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The Walker’s Haute Route comes through Le Châble, as does the Tour du Val de Bagnes, a fairly demanding six–seven day trek which adopts some dramatic trails that seek out a number of incomparable vantage points.

With the option of a start by cableway, and with six huts and a hotel from which to choose accommodation, the TVB enables walkers to select their own itinerary. The first stage, for example, could be spent mounting the steep 1600m of hillside above Le Châble to reach Cabane du Mont Fort. But an alternative would be to ride the gondola to Verbier, thus avoiding the main climb, then take another to Les Ruinettes, and walk past the Mont Fort Hut to spend the first night at Cabane de Louvie. At a later stage of the Tour, there’s the option of having a short day’s walk from the Panossière Hut to Cabane Brunet, or of continuing to Cabane du Col de Mille. Much will depend on weather conditions, time available, and the fitness of the individual walker.

Day 1: From Le Châble cross the river to nearby Villette and take a series of linking footpaths up the steep slope to Les Verneys, and on to the suntrap of Clambin, where there’s a restaurant. Above this the way continues to climb over open slopes, until a bisse is joined which leads round the hillside, and from which a final uphill drag brings you to Cabane du Mont Fort (2457m), about 6–6½hrs from Le Châble.