When you first start Animal Crossing: New Horizons you will only be able to move around a part of your island. Other areas will be blocked off by small cliffs that you cannot get past. To get past these cliffs, you will need a Ladder.
Getting a Ladder or more importantly, the Ladder DIY recipe, takes some time, and you will need to have unlocked a lot of other things in your town over the course of many days first before you can get that far.
You will need to have a completed Museum, as well as finished building Nook’s Cranny. When Nook’s Cranny has been built, Tom Nook will start the day off with a daily update informing you of its completion. After that, his phone will ring signaling the beginning of new residents coming to the island.
Go straight to Resident Services to talk to Tom Nook. He will tell you more people will be joining the island and will first ask you to help build a new bridge on the island. After doing that go back to Tom Nook and he will give you three plots to put down on your island somewhere.
When you put down the second of three plots, Tom Nook will ring telling you that an item you need to craft will require you to scale the cliffs on your island, so he sends you the DIY Recipe for the Ladder.
After getting the recipe you can make the Ladder at any workbench. You’ll need 4 wood, 4 hardwood, and 4 softwood to craft it. The good news is that the ladder can’t break, so you only need to craft it once.
If you found this guide helpful, we have other guides you might also like. From whether you can relocate Resident Services, how to get more residents, the maximum number of residents you can have on your island, and how to get your hands on those pesky floating balloon presents. We can also tell you everything you want to know about Nook Miles Tickets, how to get different types of fruit, and how to get your hands on the Pretty Good Tools Recipes.
