Mark Potter from UNITED STATES writes:

Climbed the North face of Hibriten Mountain. I started at the parking lot of. The Moose Lodge. Loggers had started a path up the North slope. While it wasnt well defined, it gave me a starting point. About a third of a mile, I attained an elevation of 400 ft. The North slope is quite steep, dotted with small caves and crevices. I had to stop briefly 2-3 times to catch my breath as the angle of climb becomes much more pronounced about half- way up the face. As I climbed toward the summit, the pitch became much more inclined and pronounced, so that by the time I had reached the lower rock face, I had to pull myself up by holding onto trees and limbs. The angle of climb is so steep, that one will easily slide several times down the face before reaching the first exposed rock.
I would rate the climb as an 8 on a level of 10 for difficulty. Once you have ascended to the exposed northern rocky outcrop, you are rewarded a view just below the summit that makes the strenuous effort all the worthwhile.
After hiking Hibriten many times, I found this to be the most challenging route. You need to be in peak condition to summit from this vantage point, as the traditional and well established dirt road to the summit is joke.

2012-03-27