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.