On foot · Central Valais · May 2026
Fully, Chiboz and the marble quarry
The only fine day of the Ascension weekend. At home the fields are under snow: so not too high, but with plenty of climbing: straight up from the Rhône plain.
- Date
- May 2026
- Distance
- 16.9 km
- Elevation gain
- 1,289 m
- Walking time
- 5 h 21 min
The route · indicative
The climb
The airy paths of Beudon
Parked in Fully, we headed up through the vines towards Beudon, a perched wine estate reached only by a tiny private cable car or by steep paths. The last stretch, sold as an easy yellow trail, is frankly airy: cables, ropes, and above all no looking down.
The Chiboz inn is a gem. Nettle soup for Emmanuelle, comforting macaroni for Christian, and the Rhône plain as far as the eye can see.
The descent
Saillon marble
Back via Randonne and the old marble quarry. Discovered in 1832, Saillon's cipolin, ivory veined with green and violet, adorned the Paris Opéra Garnier and the British Museum. The gaping galleries and rusty old machines are fascinating.
Then the countless bends of the Grand Dévaloir and two flat kilometres along the canal back to Fully. The worst part of the day, yet a loop we would do again.
