Spivey Road – South of Oreana, Oct. 2017 Bike Ride

A fun but exhausting October 2017 mountain bike ride in southwestern Idaho.

Looking down into Browns Creeks Canyon with the Silver City Mountains of Idaho in the distance

Summary of the Mountain Bike Ride: This mountain bike ride ( #Mtb ) was completed on Oct. 5, 2017, in the Owyhee Front south of Oreana, Idaho. The ride, located about 40 ‘as-the-crow-flies’ miles south of Boise, was on gravel and dirt roads, mostly suitable for higher clearance vehicles as well as ATVs and mountain bikes.

With temperatures in the 50s, this out and back, 22 mile, 1,600 foot vertical, bike ride was grueling for me. The road was rocky, yet not technical but was uphill all the way. The rockiness detracted from the ride because it prevented me from watching the horizon for deer and more specifically, bighorn sheep. However, the view to the south of the Owyhee Mountains and the various shallow canyons was quite beautiful.

The Ride Details: I forgot to turn-off my GPS tracking when I got back to the truck and it continued to track all the way home and into the house. All statistics are approximated but likely very close to reality.

Specifics

Date Of Ride: October 5, 2017
Name of Ride: Spivey and Alder Creek Road Ride
Link To Photographs From Ride: https://photos.app.goo.gl/PYkukRMsr8Gh1alA2
Total Mountain Bike Mileage: 21.9 miles
Vertical Feet: About 1,600 feet. This is the one stat my GPX/Google Earth are having troubles parsing.
Average Slope: 2.9% / Max Slope: 11%
Elevation Ranges: 2,792 to 4,285 feet

Land Ownership: Mostly Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and some Idaho State Lands. No private property was encroached upon during this ride.
Facilities At Trailhead: None
Road Mileage from Boise, Idaho to Trailhead: 65 miles

The end of the trail for me. 

If venturing to this area from the east, please understand the small town of Mountain Home, Idaho is a city in decline. Your best options are to avoid the place completely and stock up on food, supplies, and gas elsewhere. #MountainHomeIdaho #CityInDecline

If you would like more information about mountain biking, hiking, rockhounding or any type of outdoor adventures along the Owyhee Front, I will be glad to discuss your options.

This story was originally published on October 18, 2017.

Thanks,



Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist


I am currently a proud citizen journalist, aka, "enemy of the American People!"

Wilson Flats Ridgeline Hike in Boise National Forest

Last edited on May 14, 2017

This May 3, 2017, hike up a ridgeline above Wilson Flats on the north side of Anderson Ranch Reservoir was very enjoyable. The beauty, solitude, and geology made this area located about 40 miles southeast of Boise, Idaho a great place for a microadventure. My unrealistic but original goal was Peak 6355 that is just 2.5 miles south of the 7,700 tall House Mountain. I didn't make it that far. But I did make it to Peak 5675.

From an elevation of 5,396, or about 1,500 feet above the valley floor, the views to the north were spectacular.

My Wilson Flats Area History

I have a longish history with Wilson Flats. I first visited the area back in 2008, looking for a creek to fish. There were fish in the creek then, but things have changed. In 2013 the "Elk Complex" wildfire burned through the area and a flash flood later scoured Wilson Creek valley pretty much clean.

I ATV'd up to the flats a number of times before that fire and flash flood. In 2013, the trail from Anderson Dam Road up to the flats was officially closed to all activities and just in the last couple years, hikers were allowed back in. The trail is still closed to bikes and motorized vehicles. So hiking and horses are the only options. I hope it stays that way.

I've hiked up to the "flats" a number of times since 2014. But this hike was a little different. It was more about the climb and exploring off-trail.

This is the trails that heads up to Wilson Flats. Steep and the views over the side are incredible.

The Hike

In retrospect, I suppose there was an easier way to step foot on Peak 5675. That easier way would have been to stay on trail and head up the Little Wilson Creek drainage. But then I would have missed some pretty cool scenery and the exploration part of the hike. So instead, as I approach Wilson Flats, I veered into the steep and rugged untracked terrain and slogged my way up the ridgeline I would follow for the next few hours.

The ridgeline hike gave me outstanding views into both the Wilson Creek and Little Wison Creek valleys. Something that I have been missing (or not) since the spring hiking season kicked-off was the opportunity to hike in, over and through sagebrush and mountain bramble. There were a few places on the ridgeline that were near impenetrable. In a few years, this hike will be different when the brush and bramble grow up. The fires of 2013 knocked it down a lot.

I cannot resist creating a snow graffiti when I get the chance on a hike. 

