Hike to Peak 5651 in the Owyhees above Perjue Canyon

This cross-country hike in the Owyhee Front south of Grand View, Idaho heads up a rather unique butte like area that I first climbed earlier this year. A different yet similar route up resulted in a completely different experience. Crazy cool views too.

From near Peak 5651 looking north towards the Snake River Plains

The Story

About 45 miles south of a small town just off Interstate 84 is a lonely rural road not many people travel. This road starts out paved but as it touches the Owyhee Front, it becomes a sometimes well-maintained gravel road that heads into a desolate part of southern Idaho. It is from this road that outdoor adventures can be found and I have ... quite often.

On November 26, 2017, I headed south out of Nowhere Town, Idaho, on a windy and variable cloudiness day. And it was warm with temperatures in the upper 50F. As I arrived at the trailhead, I realized the last human I saw was a rancher/farmer 20 minutes earlier going the opposite direction.

The sun highlights Peak 5651 

With my backpack strapped on, camera/GPS/digital map device calibrated and ready for a steep hike up towards a sheer rock wall only one mile to the east, I place one foot in front of the other and pushed off. I entered the Little Jacks Creek Wilderness just steps from my parking spot and didn't leave it for the next 3.5 hours.

The desolate beauty of this area obviously escapes most people who live in southern Idaho. Not many people come down to this easily accessible sagebrush steppe desert area other than hunters and OHR riders. While hiking trails in this part of the world are almost non-existent, the massive opportunity for cross-country hiking is undeniable.

Perjue Canyon is in the background.

During this hike, I decided to not hike up to Peak 5651. Instead, I wander down towards Perjue Canyon. That canyon was quite rugged looking as I sat on a rock outcropping eating lunch. The decision to forego the peak was because of some miserable decisions as I approach the cliffs below. That decision lead me up through a steep scree-like field except the scree was cantaloupe and way larger in size. In other words, leg or ankle breakers.

My truck and the BLM Poison Creek Picnic Site can be seen from this wilderness land

The hike back to my vehicle was uneventful as my decision making suddenly got better. There was one fenceline to deal with on the journey and I found what looked like a game trail for a long stretch of the return. Probably a game trail? I also walked among the cow patties for most of this hike. It's hard to understand how cattle could still be roaming the Peak 5651 area as it's all official wilderness lands. I have an inquiry in with the BLM on this issue.

The Hike Details

Date Of Hike: November 26, 2017, but also March 12, 2017
Name of Hike / Ride: Owyhee Front Peak 5651 and Perjue Canyon Hike
Name Of KML/KMZ: OWY - Peak 5651 and Perjue Canyon Hike - 26Nov2017
Link To Photographs: https://photos.app.goo.gl/fovjI9qdBlzWfa362
Total Hike Mileage: 3.82 miles
Vertical Feet: +1,505 feet / -1,505 feet
Average Slope: +14.9% / -14.6%
Elevation Ranges: 4,439 feet / 5,489 feet
Hike Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Facilities At Trailhead: Pit toilet close-by and picnic tables
Gear Used: New Balance hiking  boots and Outdoor Product hiking pole
Land Ownership: 100% Wilderness
Road Mileage from Boise, Idaho to Trailhead: 76 miles
Online Map of This Hiking Adventure: It's available by contacting through this website.

Outdoor Concierge Service

An online map of this hiking/biking/fishing adventure is available by using the “Contact Me” form on this site or leaving me a comment on this story stating your wishes.

If you would like more information about mountain biking, hiking, rockhounding or any type of adventures in the (Danskin Mountains, along the Bruneau-Jarbidge Rivers Wilderness or Bruneau Desert), I will be glad to discuss some outdoor options. Use the contact form on this site I'll get back to you.

In Decline Statement

If venturing to this area, please understand the local opinion is my hometown of Mountain Home, Idaho, is a city in decline. There are some businesses thriving, but not many. Your best options are to avoid the place completely and stock up on food, supplies, and gas elsewhere. #MountainHomeIdaho #CityInDecline

This story was originally published on December 3, 2017.

Thanks,





Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

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

Peak Bagging Opal Mountain Area of the Owyhee Mountains

Free-Hiking The Owyhee Mountains of Idaho in October 2017

Opal Mountain or Peak 4602 is where I was headed. 

Summary of a local hike: The first real hike of the fall is highlighted in this post. The Owyhee Mountains of southern Idaho have been my cold season go-to recreation location for many years. With a cloudy and windy day predicted by weather experts, I decided some peak bagging was in order.

The Story: I named a peak in this area "Opal Mountain" about five years ago and this hike would take me back to the same mountain but I would be approaching the peak from a different direction. Peak 4602 is normally attacked from the north starting at a parking area off the Poison Creek Cut-off Road. This hike started from the Poison Creek Canyon heading south on a narrow hiking/motorcycle trail in the creekbed.

Vein of jasper

I then headed west toward the not-so-distant peaks and just linked from one peak to the next. I had no real destination but did want to explore this area a little more than I did in the past. The geology of this small area is interesting. There are pockets and veins of opal, agate, and jasper in an otherwise sterile rockhounding environment. The rocks are the reason I keep coming back here.

