Borah - The Top Of Idaho

The crux of the the ascent is a section known as “Chicken Out Ridge”. Some will tell you it's nothing while others turn back in fear. Most proceed with caution. For about a quarter mile one must negotiate a rocky exposed sometimes knife edged ridge. Some try to avoid the ridge by down climbing and traversing low but all reports say staying along the top is the best option. It's also the most airy.

In reality its really not that bad. Just a head game. The rock is good and the options are plenty. As long as one takes their time its really quite safe. For me it had been awhile since I had done a class 3 traverse. Class 3 neccessitates the use of hands while climbing and falling is not an option. The old familiarity of having done many class 3 peaks years ago seemed a little vague and foreign as I reminded myself it was well within my ability. Don't think about the height. Just go. The ridge held my full attention.

I was happy to have met 3 other climbers at the beginning of the ridge to help sort out route finding which added an element of comfort. They were all in their 50's. One was a man from Texas and the other two a couple from California. The California couple was quite Californian. The guy was kind of goofy and cracked silly comments along the way. The woman is an Asian runner and a veteran of over 100 marathons. The called me Timex because I was wearing a hat that said, “Timex”, on it. I assumed I'd meet other climbers otherwise my general rule these days is nothing solo above class 2 which is generally steep hiking with a little easy scrambling.

The 20 foot downclimb at the end of the traverse was the hardest part as foot holds were a little hidden. Still no problem. Especially since I was the third to go and the other climbers told me where to put my feet. No problem. I knew it would be much easier going up on the way back. From that point it was just a steep loose slog up scree to the highest point in Idaho. Borah Peak, 12,662 ft. With an elevation change of 5,500 feet in 3.5 miles it made for one of the more honest peak climbs I've done in some time.

Once on top I spent time enjoying the view as other people summited. With many forest fires burning in Idaho I could see lots of smoke in the valleys but it was clear above the 10,000 foot level. A pile of rocks with flags and register boxes decorated the somewhat small summit.

After a half hour or so on top I started the descent with the Texan I had crossed the ridge with. He is from Mineral Wells. I got the impression he likes to burn up his vacation time climbing peaks. We decided it would be best to cross back over the class 3 ridge together. Although the going was a little slow there were no problems. Just lots of blue sky and the valley smoke was clearing. From the end of the ridge a rocky path and steep dusty trail led me back to my car. The round trip took just under 8 hours.