Five Bridges Solitaire 🎉

Five Bridges Solitaire is a fun, friendly twist on the classic Tri-Peaks solitaire. Imagine five little “mountains” of cards lined up, with rows (bridges) connecting them. 🃏 Each bridge has a single card that links two peaks, adding extra strategy. In other words, instead of the usual three peaks, you get five to clear! The goal is simple: clear all the cards from the layout by building up or down in sequence. This bright and engaging layout makes every game feel fresh and exciting. 🌟

How to Play – Step by Step 🪄

Layout: The tableau starts with five peaks (pyramids) of cards, each covered by a single “bridge” card (face-up). The remaining deck sits as a stock, and one card is flipped to start the waste (discard) pile.
Making Moves: You can move any exposed card to the waste pile if it’s one rank higher or lower than the waste’s top card (e.g. place a 7 on an 8 or a 6). Suits don’t matter. Aces can count as either low or high (1 or above King) to help make sequences.
Revealing Cards: When you remove a card, any card it was covering becomes exposed (face-up), making it available for play. Always look for moves that uncover new cards! 📣
Using the Deck: If there are no more playable moves, click or tap the stock (deck) to draw the next card into the waste pile. That card becomes the new base for further moves.
Winning the Game: Continue matching cards and drawing new ones until all cards in the five peaks are cleared. 🎯 You win when you clear the entire layout.

Rules of the Game 📜

One Deck: Play uses a standard 52-card deck.
Sequence Building: Cards are removed one at a time by placing them on the waste pile in ascending or descending order, regardless of suit. For example, on a 10 you can play a 9 or Jack.
No Redeals: You only go through the deck once. The game ends when the stock is exhausted and no more moves are possible.
Winning Condition: You win by clearing all cards. You lose if the stock runs out and there are still cards remaining in the layout that cannot be played.
One Bridge per Peak: Each of the five peaks has a single bridge card connecting it to the next peak. These bridge cards must also be cleared during play, adding an extra layer of strategy to the familiar Tri-Peaks rules.

History & Origins 🌟

Five Bridges Solitaire is a modern variant of Tri-Peaks Solitaire, which itself was created by Robert Hogue in 1989. Hogue designed Tri-Peaks with the idea that new layouts and variants could be invented, and indeed the game has spawned many creative offshoots. Five Bridges likely emerged in the digital era as a fun way to raise the challenge – it’s essentially “Tri-Peaks on steroids,” adding two extra peaks and connecting bridges. There’s no single famous inventor credited for Five Bridges; rather, it grew out of the online solitaire community. What we do know is that the spirit of Tri-Peaks encourages exactly this kind of innovation. As one source notes, Five Bridges “includes five distinct peaks, connected by ‘bridges’… offering more options for moves but requiring careful planning”. So when you play Five Bridges Solitaire, you’re enjoying a piece of that game-design legacy!

Tips & Tricks for Winning 🎯

Reveal More Cards: Always try to make moves that uncover the maximum number of face-down cards. Plan moves so you expose hidden cards – this creates more new options. For example, if playing a card would flip over two cards instead of one, do that! It increases your chances of finding the right sequence.
Build Longer Runs: Whenever possible, make a long consecutive sequence (run) instead of breaking it up. Long runs not only clear more cards without drawing from the stock, but many digital versions reward longer runs with bonus points. For instance, a single 10-card run yields much more points than two 5-card runs. (And hey, long runs just feel awesome!)
Work Methodically: Focus on one row (peak) at a time if you can. Jumping between peaks might seem fun, but often you’ll clear more cards by systematically finishing one section before starting another. Clearing an entire row will flip up multiple new cards at once, making your next moves clearer.
Use Aces Wisely: Remember that an Ace can be placed on a 2 or on a King (wrapping around), giving you flexibility when you get stuck.
Think Ahead: Keep an eye on what each move will reveal. Sometimes it’s better to skip a seemingly good move if it only uncovers a single dead-end card. Look for moves that set you up for the future.

Play It for Free on SolitaireX! 💻

Ready to give Five Bridges a try? You can play Five Bridges Solitaire directly on SolitaireX in your browser. The game is available at solitairex.io/five-bridges-solitaire. No download or registration is needed – just click and enjoy a fresh game! (The link above is the quick way to jump right in.)

More Fun Solitaire Games

If you love Five Bridges, there’s a whole world of solitaire variants waiting for you. SolitaireX has dozens of free, no-login card games, from classic Klondike to Tri-Peaks, Spider, FreeCell, and more. Check out solitairex.io to explore all the solitaire games on the site. 🃏💖

Five Bridges is described as “a Tripeaks variant with five single middle cards” and its gameplay follows standard Tri-Peaks rules. Tri-Peaks itself was invented by Robert Hogue (1989) with the idea of new layouts. Strategy tips from Tri-Peaks guides suggest focusing on moves that expose the most cards and systematically clearing one row at a time.

Enjoy the challenge and have fun clearing those five bridges! Good luck! 🍀