Rosa just falls short of the height of Mont Blanc, the ridges and peaks of the Monte Rosa massif are on average far higher than those of its rival to the west. In addition, many consider these the finest mountains and valleys in the whole Alpine range.

This trip will take you to high alpine regions in Italy and Swizerland, that have been cut off to an extent from life on the plains below, and have maintained their traditions and cultures.

The Italian region is that of Valle d'Aosta and Piedmont and our route passes through some villages incorporating a Walser settlement with Germanic origins, whose ancestors first settled in the mountains around 1000AD. These people settled in many alpine regions, notably around Alagna and  Macugnaga and still preserve the basics of their culture. The Swiss part of the trek is centred in the Wallis canton where our route takes us high above the Saas and Matter valleys where the relatively new Europaweg links with the long-established Hohenweg making it possibly the world's longest balcony path from Saas Fee to Zermatt.

The Tour of Monte Rosa provides a great variety of terrain, ranging from wide well made forest tracks, to narrow single-track footpaths, scree slopes and glaciers, and you will need to have a high level of fitness, good sense of balance and the ability to walk on rough terrain. This is a non-technical excursion apart from a glaciated section as the route passes from Italy into Switzerland at Theodulpass; however, our route is nontheless a physically demanding wilderness trek with a considerable amount of ascent and descent walking around 6 hours each day with some extra long days.

Starting out from the delightful alpine village of Saas Fee our route takes us in a clockwise route around Monte Rosa passing over the Monte Moro Pass with its golden Madonna and through Gressoney, the spectacularly located village of Saas Fee and numerous delightful villages and high alpine passes before crossing the Theodule Glacier assisted by an experienced guide.

Trip highlights include the high-level Höhenweg Grachen and the Europaweg, mountain refuges with spectacular views of the surrounding mountains including the new Europahutte and Rifugio Guglielmina (2880m) - once Europe's highest hotel, high alpine meadows, steep forested valleys and impressive snow-capped peaks with views to some of the Alps highest peaks such as the Dom (4545m), Matterhorn (4478m) and the Weisshorn (4596m). This tour requires a high level of fitness and you will need to be able to walk around 6 hours each day with some extra long days, following exposed paths and boulder fields but you will be rewarded with some of the most breathtaking sights in the Alps.

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