FAMKE VAN DER ELST

How It All Began

I’m Famke van der Elst, founder of Mountful Hikes (Randonnées en Montagne), a certified International Mountain Leader (UIMLA) based in Val de Bagnes, near Verbier, Switzerland. I guide small-group hiking and snowshoeing trips across the Swiss and Italian Alps. This is the story of how a childhood dream became a life in the mountains.

A Question I Never Stopped Asking

I was five years old the first time I saw the mountains.

It was in Grächen, a small village in the Swiss Alps, just a few valleys from where I live today in Val de Bagnes, near Verbier.

We were there on a family ski holiday, and I absolutely loved skiing. But what stayed with me even more than the skiing was a question I asked my parents, completely seriously.

“Why don’t we just live in the mountains?”

I don’t remember what they answered.
I do remember looking up at the peaks and feeling, somehow, that this was where I belonged.
It was the kind of childhood dream most people quietly leave behind.

Mine never did.

The Years in Between

For a long time, though, that dream simply stayed in the background.

Life took me in different directions. I studied French and Law, spent some years in an office. Looking back, I can see that every step taught me something valuable. But none of those jobs ever gave me the same feeling I had standing in the mountains as a little girl.

What I didn’t realise at the time was that the mountains weren’t the dream.
It was the feeling they gave me.

During my student years, I joined the Student Alpine Club and started climbing, indoors at first, then gradually into the high mountains. I always kept finding ways back outdoors: teaching sailing, working as a ski instructor, and pushing myself on increasingly demanding routes.

The Moment Everything Changed

Until one day, high on Les Aiguilles d’Entrèves, a spectacular ridge on the Italian border. In winds that seemed determined to blow us off the mountain, I remember thinking:

“I’m glad my mum can’t see me.”

About fifteen minutes later another thought crossed my mind.

“Actually… I don’t want to see myself here either.”

That moment changed something. I realised I wasn’t searching for steeper climbs or greater exposure. I wasn’t trying to conquer mountains. What I loved was being in them.

The silence. The changing light. The conversations that only happen when people spend hours walking together. The feeling of becoming smaller while somehow becoming stronger.

That’s when everything suddenly made sense: I didn’t want to become an alpinist. I wanted to help other people experience the mountains the way I do.

Becoming a Mountain Leader

That decision eventually led me to become an International Mountain Leader and to earn the Swiss Federal Diploma (Brevet fédéral). I also completed additional T4 mountain training and examinations, not because I guide T4 hikes, but because the extra knowledge allows me to guide my guests with greater confidence whenever the terrain becomes a little more challenging.

Learning is still part of every season. Each year I refresh my first aid and avalanche training, and I maintain memberships with UIMLA, SBV and ASGM. I also continue studying alpine flowers, trees, birds and wildlife, because I believe every walk becomes richer when you understand the landscape around you.

Why Small Groups

Today I guide small groups because that’s where the magic happens.

Small groups leave room for conversations. For quiet moments. For changing the plan because the light is beautiful, or because someone wants to spend another ten minutes watching ibex on a distant ridge.

When I work with larger groups, I team up with trusted International Mountain Leaders or UIAGM mountain guides, depending on the terrain, so every guest receives the same level of personal attention.

And Then There’s Woody

My Golden Retriever is often part of the adventure. Somehow, he has an extraordinary talent for making people feel at ease. He reminds all of us that the best days in the mountains aren’t measured in kilometres or altitude gained, but in the moments you share along the way.

Why I Do This

People sometimes ask me why I left a successful corporate career.
The truth is, it doesn’t feel like I left anything behind.
Everything I’ve done, from teaching sailing and skiing to leading international business projects, has prepared me for what I do today.

Helping people discover places they never expected to reach.

Sometimes those places are on a map.
More often, they’re within themselves.

If, at the end of a trip, you return home with tired legs, a clear mind, renewed confidence and a head full of memories, then I’ve done exactly what I hoped to do.

During winter and summer I work with a small team of experienced guides. You can meet them here ->