Turn north onto Allison Creek Road from Highway 3, 28.9 kilometres east of the junction with Highway 43 in Sparwood, BC or 6.1 kilometres west of the intersection with 86 Street in Coleman.  Drive 2.7 kilometres (pavement ends) to the turnoff for Chinook Lake and keep right.  Drive another 2.2 kilometres to reach Atlas Staging Area (vault toilets available).  From the staging area, continue driving north for 9.4 kilometres to a junction with an ATV road branching right.  Park here.  In dry conditions, a 2WD vehicle should be able to make it to the ATV junction, but high clearance is recommended due to the many potholes and a few rutted spots along the way.

Following the ATV road, Zosia and I immediately hopped over a small creek and climbed up a short hill before settling into a gradual descent to a four-way junction about 1.2 kilometres from the start.  Although there were certainly a lot of wet and muddy sections throughout, the ATV road was still in good enough shape for walking, and the few problematic mud holes we encountered were easily circumvented.  At the four-way junction, we followed Sinister 7 course markers along the branch heading southeast and began climbing steadily for the next three kilometres to a creek crossing.  Some lingering snow patches along this stretch did not impede our progress, but we did notice fresh bear tracks going the same way.  After crossing the creek on a supportive snow patch, we climbed steeply for a little more than half a kilometre to reach the crest of Seven Sisters Mountain's north ridge.  At this point, we abandoned the ATV road and hiked northward along the crest of the ridge.  There is a slight dip and some light forest to navigate along the ridge, but otherwise, we had no serious difficulties hiking the rest of the way to the high point of Seven Sisters North Outlier.  A brisk wind made it too uncomfortable to linger on the high point, and we retreated a short distance before taking shelter on the lee side of the ridge for a short break.

When we resumed hiking, Zosia and I more or less retraced our steps back to the ATV road.  Once we regained the road, we simply backed out the way we came without any issues.

Zosia leaves the parked car and begins hiking on an ATV road.

The morning sun illuminates cloud-covered Window Mountain (left) and Mount Ward (right).

 

	At an important junction, Zosia follows markers for the Sinister 7 Ultra race.  Seven Sisters North Outlier is visible in the background.
	This is one of the few problematic mud holes along the ATV road.
	There is some fresh evidence of a bear following the same ATV road.
	This is one of the steeper sections to climb along the ATV road.
	Zosia snacks on some peanuts after gaining the ridge crest north of Seven Sisters Mountain.
	Zosia abandons the ATV road and heads north along the ridge crest.  Seven Sisters North Outlier is visible straight ahead.

The ridge makes a slight dip here before rising to the high point.

 

	Sonny tries on what appears to be goat horns found by Zosia. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	The final approach to the top is wide open and easy.
	Sonny and Zosia give thumbs up on the high point of Seven Sisters North Outlier (2307 metres).
	To the southeast are McGillivray Ridge and Ma Butte.

As she leaves the high point, Zosia gets a glorious view of Crowsnest Mountain and Seven Sisters Mountain to the south.

 

Here is a closer look at Crowsnest Mountain and the north side of Seven Sisters Mountain.

The clouds finally lift to reveal the tops of several familiar peaks to the west.

 

	Here is one last look at Crowsnest Mountain and Seven Sisters Mountain as Zosia approaches the spot where she left the ATV road.
	Zosia takes a short cut across the slope to regain the ATV road.
	Zosia skirts around the edge of another mud hole along the ATV road.
	The long walk out along the ATV road is not without views.  In the background is Racehorse Peak.
	Total Distance:  13.9 kilometres Round-Trip Time:  6 hours 2 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain:  807 metres GPX Data