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This itinerary is only given as a guide and will be followed as closely as possible. Your guide will assess weather conditions and possibly alter the route to ensure you have a safe and enjoyable trip.
Day 0 (Sunday).
Arrive Crans Montana from Geneva airport. Settle in and check bikes over. Meet the guide and have briefing for the trip.
Day 1 (Monday).
We spend a warm-up day exploring the trails in and around the hidden gem that is the mountain bikers’ playground of Crans Montana. There’s a huge variety of riding here from the north-shore style bike park and Swiss national downhill courses to epic xc loops including the second ever mountain biking world championship course from 1988 (originally ridden by Jamie!).We make the most of the chairlifts here and are rewarded with stunning views of the Matterhorn and the Weisshorn across the Rhone valley and some excellent singletrack descents, including an almighty rollercoaster ride right down to the valley bottom.
Day 2 (Tuesday).
Today we leave Crans Montana and begin our journey into the Bernese Oberland. Climbing up out of the resort we then follow a series of high alpine singletrack trails, rounding several spurs as we follow the Rhone valley heading east. The route takes us through beautiful small valleys with waterfalls and pretty alpine pasture, always with the big mountain views to our right. We then drop down a cool 700m on pitch-perfect singletrack through scented pine forest. A fun trail, not too technical, but there are rooty sections and small rock steps to keep it interesting. Next we find proof that the Swiss trail builders have to be among the finest in the world as we ride down some perfectly cut switchbacks carved into a cliff face, which looks impossible when viewed from a distance! A lengthy but enjoyable climb on both single and doubletrack through more forest and pastureland brings us to the pretty spa town of Leukerbad. From here we are forced to take a huge cablecar up to the Gemmipass and our spectacular hotel on the edge of the Wildstrubel glacier.
Day 3 (Wednesday).
You may wish to linger a little over breakfast this morning as the panoramic views from the dining room are breathtaking. We will start the day with an excursion up to the Wildstrubel glacier. Riding on the moraine surrounded by rock and ice, this is a wonderful experience with some challenging technical sections. We then begin our descent with an exciting and sometimes technical singletrack trail alongside a lake followed by a speedy section on quad width track absorbing some spectacular views along the way. The trail steepens and a pretty section of twisting singletrack leads into a technically challenging descent into the beautiful and secluded Gasteretal valley. The day finishes with a climb up the valley to our overnight stop in a mountain hotel.
Day 4 (Thursday).
There’s a lot of climbing to do today but we begin with a riverside descent to the picturesque Oberland town of Kandersteg. Passing through the town we then follow another fast riverside trail that takes us further down the valley. The road and doubletrack climb out of the valley is a bit of a slog but as the views emerge it begins to seem worth it! We finish our climbing for the day on singletrack and are rewarded with a top-class descent into Kiental. The Swiss trail builders have been doing their good work again here and we take good advantage of their flowing singletrack. A short off road climb takes us to our secluded mountain hotel for the night.
Day 5 (Friday).
We have two options today, depending upon weather conditions. The more testing option is a big climb with some pushing over a high pass, followed by a technical descent, finishing happily at the entrance to a local Oberland brewery where we can reward our efforts with one or two glasses of Rugenbrau! The easier option follows the aptly named “panorama trail”, a mixture of undulating single and doubletrack. We descend grassy hillsides, climb through woodland and roll through pretty alpine villages. The views are a little different today but equally impressive as we are heading down towards the lakes either side of Interlaken, which are turquoise blue, dotted with boats and surrounded by spectacular mountains. After lunch with views of or next to lake Thunersee we change direction and climb once again into the mountains. After some mixed terrain we round a spur and the mighty triumverate of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau comes into view. Both options then come back together and take us to our hotel for the next two nights.
Day 6 (Saturday).
Today will be spent exploring some of the trails around the Eiger and soaking up as much of the view as possible. After climbing up to Grindelwald and gaining our first glimpse of the Eiger there is the option of using one of the chairlifts in Grindelwald to gain some height before climbing up to a stunning lake, an excellent spot for Eiger-gazing and picture taking. The top section of the descent back down to the village is a fairly technical trail in places with some exposed rock slabs and drop-offs. We end the day in style with a tough ride up to Kleine Scheidegg at the base of the famous North face, followed by an outstanding wild natural singletrack route, recommended by locals. A now standard fantastic downhill finished to another great Ride the Alps holiday.
Day 7 (Sunday).
Departure day back to Geneva airport which takes approximately 3h. You need to make sure you book an afternoon or early evening flight otherwise you won’t make it back to the airport in time.
