VIAG - Rugged

Vancouver Island Alpine Guide
Rugged Mountain - 1859m/6100'

On Vancouver Island only Colonel Foster exceeds Rugged Mountain's mountaineering potential. Due to its northern location and difficult access, Rugged has not received the attention it deserves. Recent logging has made the Woss Lake Canoe approach obsolete and allows one to drive directly to the base of the Southwest Face. This makes Rugged feasible as a day trip instead of the 3 day thrash it used to be. The rock on the lower half of Rugged is solid and granitic, while upper half is a foamed reddish rock, laden with crystals, that is amazingly solid.

Access

0km	Junction of North Island Highway and Zeballos Road.
9.4	Left up hill.
25.2	Strait; Artlish Main on right.
32.9	Left a cross bridge over the Zeballos River and up the Nomash Main.
40.2	Left up steep side branch; N20. It will be necessary to park 2 wheel drive cars here and hike 3.9km to the end of the road.
41.4	Left up switch back.
44.1	Park around to the right to reach the other side of the hanging valley.

The currently preferred access to the main peaks is from the Nomash valley. About 33 km from the pavement of the Island highway, en route to Zeballos, a sharp left turn leads across a bridge over the Zeballos river. This is Nomash main, and it crosses the Nomash within 1km. About 7.3 km from the Zeballos R., just after you emerge from the second-growth forest and pass a waterfall, a steep heavily eroded spur (N-20) leads up on the left. It goes to the hanging valley immediately beneath Rugged Mountain. The stream that drains this valley is Nathan Creek. Do not cross it. Hike N-20 until it levels out in the upper valley at about 670m.

Above the clearcut to your left is a rock bluff. Ascend left of this to pick up the standard approach route. Ascend to the ridge top and follow it toward the mountain, keeping right to avoid difficulties. Look for flagging. At about the 1200m level traverse NE across a snow or boulder/scree basin and scramble up limestone outcrops to reach the col (1560m) immediadely N of Rugged Mt.Allow five hours from Nomash main.This is the edge of the biggest glacier of the group. There is room to camp here, and usually water is easily found. Please be careful disposing of human wastes.

East Ridge

FA: George Lepore and Chuck Smitson; September 1959.

From North Col access, cross glacier to join low east end of east ridge. (Out a little further is an old Geographical Survey cairn.) Follow ridge over two bumps to summit. Class 4/low 5. Early in summer it is possible to shortcut up the north side of the E ridge missing the larger of the bumps by climbing steep snow to a notch. There can be a tricky moat.

Don Berryman and Wendy Richardson on the East Ridge of Rugged Mountain.
Sandy Briggs

East Ridge from Woss Lake

This is the first ascent route, and is recommended for those who haven't had their full of Vancouver Island bush.

South West Face

FA: Sandy Briggs and Don Berryman; June 20, 1987

Access from Nomash spur N-20 . Follow dry stream bed to meadow at base of face. Scramble to main ledge which crosses the whole face (snow early in season). South to highest point of ledge (just before cataract from upper snow funnel). Ascend left on slabs (mostly), skirting the cedar copse on left. Go right above same to snow patch (seasonal) thence to notch behind a stubby gendarme. Left again and then up to a steep rightward ramp (5.5). Go right and up vegetated gully to top of a small attached pillar (5.6). Climb in or below a curving line of cedars to an edge near the cataract.A scend left of cataract to a scoop. Rock changes to reddish and crystalline. Slightly up and left is the start of the class 4 rib that leads directly to the summit.About 25 pitches.

SW Face Johnson/Newman Route Ascend left of the Briggs/Berryman route toward a prominent split in the upper mid face. Continue up along right side of this split (some loose rock/poor protection) to base of the "great arete", a prominent gray feature left of the upper snow funnel. Climb right through a small cave. They attempted the arete but it got difficult and impossible to protect. Up right to join other route.

Rick Johnson, Don Newman June 3-4,1989

South West Face of Rugged Mountain showing route.
Sandy Briggs

The Gendarmes - 1658m

A double-topped pinnacle immediately NW of Rugged Mt.

No verified ascents. It may be that one or two parties have climbed these by mistake in thick cloud. No recent verification of a cairn.

"Peak 5900" - 1813m/5900'

FA Sandy Briggs, John Pratt, Dennis Manke - Sept 22/23 1990

Referred to as Merlon in a Bushwhacker article. We'd like to drop this name. Actually refers to three peaks NW of Rugged Mt at the western extremity of the main glacier, Pk.5900 #1 (1813m), Pk. 5900 #2 (1800m), and Pk. 5800 (1782m)

Southernmost (1782m) was reached by scrambling up a gully from western approach basin and traversed S to N. The second of these (1800m) was reached by downclimbing N off the first and rappelling to the glacier. A more logical approach might be to traverse N from the Rugged Mt. N col along the top of the glacier,though this is steep and generally requires crampons. Straightforward low class 5 climbing leads to the summit.

For the third (northmost) peak ascend on glacier to notch between middle and this summit. A short class 5 section followed by scrambling gives the summit (1813m).