In the pipeline
Alpine Exploratory's exploration 2024-25

Alpine Exploratory exists as a system for exploration, systematised yet thoroughly human. This is the Exploratory system. For the moment we apply ourselves to the Alps, Scandinavia, the UK and Ireland.

News Summer 2024
Just in, at this time of much change, with people coming and going: this Summer we've made 3 visits to the GR52 in the Maritime Alps, 1 new visit to the Lofoten in Norway, and 2 new visits to the Davos-St Moritz area (and 1 to come soon). News of all three of these trips will follow soon!

Italian Dolomites
First season 2025
Info and booking available provisionally October 2024
Pete Ellis walked in 2023
Simon Stevens visited in 2023
Steph Ward will walk in September 2024

In July 2023, Pete walked the AV9 for Alpine Exploratory and supplied to us full Routecards and lots of great photos. We plan to offer the AV1, AV2 and AV9 in the Dolomites thus completing what we see as the 3 walking-compatible AVs of the full 10. It used to be 8 but they made 2 more! We'll have a page on this, with a map...

The tourist office in Belluno gave us a batch of guidebooks a few years ago, which got us thinking about these 10 Alte Vie. Or as it was then, 8. Some rule themselves out through lack of accommodation except bivouac huts (akin to bothies in the Scottish Highlands) or essential via ferrata sections. These three, however, the AV1, AV2 and AV9, are all viable to ordinary mortals.

New for 2025!
The Lofoten islands, Norway

Norway
First season 2025
Info and booking available provisionally October 2024
Simon Stevens visited in July 2022
Pete Ellis walked in July 2023
Nicky Mount walked in August 2024

Simon traveled through Lofoten in July 2022 with an eye on a long-distance trail. At that point we had in mind a week's walking from Svolvaer, island capital, to A in Lofoten, the village right at the end of everything. What we needed to investigate in detail were the start- and end-points of each day, the buses needed, and the accommodation along the route. After that visit we thought we would use 2 or 3 bases instead of moving on each night, as connections are sparse, and we then sent Pete to look at things more thouroughly. Pete's visit gave us some good walks but we will need a further visit, in 2024, to tie up details and explore some more. Lofoten is a very exacting place, especially if people go without a car and rely on walks and buses to reach places. We see it as like the Hebrides on steroids: beautiful islands but with even more planning needed!

South East Switzerland
First season 2025
Info and booking available provisionally October 2024
Simon Stevens visited in May 2024
Pete Ellis walked in July 2024
Lou Stone will walk in September 2024

We're all over the Engadine in Summer 2024, that enticing area of Switzerland (and the Canton known as Graubünden) that includes Davos and St Moritz. Team members Pete Ellis, Lou Stone and Simon Stevens will each visit separately across Summer 2024. The two towns Davos and St Moritz are about 4 days apart (by foot). As we are finding out, this makes an enticing mountain walk with one hut in the middle. Watch this space!

Southern France
First season 2027
Info and booking available provisionally October 2024
Simon Stevens visited in June 2024
Pete Ellis walked in July 2024
Lucy Harvey walked in July 2024

In 2024 we visit the Maritime Alps, those hills within a week's walking or so to the North of Nice in the South of France. Pete Ellis, Lucy Harvey and Simon Stevens have all visited separately in June/July, and we are thinking hard about how we'll offer this week-long partial-GR52 trail for 2025.

The Southern location gives us a mountains-to-the-sea adventure in warm heat. The railway runs from Turin to Ventimiglia in Italy; and the towns of Nice, Monaco and Menton are in reach at the end.

One key hut will be closed in 2026 for a refit, and because of the weight of new trips we're introducing, we'll put this GR52 back to a 2027 start. Please ask us about it in the meantime!

Looking further ahead now...

German, Austrian and Italian Alps
First season (provisionally) 2026
Pete Ellis walking in 2024

2024 is the time for us to cross the Alps North to South. This is the Munchen-Venedig, or Munich to Venice. It's also known as the Traumfpad, ' Dreamway'. There are various routes which achieve the objective. In Germany it's a big trek, a natural link over the mountains, a fixture in people's map of mountains in their minds. The full Munich to Venice would be 4 weeks long, of which the first and last weeks are relatively flat, and of which the middle two weeks are the most interesting. Our route will, we hope, cross the Adlerweg just South of Innsbruck and carry on to the Zillertal area outside Mayrhofen, then take in some of the AV2 in the Dolomites before crossing to the AV1 to its finish near Belluno.

(Experience the crossing of the Alps a little faster by trekking our Alta Via 1, flying into Munich and out of Venice. Take the train from Munich to Dobbiaco, then trek the AV1 from Dobbiaco to Belluno, and take the bus from Belluno to Venice.)

Ireland
First season (provisionally) 2026

Adding to our option in Ireland of the Kerry Way, we hope to tackle the Dingle Way on the peninsula just to the North. This would be a coastal and mountainous trail of roughly 8 stages, starting and finishing in Tralee.

Sweden
First season (provisionally) 2027

To add to our coverage of Sweden, besides the Kungsleden, we envisage a trip in a loop from the famous ski town of Åre. Pronounced more like Ureh, Åre is on the train from Stockholm and the relatively nearby main town of Ostersund. Fights go to Ostersund, or the whole thing is an easy day's train from Stockholm.

Iceland
First season (provisionally) 2027

To the East of Reykjavik, Iceland's capital, we find this 4-day trek from Landmannalaugar to Þórsmörk. We suspect that we will find self-catering huts, which might limit the appeal of this route, but we hope that the volvanic landscapes will give great appeal. At this stage, we will merely have a look, having been to Iceland for our 2019 team trip.

Please ask us for more information on any of our routes. Thank you.

Guided & self-guided holidays