Setting new goals for 2027: Matterhorn Cross – through the 4,000-metre peaks between the Rhône and Aosta valleys

​When someone like Lukas Stöckli says, “A bike tour of the highest order!”, it’s not just a cliché. On the contrary, it’s worth paying close attention. The 53-year-old Swiss man discovered his love of mountain biking at the age of 15. This was followed by ten years as a racing cyclist in the Swiss national team, before he organised his first guided Alpine crossing in 2001. His stated goal ever since: 100 per cent singletrack.

It’s hard to believe that he has ever actually mapped out a route that doesn’t include a single metre of gravel track. The fact is, however, that anyone looking for a guided tour with the highest possible proportion of singletrack is in good hands with Lukas Stöckli’s tour programme. That said, you shouldn’t set off on these tours without being properly fit, because where there are particularly lots of trails, the air is usually much thinner: in the high Alps.

The highlights: single tracks and elevation gain

One of these tours, which Stöckli is offering in July 2027, will take place at precisely these altitudes: around the Matterhorn. In other words, right where most of the 4,000-metre peaks of the Western Alps are clustered, creating a truly spectacular backdrop. The tour will wind its way over six stages as close as possible to the firn and glacier terminations of these giants. There, where only a few scattered Valais villages cling to the steep slopes.

The route takes you hundreds of metres above the Rhône and Dora Baltea valleys, winding your way along alpine viewing platforms. Along the finest singletrack trails in Valais and the Aosta Valley. However, you’ve got to get up there first. On this tour, that means climbing 3,400 metres in one go from the vineyards in the valley. For someone like Lukas Stöckli, climbs like these – alongside the single-track experience – are among the absolute highlights.

Any participants who wish to tackle the trails in this stunning setting under their own steam are welcome to join in the hard pedalling. All other participants, however, are free to use any lift or post bus services along the route, thereby making the stages a little easier.

The price of the tour has not yet been finalised, but there is already a detailed description of the stages on the website, listing all the services included: lukasstoeckli.ch

Tour information

• Length: 365 kilometres
• Ascent: 15,450 metres of elevation gain
• Riding technique: S2 – S3
• Price: on request
• Dates: 12–18 July and 25–31 July 2027

​The guide: Lukas Stöckli

For more than 25 years now, the former Swiss cross-country racer has been offering guided tours worldwide. His trademark: routes that no other tour operator offers. To achieve this, the trained gilder and master church painter meticulously studies the mountains on maps and cycles the routes until they are just right for his customers. The result is usually challenging tours that may occasionally include sections where riders have to carry their bikes over high-altitude terrain, but above all feature panoramic views and single-track descents that no participant is likely to forget in a hurry.