Backpacking the Ruby Crest Traverse in the “Swiss Alps of Nevada”

If you’ve driven across Nevada on Highway 80, you’ve passed through the gold mining town of Elko. But you probably had no idea that thirty miles to the southeast, the majestic Ruby Mountains rise from scrubby sagebrush desert to a height of over 11,000 feet. 

The Rubys are called “The Swiss Alps of Nevada,” perhaps with a touch of humor. I mean, it’s still Nevada we’re talking about (no offense Nevada, I love you!). But it’s true, these mountains are one of the state’s most beautiful alpine landscapes, right up there with the Jarbidge Mountains.

I’ve been wanting to backpack the Ruby Crest Traverse, a 37-ish mile trail paralleling the range’s crest, for years now. But it’s a long way from my home in California. So when I learned we would be driving to Wyoming for a family get-together and passing through Elko on the way, I got busy making plans!

Here’s a quick trip report from our 4 day Ruby Crest Traverse backpack trip, plus logistical notes for those interested in planning your own hike on this unique trail.

Ruby Crest Trail At A Glance

Distance: 37 miles from Harrison Pass (south) to Road’s End Trailhead in Lamoille Canyon (north). This can be shortened by up to 2.8 miles if you drive a 4×4 vehicle down the rough dirt road, but most people (including the shuttle drivers) don’t.

Climb / descent: 10,6000 feet / 12,100 feet

Max / min elevation: 10,870 feet / 7,264 feet

Hiking season: July (or after most snow has melted) to mid-September (depending on when early storms arrive)

Permits: none (let’s Leave No Trace and keep it that way)

Highlights: dramatic mountains, gorgeous wildflowers in July, very uncrowded

Challenges: high elevation, heat and little shade, overgrown in some sections, 10+ miles without water, potential for challenging weather on exposed ridgeline

Logistics

Trailheads

Southern trailhead: Harrison Pass on National Forest Road 113. This road is paved most of the way from the west but turns to well-maintained gravel near the top. From the east it’s gravel all the way from Ruby Valley Road. There is a gravel pullout at the top where you could park a vehicle.

Northern trailhead: Road’s End Trailhead is a large and popular parking area at the end of paved Lamoille Canyon Road. This area is popular with day hikers and fills up on summer weekends. You can leave a vehicle here. There’s a pit toilet.

Which Direction?

Unless you’re going for a speed record, most people hike the Ruby Crest Trail from south to north. This saves the most scenic section, the southern half, for the end. It’s slightly more uphill this way, but there’s lots of climbing in both directions. 

Shuttle

As this is a point to point hike with remote trailheads (especially Harrison Pass), you’ll probably want to set up a vehicle shuttle. The easiest way is to hire one of the licensed shuttle drivers in the area.

We worked with Mia and Henry of hiddenlakeoutfitters.com and highly recommend them. Mia was even flexible enough to change dates at the last minute when we had car trouble on the way.

Maps and Navigation

The AllTrails app has an entry for the Ruby Crest Trail (you’ll need to pay the small fee for offline download, as you won’t have service on the trail). We used a combination of the AllTrails app and this GPX file from Caltopo imported into GaiaGPS.

Here’s the AllTrails map:

Weather

Expect typical summer mountain weather with potential for hot afternoons and chilly nights. Though we had perfectly clear skies, it’s always wise to check the forecast. The northern section in particular is above treeline on the ridge for quite awhile, and would be a bad place to get caught in a storm (especially an electrical storm).

My Impressions

The Ruby Crest Trail is well worth backpacking if you’re in the area. Would I drive 10 hours from my home just to do this trail? If I’m being honest, probably not. It’s interesting and scenic, but not quite as scenic as some of my favorite mountain hikes. Then again, I’ve been spoiled by some amazing trails in my lifetime.

The southern and northern halves are almost like different trails. The southern half is less maintained and a bit overgrown in places. Though the scenery is mountainous, it’s barren and lacks that special something connoisseurs of alpine terrain might be seeking. The north, from Overland Lake on up, is more classically alpine and what you’d expect from the “Swiss Alps of Nevada.”

