North Twin - North Face

The title of hardest alpine wall in the Canadian Rockies is a hotly contested one, with the North Face of Alberta and the Emperor Face of Robson in the running, but the crown probably goes to the incredible North Face of North Twin (technically the north face of Twins Tower). Since the first ascent in 1974 (Lowe-Jones, line 3) and especially the North Pillar (Blanchard-Cheesmond, 1985), there have been less than a dozen overall ascents, yet the face, with its endless vertical sweep of questionable limestone and ice flows, continues to attract the best climbers in the world.

Route List

1: Southeast Ridge of Twins Tower, PD 40°, Cranmer, Wiessner, 1938

2: Traverse of the Chickens, ED- 5.10 A3, Cheesmond, Friesen, 1982

3: Lowe-Jones, ED+ 5.10 A3, Jones, G. Lowe, 1974

4: House-Prezelj, ED+ 5.10 A3, House, Prezelj, 2004

5: North Pillar, ED+ 5.10d A2 60°, Blanchard, Cheesmond, 1985

6: Abrons Ridge, TD 5.7, Abrons, Carman, Millikan, 1965

7: Pullan-Welsted, TD 5.8 WI3, Pullan, Welsted, 2012

8: North Ridge of South Twin, PD+ 40°, Biner, Feuz, F. V. Field, W. O. Field, 1924

9: North Ridge of Daughter of South Twin, F

10: West Ridge of Son of North Twin, AD+ 5.6, Spero, Waterman, 1979

11: East Face of Mount Columbia, PD+ 40°, Kaufmann, Outram, 1902

12: North Ridge of Mount Columbia, TD 5.7 WI3, Jones, Thompson, 1970

13: Peuterey Integral of Choss, TD 5.7, Berg, Welsted, 2019