Kit Carson North Ridge Beta: the scary factor

[gbateman25]

All right--straight to the point: how scary is the north Ridge?

I'm confident in my class 4 ability and routefinding, so I'm not nearly so concerned about the technical aspects, but if I take on the route, I want to make sure I'm not gonna get in over my head.

I've done freeway on the second flatiron 6 of 7 times and have done crestone Needle last summer for reference points.

[notidealbutfine]

It's quite exposed, steep and sustained overall, but the rock is solid, the route finding is easy and it stays right at class 4. One of my favorite routes in the Sangres.

[bdloftin77]

I think you’d be okay. You can also bail to climber’s left of the ridge direct to continue upward on less intimidating terrain. The couple hardest cruxes can be easily bypassed if desired. I really enjoyed this route as well.

[hellmanm]

The North Ridge kinda freaked me out. You're in a no-fall zone for a very long time, and you can really feel the exposure. It felt like free soloing on a less vertical wall. As others have said, the rock quality is great, but at least for me I felt much safer on Capitol than on Kit.

Re: cruxes -- it's worth the homework to look at bailouts. I bailed onto the standard route just before the final crux and was very glad that I did.

[Joey_parm]

If you're confident in your class 4 ability and route founding as you mention, you'll be fine. I'm far from a "climber" by any means and I did this as my first C4 and had a blast. The rock is great. Didn't notice any "cruxes" and there are a number of very narrow ledges where you can just stand, take a break, and plan your next moves. Coming down Challenger was harder for me tbh. I recall there is a TR by JQDivide that I also cross-referenced.

[Been_Jammin]

The North Ridge is a stellar scramble. Should be the standard route IMO. You're stated scrambling resume is more than sufficient to feel confident tackling it. There are so many bomber ledges throughout the ridge to take a beat. This route would be a mega classic if it had a shorter approach and easy downclimb.

[MichaelWG]

I'll add a data point to the pile in case it's helpful. I did it years ago with 4 of my climbing friends - all of them were probably 5.10ish gym climbers who would could lead 10s outside but not super confidently (if that means anything to you). Two of us cruised it (incidentally the two of us who frequent the Freeway on the 2nd flatiron), two others were spooked at times but got through it fine (same two I did the Crestone Traverse with, who found the cruxes scary), and one who was pretty freaked out most of the way (although he never really handled scrambles well - he thought people should rope up for class 4 climbs).

I agree with the other commenters that the route finding felt super straightforward - just follow the ridge to the top. IMO the holds were way bigger / more positive than what you get on the Freeway, and it just felt easier overall. If you are comfortable on the Freeway you should be good, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to bring a partner for moral support.

IMO, it's a great route and I've often thought that if were as accessible as the 2nd flatiron it would be mobbed. Have a good time!

[seano]

I'll add a data point to the pile in case it's helpful. I did it years ago with 4 of my climbing friends - all of them were probably 5.10ish gym climbers who would could lead 10s outside but not super confidently (if that means anything to you). Two of us cruised it (incidentally the two of us who frequent the Freeway on the 2nd flatiron), two others were spooked at times but got through it fine (same two I did the Crestone Traverse with, who found the cruxes scary), and one who was pretty freaked out most of the way (although he never really handled scrambles well - he thought people should rope up for class 4 climbs).

This matches my experience: how hard you climb with a rope is only somewhat correlated with how hard you climb without one. This is true for both lead and toprope grades, though a good "lead head" tends to make you a better scrambler. As @hellmanm mentioned above, falling means death for quite a bit of it, so you have to have a good sense of when you are solid. Falling on a flight of stairs would be pretty painful, but most people don't think about that at all.

I've rarely been a 5.10 climber, but I have spent a lot of time scrambling, and that has given me a good sense of what I can do safely. When I was doing the north ridge of KC, I was grabbing knobs and exulting in how awesome and solid the climbing felt. If I had been looking down and thinking of how my body would bounce if I fell, it would not have been a good climb.

[MichaelWG]

This matches my experience: how hard you climb with a rope is only somewhat correlated with how hard you climb without one.

Yea on second pass I probably just complicated things by bringing up climbing grades. I've met people who have never roped up for a climb in their lives but that scramble things that give me serious pause; likewise I know 5.12 climbers who stick clip the first bolt on every climb they do because they don't see a point in risking a sprained ankle.

I'll just add to the chorus of people saying that if you've done the Freeway 6-7 times and aren't freaked out by it, Kit Carson should feel easy in comparison. (And fun!)

[CaptainSuburbia]

All right--straight to the point: how scary is the north Ridge?

I'm confident in my class 4 ability and routefinding, so I'm not nearly so concerned about the technical aspects, but if I take on the route, I want to make sure I'm not gonna get in over my head.

I've done freeway on the second flatiron 6 of 7 times and have done crestone Needle last summer for reference points.

You'll do fine and I highly recommend. I did it with 2 guys on their first 14er. They had no idea what they were getting into and crushed it. It's probably a top 5 14er route.

[LetsGoMets]

Great route, but committing. For my risk tolerance, downclimbing is a no-go, so once your on, you're on. It's a classic though.

[ultimategully]

OP, I posted a similar question about the little bear hourglass route before I hiked that last year so I am squarely in your camp of asking for scary-factor beta first before trying stuff. As a frequent flatiron scrambler myself, I always compare any scrambly hiking route beta to my experience on the flattys and at this point none of the standard(ish) routes I have hiked have even compared in difficulty or scariness.