Itinerary and Trip Notes

Itinerary:

• 7.5 miles, Harrison Pass Trailhead to McCutcheon(?) Creek, started late around 3pm
• 9.5 miles, McCutcheon Creek to Overland Lake
• 14.8 miles, Overland Lake to Favre Lake
• 5.5 miles, Favre Lake to Road’s End Trailhead

Total: 2 half days and 2 full days

Day 1: 7.5 miles, Harrison Pass to McCutcheon(?) Creek

After a late start due to car trouble, Mia dropped us off at the Harrison Pass Trailhead around 3pm and zoomed off down the dirt road. Just like that, we were alone in the middle of nowhere and ready to hike northward.

For 2.8 miles we followed the 4×4 road over steep rollers in the hot sun through a scrubby, shadeless landscape.

At the official trailhead the dirt road turns to OHV track, narrower and rougher, for a few more miles before the official singletrack begins. This section was a bit overgrown in places, something we’d get used to on this trail.

We had planned to camp at South Fork (several good campsites) or even Middle Fork (only one decent site that we saw). But due to our late start we were thrilled to find water earlier in McCutcheon Creek, which is not labeled on the map but there’s a wooden sign. We spent a nice night there in one of several good campsites, though the wildfire smoke blowing in from far away was a bummer.

After leaving the trailhead we didn’t see a single other person on the trail today!

Day 2: 9.5 miles, McCutcheon Creek to Overland Lake

Day 2 was a hot day of shadeless hiking through rugged, barren terrain. The color palate remained steadfastly green and brown, a bit scrubby in that Nevada-esque way, yet also alpine.

In some places the trail was overgrown, still easy to follow but scratchy on bare legs. The big climb dragged on, but at the top we were rewarded with views into the beautiful Overland Lake basin.

After a quick descent we were at the lake, where we saw a few tents – the first signs of other hikers since we’d left the trailhead! We had daylight left and thought about hiking a few more miles to shorten the following day, but knew we wouldn’t find water past 1.5 miles further and were unsure about campsites. So we stopped early and enjoyed the scenery at Overland Lake while resting up for the next day.

Day 3: 14.8 miles, Overland Lake to Favre Lake

This was the biggest and most exciting day of the traverse, with lots of miles above treeline on scenic ridgeline. It reminded me of parts of the Colorado Trail on a smaller scale.

It was a tough day, with no water for 10 miles and several steep climbs topping out about 10,000 feet. Still, our progress was faster than expected and we found ourselves at the spring 2.5 miles before Favre Lake with plenty of daylight left. We continued to Favre Lake for the night, where we found a number of good campsites and no other hikers.

Water info for this section:

In July we found several streams (all shown on our maps) within about 1.5 miles northbound of Overland Lake. We didn’t see any camping nearby though. We found water in the spring 2.5 miles before Favre Lake, making the dry stretch only 10 miles for us. We carried 4-5 liters each and used it all (it was hot).

If you hike later in the season, it’s possible these sources could be dry and you’d need to hike all the way from Overland Lake to Favre Lake to avoid dry camping. Campsites are few and far between on the ridgeline anyway, except a few small ones nestled among scraggly trees in exposed places.

Day 4: 5.5 miles, Favre Lake to Road’s End Trailhead

From Favre Lake we had one remaining climb up Liberty Pass, which went quickly on fresh legs. Liberty Lake would be a more scenic place to camp than Farve Lake, if you can manage the extra mileage the day prior.

From Liberty Pass we cruised the 3.5 miles and nearly 2000 feet of descent to the trailhead, feeling strong with our light packs. This was the only section of trail that felt busy, and it was a little overwhelming meeting so many day hikers after seeing almost no one on the rest of the trail.

Still, we enjoyed the last few miles and made it to our car before lunch, excited to head into Elko for burgers to celebrate our mini thru hike of the Ruby Crest Traverse!

More Backpacking Resources

If you liked this trip report, you might also like:

• Backpacking Eagle Cap Loop in Oregon’s Wallowa Mountains
• The Right Way to Poop in the Woods
• Lightweight Toiletries for Backpacking: What’s In My Kit

Or visit the backpacking section for lots more.