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The great north faces of the Alps (also classic north faces or final problem of the Alps) are a group of three, or six, north faces of alpine mountains, which are known to mountain climbers for their size, difficulty or danger. These are the north faces of the Eiger, Grandes Jorasses and Matterhorn. Included in the extended group of "six great north faces of the Alps" are the Petit Dru, Piz Badile, and Cima Grande di Lavaredo.

Fritz Kasparek, one of the first people to climb the Eiger north face, was the first to use the term "three great problem faces" in 1938. His then companion Anderl Heckmair adopted this terminology eleven years later, when he titled his 1949 book "The three final problems of the Alps".

Whosoever can climb such a face with certainty, must surely feel themselves elevated above all human trifles.
— Anderl Heckmair, first climber of the Eiger north face

Reasons for inclusion in the great north faces

First and foremost mountaineering and historical reasons determine inclusion in the "great north faces" of the Alps; the absolute height of the faces is less important. The term "great north face" is therefore not the same as "high north face". Although there are many high north faces in the Alps, only three to six north faces are counted among the "great north faces". So, for example, the north face of the Triglav in the Julian Alps is one of the tallest faces of the Alps, having a height of 1500m. Due to its relatively low difficulty, however, it is not called a "great north face". Some of the "great north faces" are, strictly speaking, not north faces, but rather northwest faces (e.g. the Eiger) or northeast faces (Piz Badile). These faces are referred to as north faces because it is a catchier title and allows the faces to be grouped under a single name.

Significance of the term "north face"

Among mountaineers the term "north face" is associated with greater difficulty and danger, whereas east, south or west faces are easier to climb. In the northern hemisphere north faces generally have stronger icing and hence greater climbing difficulty than other faces, due to their greater time spent in shadow. The concept of a "north face" in a mountaineering sense implies cold and danger. The Eiger north face became known in German as the Mordwand (lit. murder-face) because of the numerous fatal attempts to climb it, a term that illustrates the clear danger to life presented by the mountain.

Risk and deaths

The most well known of the great north faces is that of the Eiger, which is also the most dangerous due to rockfalls and frequent inclement weather. To date, 51 climbers have died there.

Die bekannteste und wegen Steinschlags und häufiger Wetterstürze gefährlichste der großen Nordwände ist die Eiger-Nordwand. Dort kamen bereits 51 Bergsteiger zu Tode. An anderen Alpenwänden, wie zum Beispiel der Watzmann-Ostwand, sind zwar noch erheblich mehr Bergsteiger tödlich verunglückt (dort bis Juli 2010 100 Todesfälle); Ursachen dafür sind allerdings weniger die großen Schwierigkeiten und Gefahren der Wand, sondern eher der im Vergleich höhere Andrang von oft nicht genügend vorbereiteten Kletterern. Da die immensen Anforderungen der großen Nordwände allgemein bekannt sind, versuchen ungeübte Bergsteiger sich vergleichsweise selten an ihnen. Daher ist die absolute Zahl der Unglücksfälle im Vergleich zu frequentierteren Zielen niedriger.

Die klettertechnisch schwierigste und steilste ist die Große-Zinne-Nordwand, allerdings handelt es sich hierbei um reine Felskletterei. Des Weiteren ist sie die einzige, bei der der Gipfel unterhalb von 3000 m Höhe liegt und bei der – auch bedingt durch ihre Lage in Südtirol – die Gefahr von Wetter- und Temperaturstürzen sowie ein allgemein ernster, hochalpiner Charakter weniger vorhanden sind als bei den anderen großen Wänden.