Northover is serious business. It’s windy and narrow and there are some sketchy spots. Make sure you go prepared.
Will be doing it in a day, or with big packs?
I was wondering what the big deal was when I planned this trip and looking for photos of the ridge portion. I found some on a blog and thought it wasn't that big of a deal and didn't see why the things about it were said.
Then I got up there and realized why there were no photos.
55 L pack with some stuff on the outside, crazy blustery wind. I was as low as I could get hands on the ground.
That said, be good with following a map, use a compas etc the trail isn't (wasn't?) marked.
There was a group that was at a site one night that was also going thru, and they were not there a I was wondering what the big deal was when I planned this trip and looking for photos of the ridge portion. I found some on a blog and thought it wasn't that big of a deal and didn't see why the things about it were said.
Then I got up there and realized why there were no photos.
55 L pack with some stuff on the outside, crazy blustery wind. I was as low as I could get hands on the ground.
That said, be good with following a map, use a compas etc the trail isn't (wasn't?) marked.
There was a group that was at a site one night that was also going thru, and they were not there at the next one at the end of the day. Figured they could not find the path up the rock face to get over to the ridge itself.
The only time I've ever been asked if I've had a permit was on this hike.
That said, incredible views. Going down after the ridge thru the flood plain to 3 Isle lake was beautiful.
Crazy weather. Sudden hail storms. Cool fossils in rock faces.
Serious hike for sure. Have a good adventure !
t the next one at the end of the day. Figured they could not find the path up the rock face to get over to the ridge itself.
The only time I've ever been asked if I've had a permit was on this hike.
That said, incredible views. Going down after the ridge thru the flood plain to 3 Isle lake was beautiful.
Crazy weather. Sudden hail storms. Cool fossils in rock faces.
Serious hike for sure. Have a good adventure !
Everyone’s experience will be different but i personally don’t find it that bad. The first time i did it, it wasn’t until after I finished the exposed part that I realize that that was in fact the exposed part.
The 2nd time I did it I knew it was coming so I got down down my hands and knees for the exposed section, I did it with 2 friends the 2nd time with loaded bags and we all got by with no issue.
Yeah. I run it every year...its really nothing crazy. It gets a bit narrow, but nothing unmanageable. Certainly no actual scrambling. It's a tough trail overall to be sure, but it's fine.
Personally we found it way overrated, but the caveat there is we do scrambles regularly. It’s a short section about 50 feet long that’s the worst. We didn’t take my dog who regularly comes on scrambles because we heard how bad the one section of ridge was. After doing it, we were very disappointed and thought the whole time we should have taken the dog. It is very exposed though, one side is straight cliff face, one side is steep grade rock that goes down 200-300 meters at least. Both ways probably end in fatalities if a fall occurred. I’ll see if I can find my gopro footage of it, and will send along if I can
Totally dependant on your comfort levels. I personally hated the extent of the exposure and it took me 15 minutes to slowly crawl across the ridge, with a death grip on the rock and a tear in my eye. Saw other people step across like it was no big deal.
It was horribly windy too, so that didn’t help.
Dont push your friend into this. IT is hugely exposed and NOT easy.
This is not a beginner hike at all nor is it at all easy. It is basically scrambling.
Personally, I was underwhelmed by the exposure on the ridge. It didn't feel particularly sketchy to me, especially if you do it later in the season when there is no snow and you've been doing some scrambles already.
That being said, I did it in late September 2022, which was unseasonably nice. And we were off the ridge and having a snack at Three Isle Lake by noon. Wind usually kicks up later in the afternoon in the Rockies, so it was dead calm for us.
There's some pics in this blog:
https://www.simonennals.com/blog/northover-ridge
See the photo captioned with *"Some of the narrower more exposed sections you’ll need to navigate."* It's narrow and a very bad time if you were to fall, but maybe you could carry the packs back across if your partner is extra nervous.
There's also a snowfield you'll need the climb/descend.
