The Sisters South to North Sister Traverse

Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, NV Spring Mountains

Trip stats

Distance
6.5 mi
Net Gain
2,900 ft
Time
4-6 hrs
YDS Rating
Class 3
Route
Loop
Peaks
3

Ratings out of 10

Effort
4.8/10
Personality
6/10
Beauty
7/10
Solitude
5.6/10
What do these mean? →

Peaks on this hike

Summits listed in route order

Ridgeline of the 3 summits in route order 01 02 03
  1. South Sister
    10,197′ elevation · 828′ prominence
  2. North Sister
    10,043′ elevation · 348′ prominence
  3. Black Rock Sister
    9,669′ elevation · 122′ prominence

Route map + Trailhead

Trailhead Coordinates

36.319930, -115.675170

The directions link below drops a pin on the trailhead coordinates and lets Google Maps pick the route. If the drive has rough roads or access issues that GPS nav might get wrong, I cover that in my trip report.

Get directions (opens Google Maps in a new tab)

Trip report

Jun 25, 2019 — A few weeks ago, we did the more difficult Macks Peak Traverse, and The Sisters Traverse looked quite nice. You could link the two and make a big loop, but we were happy to do Macks and The Sisters as separate hikes.

Starting from the Old Mill Picnic Area within Lee Canyon, we headed up a closed paved road, then continued west on an unmarked trail. After about a half mile of easy walking, the route leaves the main trail and heads up a drainage to the northwest. The social trail continues up, getting progressively more steep, to the west ridge of The Sisters. We followed the ridge and pulled a single Class 3 move for the summit block, making a quick detour to a sub-peak to the south to get a view of Charleston Peak.

The traverse then began, and it was really quite fun. A wide Class 2 knife-edge led north, dropping to the right when it became too steep. Cairns led along the right side of the ridge, where a Class 3 slabby ledge with some respectable exposure marked the crux of the day. The route continued on the left side of the ridge now, rarely touching the crest, and dropped down onto the western slopes of The Sisters – North. We continued side-hilling to the west ridge, pulling an wasy Class 3 move and following the ridge up to the summit.

From the summit of The Sisters – North, we continued southeast down the awful, loose, steep slope and worked over to Black Rock Sister, a small blip that marked the end of the traverse for us. We headed back and took the standard gully, also extremely steep. Maybe taking one of the ridges would have been a better and less-eroding alternative? The gully social trail was hard to follow at times, but it eventually leads back to Lee Canyon Road, which we followed back to the car.

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Photos

42 photos

  1. After leaving the Old Mill Picnic Area, we followed a paved road for a bit.
  2. The paved road curved south, and we took this unmarked, but obvious trail leading farther west.
  3. The trail previously pictured continued to an unknown destination, a social trail leading northwest up another drainage.
  4. The social trail continued relatively steeply to a saddle.
  5. Almost at the saddle, looking south back the way we came. Charleston Peak visible behind Austin.
  6. At the saddle, located west of The Sisters south. This view is looking east along the ridge we'd follow.
  7. Following the ridge toward The Sisters South, Charleston Peak on the right.
  8. The Sisters South visible left, Mummy Mountain on the right.
  9. Getting closer along the ridgeline to The Sisters South.
  11. A steep section of loose rock just below The Sisters South.
  12. Interesting moss stuff against the pretty white limestone stuff.
  13. Austin coming up the Class 2 steep stuff to the summit.
  14. Class 2+ bit to the summit of The Sisters South.
  15. The Sisters South, view north. Macks Peak on the left, North Sister on the right.
  16. Austin along the north ridge of The Sisters South, North Sister visible on the right. We had to leave the ridge we're on by scrambling off to the right for a section, avoiding a cliff.
  17. Austin coming down the right side of the ridge to avoid a cliff. We kept just right of the ridge for a while.
  18. Keeping right led us to this somewhat sketchy ledge system.
  19. Austin navigating the ledge system. No move were particularly hard, but the exposure is clear.
  20. Continuing along the ridge, North Sister visible on the right.
  21. We had to leave the ridge a few times to avoid cliffs.
  22. Along the ridge, North Sister ahead. Our route would follow just below the ridge, and to the slant in the center of this photo (the northwest ridge of North Sister). The cliffs ahead are impassable.
  23. Class 3 downclimb along the ridge.
  24. Annnndd back off the cliffy ridge again, just left of the sketchy stuff.
  25. Some side-hilling, but nothing too annoying. This was necessary because we needed to get around to the north west ridge of North Sister to avoid cliffs.
  26. Looking back toward The Sisters South as we work over to the northwest ridge of North Sister.
  27. Heading up the northwest ridge of North Sister.
  28. Approaching the summit of North Sister, view northwest toward Macks Peak.
  29. North Sister, view south. The Sisters North ahead on the right, Charleston center, Mummy left.
  30. North Sister, view west, Macks right, McFarland and Bonanza left.
  31. North Sister, view northeast toward Black Rock Sister, our next destination.
  32. A dumb, loose, awful slope led down the northeast slope of North Sister.
  33. Looking back up the loose slope.
  34. Looking back along the ridge toward North Sister on our way to Black Rock Sister.
  35. Black Rock Sister ahead. The saddle ahead is our descend route later.
  36. Black Rock Sister.
  37. Class 3 to get to the summit.
  38. Austin on Black Rock Sister summit.
  39. Back at the saddle, we headed southeast down a gully.
  40. Erosion - maybe there's a better way down?
  41. Continuing down the steep slope, Mummy Mountain ahead on the left.
  42. Approaching the Lee Canyon Road, Mummy Mountain looming above. We took the road back to the car at the Old Mill Picnic Area.

Photo 1 of 1

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GPX track

The Sisters South to North Sister Traverse GPX route and driving track

The complete GPX track is available to download, so you can load the route straight into your navigation app or device. The trip report, route info, photos and planning details stay free.

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