Ridge trail on the Kriváň Section of Malá Fatra Mountains

Upper Považie Region

The ridge trail on the Kriváň section of the Malá Fatra Mountains starts in Nezbudská Lúčka and ends in Zázrivá. The red hiking trail, passable in both directions, crosses all the most famous peaks of this mountain range – Suchý, Malý Kriváň, Veľký Kriváň, Chleb, Poludňový Grúň, Stoh, and Veľký Rozsutec. Its total length along the ridge is almost 35 km and there are two huts on the trail where you can spend the night. One is located roughly halfway along the trail below the Chleb summit, and it is an ideal place to spend the night when crossing the ridge in order to save time and energy. The trail is generally easy to follow and pole markings help you to find your way in the highest sections of the ridge. The Malá Fatra ridge is also accessible in winter, but conditions are very challenging, so we recommend using crampons and trekking poles. After heavy snowfall, certain parts of the trail can be very hard to pass. We recommend hiking the trail in any season, but only in good weather conditions. Keep in mind that the weather on the ridge is unpredictable and very often windy. How to get there? The trail starts in Nezbudská Lúčka and steeply climbs to Suchý, passing by a cottage located below this peak. The section between Suchý and Priehyb Saddle is among the most beautiful parts of the ridge trail. Despite the technical difficulty of walking on a narrow trail that winds between rocky formations towering above steep slopes, it offers almost everything a hiker could want. The trail leads through mountain pastures all the way to Snilovské Saddle (Snilovské sedlo), only occasionally passing through dense dwarf pine vegetation. If you want to stop at the second cottage located below Chleb, you need to make a moderately steep descent, because it is not situated directly on the ridge. From there, the trail continues towards Poludňový Grúň and Stoh. From Stoh, it goes on to the Medziholie Saddle and then to Veľký Rozsutec. From there, it goes on to the Medzirozsutce Saddle and Zákres Saddle. At the latter, you can turn off to Malý Rozsutec. From Zákres Saddle, the trail descends along the red-marked path all the way to Zázrivá. If you only want to climb part of the ridge, we recommend the less demanding trail from Snilovské Saddle to Malý Kriváň. Alternatively, you could do the challenging all-day hike from Nezbudská Lúčka to Snilovské Saddle, or the moderately demanding half-day route from Snilovské Saddle via Chleb and Hromové to Poludňový Grúň and then descend via the cottage to Vrátna. Seasonal closure Part of the Kriváň section of the Malá Fatra Mountains is closed from 1 March to 15 June, namely the red-marked trail leading from Medziholie via Veľký Rozsutec to Medzirozsutce. Parking There are several parking areas in Nezbudská Lúčka, behind the village, but keep in mind that the access road is narrow, poorly maintained, and full of hikers during the season.

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