The hike along the ridgeline got easier and easier as I climbed toward a peak I knew I'd never step foot on. But damn, it sure was pretty. I did encounter my first snowbank of the hike right near my turn-around point at Peak 5675.

I had some thoughts of taking an alternate route back to the trailhead. I didn't relish the thoughts of descending down an old road cut surrounded by still-standing yet quite dead and burned pine tree carcasses, especially as the winds started kicking up. They don't call it "deadfall" because it will keep you safe.

As of May 2017, to hike up to Wilson Flats, you will have two "boots-wet" stream crossing of Wilson Creek. I brought my sandals for those two crossings. I wanted to preserve my old New Balance 703 hiking boots as they have transitioned into a mountain biking boot. Plus I hate hiking with wet feet and at the time, there wasn't much hope they'd stay dry trying to hopscotch the creek.

I broke open one of these rocks but found only brownish/gray material from outside to inside. You may have better luck.

Rock Hounding Potential

I've hounded this area pretty thoroughly in the past. Damn, there is a lot of potential for smoky quartz and even thundereggs/geodes. But again, the rocks I found were just below the "really cool" level. I've found a few places in the area that contained rocks like those shown in the above photo. There has never been anything collectable about them.

The Hiking Map

Here is my GPX track of the hike ...

The Hike Stats

• Total Miles: 4.91
• Elevations: Min. = 4,227 / Avg. = 4,941 / Max. = 5,675
• Elevation Gain/Loss: +1,889/-1,866 feet
• Slope: Avg. = 12.9% / Max. = 45.6%
• Time on trail: 4:10 hours
• Trailhead coordinates: 43.380962, -115.436869
• Peak 5,675 coordinates: 43.394407, 115.459301
• Topo Map: House Mountain, Idaho
• Land Ownership: Hike was done 100% on public lands!
• Link to more photos: https://goo.gl/photos/EjA6oMtqhykK4duK6
• Geology of hike: Intrusive rocks: mostly Late Cretaceous granodioritic to granitic plutons of the Idaho batholithic assemblage, but including some Eocene intrusions; northern Idaho and Atlanta batholith.
• On-road Distance from Downtown Boise/Twin Falls: 70 miles / 110 miles

Originally published on May 12, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

I am currently a proud citizen journalist, aka "enemy of the American People!"
.

P.S. The city of Mountain Home, Idaho is a town in decline. My opinion would be to avoid the town completely.

Idaho's Cat Creek Summit Panoramic Photograph

Last edited on April 15, 2017

The Cat Creek Summit area is about 26 miles west of Fairfield, Idaho and is a rather historic location. U.S. Highway 20 cuts straight through the summit before heading towards various points east and west.

Click for a bigger version of the view of the surrounding Rocky Mountains

Link To A Google Photos version: https://goo.gl/photos/NAN6jiJPCEyEiQLA9

Photo Details:

• Taken on April 12, 2017, at 3:50 P.M.
• Looking: West through north-northeast (left to right) 
• Coordinates: 43.3010556, -115.3156222
• Photographer: Tim Bondy - Freelance Writer
• The peaks in the left foreground will be a destination for a future hike

Call To Action

If you liked this story, please consider sharing the post with your friends and family. You can also provide other feedback by simply clicking a "Reactions" checkbox at the bottom of this story or commenting. Go ahead ... do it.

Originally published on April 15, 2017.

Thanks,

Tim Bondy

Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

I am currently a proud citizen journalist, aka "enemy of the American People!"

.

We Already Share and Use Our Public Lands

Last edited on March 16, 2017

At least two Idaho state legislative representatives are quite excited about the prospects of getting their hands on some, most or all 32 million acres of the federally owned lands in our state. This public lands take-over wet dream is also shared by the right wing conservative majority in other western states with Utah politicians being the most vocal. Locally, Representatives Megan Blanksma and Christie Zito are the noise makers.

The fence between cleaner and pooh-strewn on our public lands of Idaho

Photo Details:
Geographic Coordinates: 42.7709056, -116.298325
Date: March 15, 2016 at 3:48 P.M.
Owyhee County, Idaho.
Land Ownership: The people of the USA.
Photographer: Tim Bondy from Tim Bondy - Freelance Writer

In May 2016, Megan Blanksma and Christie Zito, then legislative district 32 candidates extolled their vision of how great it would be if we could more readily share our public lands with corporations and/or allowed the state of Idaho to "manage" all those lands. We already know Idaho is better known for selling their state lands than properly managing them.

The word "Manage" as used by Blanksma means "being in charge of" instead of  the other definition, "help in the administration of our public lands for all people."