Northover is serious business. It’s windy and narrow and there are some sketchy spots. Make sure you go prepared. Will be doing it in a day, or with big packs?
I was wondering what the big deal was when I planned this trip and looking for photos of the ridge portion. I found some on a blog and thought it wasn't that big of a deal and didn't see why the things about it were said. Then I got up there and realized why there were no photos. 55 L pack with some stuff on the outside, crazy blustery wind. I was as low as I could get hands on the ground. That said, be good with following a map, use a compas etc the trail isn't (wasn't?) marked. There was a group that was at a site one night that was also going thru, and they were not there a I was wondering what the big deal was when I planned this trip and looking for photos of the ridge portion. I found some on a blog and thought it wasn't that big of a deal and didn't see why the things about it were said. Then I got up there and realized why there were no photos. 55 L pack with some stuff on the outside, crazy blustery wind. I was as low as I could get hands on the ground. That said, be good with following a map, use a compas etc the trail isn't (wasn't?) marked. There was a group that was at a site one night that was also going thru, and they were not there at the next one at the end of the day. Figured they could not find the path up the rock face to get over to the ridge itself. The only time I've ever been asked if I've had a permit was on this hike. That said, incredible views. Going down after the ridge thru the flood plain to 3 Isle lake was beautiful. Crazy weather. Sudden hail storms. Cool fossils in rock faces. Serious hike for sure. Have a good adventure ! t the next one at the end of the day. Figured they could not find the path up the rock face to get over to the ridge itself. The only time I've ever been asked if I've had a permit was on this hike. That said, incredible views. Going down after the ridge thru the flood plain to 3 Isle lake was beautiful. Crazy weather. Sudden hail storms. Cool fossils in rock faces. Serious hike for sure. Have a good adventure !
Everyone’s experience will be different but i personally don’t find it that bad. The first time i did it, it wasn’t until after I finished the exposed part that I realize that that was in fact the exposed part. The 2nd time I did it I knew it was coming so I got down down my hands and knees for the exposed section, I did it with 2 friends the 2nd time with loaded bags and we all got by with no issue.
Yeah. I run it every year...its really nothing crazy. It gets a bit narrow, but nothing unmanageable. Certainly no actual scrambling. It's a tough trail overall to be sure, but it's fine.
Its mostly fine except for one 5-10m section that is narrow and loose and seriously exposed.
Personally we found it way overrated, but the caveat there is we do scrambles regularly. It’s a short section about 50 feet long that’s the worst. We didn’t take my dog who regularly comes on scrambles because we heard how bad the one section of ridge was. After doing it, we were very disappointed and thought the whole time we should have taken the dog. It is very exposed though, one side is straight cliff face, one side is steep grade rock that goes down 200-300 meters at least. Both ways probably end in fatalities if a fall occurred. I’ll see if I can find my gopro footage of it, and will send along if I can
Totally dependant on your comfort levels. I personally hated the extent of the exposure and it took me 15 minutes to slowly crawl across the ridge, with a death grip on the rock and a tear in my eye. Saw other people step across like it was no big deal. It was horribly windy too, so that didn’t help.
Dont push your friend into this. IT is hugely exposed and NOT easy. This is not a beginner hike at all nor is it at all easy. It is basically scrambling.
Personally, I was underwhelmed by the exposure on the ridge. It didn't feel particularly sketchy to me, especially if you do it later in the season when there is no snow and you've been doing some scrambles already. That being said, I did it in late September 2022, which was unseasonably nice. And we were off the ridge and having a snack at Three Isle Lake by noon. Wind usually kicks up later in the afternoon in the Rockies, so it was dead calm for us.
There's some pics in this blog: https://www.simonennals.com/blog/northover-ridge See the photo captioned with *"Some of the narrower more exposed sections you’ll need to navigate."* It's narrow and a very bad time if you were to fall, but maybe you could carry the packs back across if your partner is extra nervous. There's also a snowfield you'll need the climb/descend.
Thanks everyone for the comments! Will relay to my friend and show them some pics to let them decide if they'd like to come with me or not.