Mountain bike tours

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Mountain bike tours

Valais Bike Unterbäch-Grächen

The Moosalp Pass and the extraordinary descent in the Mattertal valley are certain to be among the highlights of your mountain bike trip to Valais and will remind you why you love the sport.

  • Difficulty

    medium, S2

    Difficulty: medium
    S2 Many obstacles such as roots, stones and larger steps; tight corners. Certain passages may have gradients of up to 70%. Basic technique required, including controlled braking and body displacement to overcome obstacles

  • Length

    33.9 km

  • Duration

    4:40 h

  • Show on map
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After a delicious breakfast, take the Brandalp chairlift up into the mountains and then head to the Moosalp Pass using sheer pedal power. Marvel at the views, take a well-earned lunch break and enjoy the famous “Cremeschnitte” at the Moosalp restaurant. It’s now time to get back in the saddle and tackle the descent into the Mattertal valley and the route along the valley floor to Stalden. Then continue on the beautiful Matterhorn Valley Trail up through the Mattertal to St. Niklaus. From St. Niklaus, a bus will take you to Grächen, the destination of today's stage.

Show elevation profile

Turn-by-turn directions

From Unterbäch, take the chairlift to Brandalp and start your ascent up Moosalp. Follow part of the Moosalp Plateau Bike trail, mainly on a 4x4 route through forest. From Moosalp you start the descent into the Mattertal valley, first to Breitmatte. From there, the trail leads through the forest over the Waldachra to the village of Törbel. The descent to Stalden continues along the main road and then over some fun but quite steep sections of trail. Once down in the Mattertal valley, follow the Matterhorn Valley Trail to St. Niklaus. To reach the village of Grächen, take the postal bus. Option: to save yourself the climb to the Moosalp Pass, take the postal bus from the village of Bürchen. Remember to book a place for yourself and for your mountain bike on the Resabike  platform: www.resabike.ch.

Start: Unterbäch (1224 m)
Destination: Grächen (1111 m)

Technical information

  • Altitude

    2048 m 866 m

  • Ascent

    1096 m

  • Descent

    1500 m

  • Technique

    Bewertung: 3.0 von 5.0 Punkten

  • Stamina

    Bewertung: 4.0 von 5.0 Punkten

  • Experience

    Bewertung: 6 von 5.0 Punkten

  • Landscape

    Bewertung: 6.0 von 5.0 Punkten

Best time of year

  • Jan
  • Feb
  • Mar
  • Apr
  • May
  • Jun
  • Jul
  • Aug
  • Sep
  • Oct
  • Nov
  • Dec
  • Point to Point
  • Single trail/Free ride
  • Multi-stage route
  • Scenic
  • Geological highlights
  • Faunistic highlights
  • Insider tip
  • Summit route
  • Refreshment stops available
  • Cultural/historical value
  • Botanical highlights
  • Cableway ascent/descent

Public transport

Take the RegionAlps St-Gingolph-Brig regional train to Raron and then the Raron-Unterbäch cable car to Unterbäch.

Approach

From Basel and Zurich: Take the A1 motorway to Bern; take the A6 to Spiez; follow the sign to Kandersteg; Kandersteg–Goppenstein car-carrying train; follow the sign to Raron.

From Geneva: Take the A1 motorway to Lausanne; follow the sign to Sion/Sierre; Raron.

From Milan: Take the A8/A26 motorway in the direction of Simplon; Iselle–Brig car-carrying train; follow the sign to Raron.

Parking

Follow the directions for parking in Raron. For this stage of the Valais Bike Tour, we recommend that you park your vehicle in Visp and take public transport (train + cable car) to Unterbäch.

Equipment

We recommend: bike in excellent working order, helmet, gloves and bell, clothing suitable for the weather (always carry a waterproof), food and drink.

Preparing for mountain bike outings

Safety information

Use marked bike trails and routes only, making sure you observe all signposting. The Valais Bike route is still under development and is not yet signposted throughout. While on the route, you can find your way using the Outdoor Active app.

Kindly close gates after passing through. Please be considerate to walkers, as well as to plants and animals. As a rule, walkers have priority. When planning, take into account participants’ fitness level and ability. All riding is at one’s own risk.

Preparing for mountain bike outings

Literature

Get the the Valais/Wallis mountain bike map to discover the best routes in the region.

The tourist offices in Unterbäch und Grächen have got brochures and information material about mountain biking in the region.

Maps

SwissTopo Maps 1:25'000: 

  • 1288 Raron
  • 1308 St. Niklaus
  • 1289 Brig