Sharing Already - The Proof Is On The Land
On March 15, 2017, I went on a hike that started on Mud Flat Road in the Owyhee Mountains of southwestern Idaho. The cross-country hike took me up to Peak 5356 and back again. The first half of the hike was on the State of Idaho lands and likely some federally owned BLM grazing allotments also.

During the state and grazing allotment portion of the hike, I shared the land with a massive amount of cow patties. This is quite normal in this portion of the Owyhees. The fence and the lands seen beyond in the above photograph were conspicuously free of the shared cow patty environment.

Once I crawled under that fence, there was no more empty cans, junk or trash. Around the peak however, there were some old cow patties. I suspect these were from cows that migrated up to this area from another grazing allotment to the north and east. So Representative Christie Zito from Idaho Legislative District 23, we are sharing our lands. No more compromise required ... okay?

Finding Nemo the Cow Patty out in the desert is easy

Management For Corporations
Representative Blanksma from Idaho Legislative District 23 wants Idaho to manage, as in take full control of our federal lands. She has no real plan other than an old bill that Congressman Raul Labrador submitted a few years ago. That bill was just a public lands take-over idea.

The only way Idaho could afford to "manage" our federal lands is by selling off a good chunk of it and agreeing to use that money to manage the lands they grabbed from "We, the People." Remember, Idaho won't even fund education properly and local school district are forced to vote on funding levies every few years just so school buildings can be properly maintained.

Call To Action
I know there are a lot of people living in Idaho who wish to keep public lands public. These people come from all walks of life and use some of the 32 million acres of federally owned lands in many different ways.

There are concerned fishermen, kayakers, hikers, ORV users, motorcyclists, birder, hunters, rockhounders and explorers to name just some of the hobbyists I can think of.  If you use our public lands in a responsible and gentle way, please tell your state and federal elected officials to "Keep Public Lands Public ... now and forever."


Originally published on March 16, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy Freelance
Writer & Citizen Journalist

I am currently a proud citizen journalist, aka "enemy of the American People!"

.

Hike To Below Peak 5651 - Owyhee Mountains

Last updated on March 14, 2017

Summary: This review is about a hike in Owyhee County, Idaho, a place that you might find is a good vacation spot if you are looking for uncrowded outdoor recreation. It's also unique, rugged and quite beautiful. 

I went on a solo cross-country hike in the Owyhee Mountain southwest of Grand View, Idaho. Peak 5651 was my destination but I never made all the way to that little spot on this earth but I was close. Why? I ran out of energy and I'm not in the best physical condition after a long, cold winter.

The view from near Owyhee Peak 5651 in March 2017. Rough Mtn. is the name of the snow covered peak in the mid-ground

Stop For Food and Supplies
If you are need of some last minutes food or supplies, there is a cafe and a small general store on Highway 78 just outside of Grand View, Idaho. For a better choice of supplies and munchies, buy them in the Boise, Caldwell or Meridan area before heading out.

Here is Grand View, Idaho link to Google Maps 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Grand+View,+ID+83624/@42.9832396,-116.1069455,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x54addd3e7db5cd89:0x95af201b2651a22e!8m2!3d42.9896139!4d-116.0934305?hl=en&authuser=0 Mountain Home is a city in real decline and it's a good idea to stay away when on vacation.

Details:

• Coordinates the photo was taken: 42.7479889, -116.2795861
• Taken on March 12, 2017, at around 3:30 P.M.
• 20 miles southwest of Grand View and 60 miles south of Boise, Idaho (as the crow flies)
• All lands along the hike to the peak were public and freely open to hiking 
• To start the hike, park at or near coordinates 42.766069, -116.280721 just off Mud Flat Road.
• There are no trails to the peak so you just need to point your nose towards your destination and start walking. No, really.

A spit of land called "Between the Creeks" can be seen in the background.

Why Off Trail There?
The primary reason I wanted to peak-out in this particular area was so I could view and possible hike part of the way down into the Shoofly Creek canyon a.k.a. Perjure Canyon. The hike up to this butte was tougher than I expected so I stopped when the view was good enough. And the views of this little-visited canyon area were spectacular.

Video was taken from the summit area

When looking along the northern horizon I could see the snow covered mountain peaks extending from Near Ontario, Oregon and eastward to the Pioneer Mountains near Haily, Idaho. That's a quite a view considering Haily is over 100 miles from Peak 5651. 

Originally published on March 14, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy Freelance
Writer & Citizen Journalist

I am currently a proud citizen journalist, aka "enemy of the American People!"

.