Via Stockalper – Valais section
Times were hard and paths were dangerous. These were the circumstances that made Kaspar Jodoc Stockalper the "King of the Simplon" over 300 years ago. This Valais native built a mule track from Brig to Domodossola over the Simplon Pass, three of the five stages of which are exclusively in the Valais, between Brig and Gondo. The 63-kilometre long ViaStockalper, with its 3,200-ascent, owes its fascination to its striking contrasts: to the north of the pass, it crosses the peaceful Taferna valley, to the south the wild Gondo gorge. The monumental structures of Stockalper, such as the castle or the eponymous tower, still mark the route today.
