Borah Peak (12,662 feet) by Brian Schultz Sunday August 22, 2004
Tim asked early in the year if I was interested in climbing the state highpoints of Idaho and Utah. Both sounded like great fun and plans were set long before we did any climbing in Colorado. We arranged to do Borah first, a short hike of only seven miles roundtrip before climbing Kings Peak the following day, a much longer hike at over twenty miles. We didn't know how long our day would be on Borah, with its 5,200 feet elevation gain and class 3 scrambling, before driving 400 miles to the Kings trailhead immediately afterward. The potential for a long and tiring day prompted us to bring backpacks in case we decided to do an overnight on Kings but that would be a last resort. We really felt we could handle dayhiking Kings despite its long distance because the rating is only class 2 and the elevation gain is moderate. And, if all went according to plans, we'd even drive back to Colorado and climb Navajo Peak the following day. We're definitely not optimistically challenged.
I flew into Salt Lake City and waited just a short while for Tim, who impeccably timed his long drive in from Colorado Springs to pick me up at the airport. We headed straight to the Borah trailhead near Mackay, Idaho, 300 miles north of Salt Lake City, and other than gas fills, stopped only for dinner at an outstanding Mexican restaurant in Darlington. If you like Mexican food do not drive past the Ram's Horn Restaurant- the food is excellent.
There is a nice view of Borah Peak from the trailhead access road and we clicked off a few pictures before pulling into the parking lot at 7:00 PM. The place was crowded with people pitching tents and making lots of noise. It didn't bode well for a good night's sleep and as were sizing up the area, we noticed a hiker lumbering down the trail. We inquired about his climb and he heartily opined on how difficult it was. He began at 6:00 in the morning and was dressed in just a tee shirt and jean shorts- no backpack or jacket for his thirteen hour day. The fellow was fortunate to have had perfect weather.
We decided to leave the trailhead parking area to find some solitude. We parked in an area off a side road close to the fault line from the October, 1983 earthquake, where the quiet surroundings were more suitable, and set up camp in the back of Tim's truck. I slept surprisingly well, which is not the norm for me, but it probably helped that we were at a lower elevation.
We drove back to the trailhead in the morning and watched two other hikers heading up the trail as we got ready. Minutes later, at 4:20, we also began. From the starting elevation of 7,450 feet, we set out at a fast pace and soon passed the hikers. We had no problems hiking the excellent well worn trail in the dark and never saw the two fellows again after that initial encounter. The gain was moderate in the beginning but turned brutal between 9,000 and 10,000 feet. We maintained a steady pace despite the steep grade and didn't stop for a break until 5:40, quite pleased with gaining 2,400 feet in that short time.
We topped out above timberline at first light and reached the ridge referred to as "Chicken Out Ridge". The trail disappeared on the ridge but cairns offer a choice to climb either side. Casual hikers often turn around here but the looks of the ridge didn't intimidate us in the least. Still, we were glad to avoid the class 3 climbing in the dark and began our ascent on the right side. We found the class 3 exposure to be moderate and agreed that the true difficulty lies at the end of the Chicken Out Ridge where a 15- 20 foot cleft has to be downclimbed. That short section was intimidating but went well and the downclimb deposited us at a small saddle with gullies leading down both sides. We noted that this crux notch could be avoided by dropping down the ridge on the north side about a hundred feet and then climbing back up to the saddle.
From the notch the trail resumes and continues to a more broad saddle below the summit. The weather sleeted for a few minutes as we picked our way up the summit and at 8:25 we stepped on top, just in time for the sun to clear the skies. Brisk winds and cold temperatures remained though, much to our chagrin, on this August summer day. Tim's thermometer measured 36 degrees F on the summit.
Borah is an impressive summit with terrific views in all directions and we had it to ourselves for the hour we were up there. Tim opened a big tube and pulled out a woven "Mt Borah" flag, while I unfastened the metal register box. The box held scraps of paper, a photograph, and a notebook for signing. We departed at 9:20 and near the broad saddle we finally encountered the first climbers of the day since passing the two fellows near the trailhead. At the notch, we helped direct two climbers negotiating the cleft but took the easier route ourselves by dropping down the scree gully and traversing from there.
We descended the opposite side of our ascent on the Chicken Out Ridge and found it to be much easier as well. More climbers were working their way up. After a rest break above timberline, we hiked non-stop to the trailhead and got back to the truck at 12:25.
This fun and scenic "twelver" was as enjoyable as any high peak in Colorado. The class 3 scrambling was a special treat for me because it's the only class 3 climb I ended up doing the entire summer. Our early finish was just what we hoped for and after a short rest at the truck we began the long drive to the King's trailhead in Utah.
Trailhead to summit- 4 hours 5 minutes
Summit to trailhead- 3 hours 5 minutes
Start to finish- 8 hours 5 minutes