High Alps
The beginning of the modern history of Valais essentially coincides with the exploration of the High Alps, the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865 making the end of the golden age of alpinism. The boom of tourism followed in the late 19th century. In 1878, the Simplon Railway connected Brig, the last town before the Simplon Pass, from Lausanne and Geneva and other major cities of the Swiss Plateau.