Navigation Point 11. Steep Rock Climb

If you have taken the lower line, this is a useful place to look back at the map and locate the start of the Steep Rock Climb at Navigation Point 11. You will not have used that steep rock climb if you took the the lower route, but it is worth identifying on the map for future reference because it marks the point where the high traverse option reconnects with the Intermediate Ridge. Understanding where Navigation Point 11 sits on the map helps you make sense of how the high traverse and the main lower line relate to each other on the ground.

Navigation Point 11 is the Steep Rock Climb. On the map, it is reached where the lower route from Navigation Point 10 and the high traverse from Navigation Point 9 come back together. If you took the high traverse, this is the point where you rejoin the main line. If you took the lower route, you will have climbed back up from the base of the North West Pinnacle to reach this same point. On the map, this is also the point where you would access and begin the higher traverse if you were travelling from the Bluff Knoll end.

From Navigation Point 11, the yellow track shown on the map briefly heads west along the base of the North West Pinnacle. The view opens up to the south and you can see the western face of the North West Pinnacle. For a short distance the walking can feel easier and more relaxed. This short easier section can be misleading, because it does not last long. Use this point on the map as a chance to regroup, check that everyone is settled, and prepare for the next steep descent.

The next important instruction is the right turn. Do not continue straight along the Intermediate Ridge in a westerly direction. On the map, the correct route turns right and descends in a northerly to north westerly direction toward Navigation Point 12: Base of the red bluffs. This turn is marked on the map as the “Descent to Red Bluffs”.

The orange line shown on the map marks a false trail. This line continues along the Intermediate ridge toward its end, but it does not provide the correct descent route. If you follow the orange line on the map and continue along that ridge, you are drawn away from the main line and eventually reach ground where you cannot continue down safely. You will then need to turn back. This is why the right turn at the map label, “Descent to Red Bluffs” matters.

The contour lines on the map help explain the general shape of the ground, but they do not fully communicate how steep and awkward this descent feels on the ground. Although the map shows the slope tightening in places, the real terrain is more serious than the contour pattern may suggest. The ground drops away under your feet, the footing becomes more difficult, and near the bottom the descent steepens again into a short gully. This is a place to slow down and treat the ground as a small down climb rather than ordinary walking.

There used to be a rope in this last steep section, but it is no longer there. Do not assume there will be anything fixed to assist you. Use your hands where needed, test footholds before committing weight, and give each person enough space to move without pressure from the person behind.

The key point at the map label, “Descent to Red Bluffs” is to make the correct right turn. Do not follow the orange false trail to the end of the Intermediate Ridge. Use the map to confirm the route choice, turn right, descend toward the base of the red bluffs, and stay alert for the steep ground below.