The King of the 4 Vallées : Mont Fort's Biggest Lines

Switzerland's biggest ski area, the 4 Vallées, has something for just about every skier, from cruisy pistes to steep and extreme freeride lines. The jewel in the 4 Vallées impressive crown is Mont Fort - the highest point in the area and a contender for the most beautiful place in Switzerland. That's a big claim but when you've taken in the huge views of Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn and just about everything in between, you'll be hard pushed to disagree!

The views are spectacular from Mont Fort and so is the skiing - the variety of lines accessed from the peak is extraordinary and all of them are challenging. Even descending the standard itinerary route (marked as the Mont Fort piste but actually bearing minimal resemblance to a piste) down the mountain's west face is a career highlight for many skiers and will, unless you're lucky enough to ski it immediately after snowfall, put your mogul skills to the test.

The most famous line off Mont Fort is arguably "Mont Fort - Backside", a long and incredibly scenic adventure through some wild terrain which takes you down to the Siviez dam and on again to Siviez village itself. For those who want even more adventure from the trip to Siviez, the "Jacob's Ladder" variant, which also takes you onto the Glacier du Mont Fort, is excellent. If that's still not enough, then the "Phantom Couloir" and "Mont Fort North Face" lines are amongst the most extreme in the 4 Vallées.

The final series of lines in here take you to the legendary Bec de Rosses - the location for the Freeride World Tour's annual culmination, and one of the best known extreme faces in the Alps.

Suffice to say that your first trip up Mont Fort will not be your last!