Overall, I bagged about four minor peaks and three named peaks during this 3.5 hour wandering of the Owyhee Mountains. This place is an ideal place to get away from it all. In the 10 times I've been out in this area, it rare that I encounter another person. On this day, Oct. 11, 2017, I saw one truck on the main dirt road and a parked RV off in the distance.

The Hike Details
Date Of Hike: October 11, 2017
Name of Hike / Ride: Peak Bagging Opal Mountain Area of the Owyhee Mountains
Link To Photographs: https://photos.app.goo.gl/UoS9gREY0jdveT3p1
Total Hike: 4.40 miles
Vertical Feet: +1,502 feet / -1,504 feet
Average Slope: +12.2% / -13.6%
Elevation Ranges: 3,660 feet / 4,626 feet
Approximate Time On Trail: 3 hours 30 minutes
Facilities At Trailhead: None
Land Ownership: 100% BLM public lands
Road Mileage from Boise, Idaho to Trailhead: 73 miles
Online Map of This Hike: It's available and should contact me or leave a comment stating your wishes.

Outdoor Concierge Service: 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 some outdoor options.

In Decline Statement: If venturing to this area, please understand the local opinion is my hometown of Mountain Home, Idaho is a city in decline. There are some businesses thriving, but not many. Your best options are to avoid the place completely and stock up on food, supplies, and gas elsewhere. #MountainHomeIdaho #CityInDecline

This story was originally published on November 3, 2017.

Thanks,



Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

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

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!"

Hiking Boot Review - New Balance 703

Last edited on April 17, 2017

I bought a pair of New Balance 703 lightweight hiking or walking boots a number of years ago. They got plenty of hard use over the years and I was and still am happy with them. As of my last hike, (https://timbondy.blogspot.com/2017/04/peak-4922-near-syrup-creek-steep-cold.html) the boots are showing signs of wear and tears that made me buy a new pair of New Balance hiking boots.

Tim Bondy's Retired New Balance 703 Hiking Boots

Mountain Tops To Owyhee Canyons and Everywhere In Between

To the best of my recollection, I believe I bought the New Balance 703s at Cabela's in Boise, Idaho during the spring of 2014 or about three years ago. They've taken me on fishing trips, gold panning adventures, many rockhounding outings and of course countless hikes and microadventures during that time. And they held up rather well.

The Pro's

• Comfort: The boots fit my fat feet. For the first time in my life, I found a boot that didn't squeeze my toes together and blister them up after a long hike. The size 11, Quad E width has a toe-box made for wide feet like mine.
• Weight: The 703s are light. As we should know by now, the lighter the shoe the less effort required to move them forward. There is a trade-off between light and longevity and New Balance seems to have done that balancing trick pretty well with this model.
• Longevity: I rode those boots hard and put them away wet quite often and they still lasted a full three years. 

The wavy shoe laces were not my favorite feature of the 703s

The Con's

• Shoe Laces: The "Sure Lace" reciprocating wave pattern shoe laces never impressed me and made me actually wonder if they were some kind of product defect. In any case, they wore out shortly before the boot finally gave up on me. I put traditional boot laces in them towards the end. Some things just can't be improved upon and traditional shoe laces are one of those items.
• The Tread: The tread was the first thing to start wearing out on the New Balance 703s. But right to the end of its hiking life, there were no holes on the bottoms. 

The New Balance 703: A 5-star product.

Calling All Manufacturers - A Complaint

The wilds of the western part of the U.S., especially the high desert and sagebrush steppe environment has a lot of cheatgrass on it. Those cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.) seed pods have small barbs that allow them to automagically attach themselves to the inside lining of most hiking boots.

Idaho cheatgrass attaches to boot linings 

Those pods, once they get into the lining, then poke and itch the ankle and heel during the rest of the hike. Then the process of removing the pods begins. I try to remove them before heading home because once they get home, the chances of them dispersing into the wind increases exponentially. Yes, I have cheatgrass growing in my yard.

So hey ... bootmakers? Find a lining that doesn't automagically attract cheatgrass seed pods.

My New New Balance Boots

I wasted no time in ordering a pair of New Balance Men's MW1400 Trail Walking Boot. Hopefully, they will be just as comfortable as my 703s were.

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 17, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

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

P.S. There are no stores in Mountain Home, Idaho to buy quality hiking boots. Boise or Twin Falls are the closest locations to buy most of your outdoor equipment.

Hike To "Didn't Follow Map" Peak In The Owyhee Mtns

Last edited on April 8, 2017

On April 5, 2017, I hiked up the wrong ridgeline in the Owyhee Mountains of southwestern Idaho. The hike was still quite excellent with views stretching from the Silver City Mountains, the mountains north of Boise, Mount Bennett Hills and even the Soldier and Smoky Mountain Ranges. The area is really greening up both in the valleys but also in the higher elevation of the Owyhees.

Horsehead Spring Creek. A stream that likely hasn't see that much water flowing in it for the last 10 years.

Ticks But No Tock

With water come ticks too. In the last month or so I've had a few ticks crawling on me but on this April 5, 2017, hike, ticks were plentiful. I picked up some near the 5,500-foot elevation of the hike. But suspect most of the 25-30 ticks I picked off me were living in the lush, green and very wet Lone Juniper Creek area.

In previous years, I never spent much time in this specific area but enough to know streams and creeks rarely ever run as high as they were during this April 2017 microadventure. I also suspect the waters have receded from their high point early in the year.

The Map

This embedded map proves a number of features. The orange line was my planned hike. The green line is my actual GPS track recorded during the adventure. There are a few markers that would make it easier to get to the trailhead. Oh, there is no real trailhead but just a place to park.

Lost My Way

One of the reasons I enjoy hiking in the Owyhee Mountains is because it's hard to get lost on a daytime microadventure. That doesn't mean I always remain true to my planned hike. In this case, I wandered off my planned hike by one mile and a whole ridgeline.

It wasn't until I was taking a break during a steeper portion of the hike that I looked at my map and discovered my navigation faux pas. By that time is was too difficult to get back on track. That really bugged me, however.

As a solo hiker, I always leave detailed plans of where I will be hiking with my wife in case something goes wrong. To me, being out of the area I said I would be hiking is a very bad idea. For example, there were many places where rocks, the size and shape of a softball, littered the steep hillsides. I did the full " slip, slide and fall" on this hike because of one of the rocks. No injuries but the opportunity existed.

Owyhee Peak 6581 and "Didn't Follow Map Peak."

My 6,000 Foot Quest

With Peak 6581 now out of reach being on the other side of the valley, my new goal became making it to the 6,000-foot level. That wasn't a real stretch but it was getting later than I wished. I pushed on so I could say "I did it" and for the views. That little volcanic plug is now and forever named "Didn't Follow Map Peak" and tops out at 6,005 feet.

Hike Details And other Info

• Date: April 5, 2017
• Who: Tim Bondy
• Where: Owyhee Mountains of southwestern Idaho.
• Land Ownership: Mostly public BLM lands but also a little sliver of Idaho State Lands.
• Elevation Range: 4,683 feet at the trailhead and 6,001 at "Didn't Follow Map Peak"
• Mileage: 4.42 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1,667 feet / 1,666 feet
• Avg / Max Slope: 13% / 37.1%
• Total Time On Trail: 3:50 hours
• Link To More Photographs: https://goo.gl/photos/TkUiCRsxijLvfcqu9

Owyhee Mountain Scenery - Had to stop and capture this view

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 8, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

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

Failed Owyhee Mtns Quad-Peak Hike

Last edited on April 4, 2017

I planned out a hike in the Owyhee Mountains of southwestern Idaho that involved bagging four closely spaced peaks off Mud Flat Road, 21miles southwest of the city of Grand View. I attempted that hike on April 1, 2017, and failed to summit only one of the peaks. It turned out to be a wonderful day in the great outdoors.

Tim Bondy in the Owyhee Mountain during April 2017 - On top of Peak 5882

Why didn't I summit the other peak? That peak, "Rocky Points Peak," was a just a little out of the way. Plus, it would have meant I would have had hike to a saddle about 300 feet below that new summit and I just wasn't up for it. So yeah, I was lazy.👎👎👎 On the bright side, I have another peak to explore in the future. 👍👊

The Location And Owyhee Peak Names 

The hike is close to the relatively unknown "Lone Juniper Creek." There is a two-tract or dirt road running north and then west of the peak area but I stay mostly off of it.

The Peaks:

• Peak 5642 - summited 👍
• Peak 5787 - summited 👍
• Peak 5882 - summited 👍
• The self-named "Rocky Points Peak." - Nope, didn't make it there. 👎

Click On Map, Zoom In/Out and Explore

My research shows some private property is in the area but well away from the peaks, although there is a fence line running along the ridgeline I followed. I suspect it is a BLM grazing allotment fence. However, based on the condition of the fence, maybe I'm missing something and there is private property up there too?

Timbers prop-up the post while a boulder and wire do a counter-balancing act.

Is this a BLM or Idaho fence in the Owyhee Mountains?

Why There?

Why there? It's been awhile since I explored this area for cool rocks and decided some rockhounding while hiking in a place not many have tread would add an extra dimension to this microadventure. The "Rocky Points Peaks" was chosen because of how rocky and gnarly it looked on Google Earth. The other peaks I sought out were chosen because they "they were there."

Cross-country hiking at its finest in the Owyhee Mountains south of Grand View, Idaho.

Other Details

• Total Hike Mileage: 3.99 miles
• Elevation Gain/Loss: 1,494 feet
• Total Time: Trailhead To Trailhead: 3:45 hours
• Slope: Avg = 12.8% / Max = 41.3%
• Link To More Photographs From The Hike: https://goo.gl/photos/29jZ9VXM5RvVLtZs5
• Parking Location: 42.749351, -116.310569
• Topo Maps: Rough Mountain and Snow Creek Quadrangle 7.5 minute series
• Video From Peak: https://youtu.be/vqulV1Zl87Q

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 4, 2017.

Thanks,


Tim Bondy
Freelance Writer & Citizen Journalist

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