Oodles of Idaho outdoor fun await for Labor Day weekend! Might be a little wet, tho!

Drew Stuebner on a hike with Dad to Bridal Veil Falls in the Sawtooths. 

Hi all,

Labor Day weekend is upon us! It's the typical last hurrah of the camping season, so I'm dishing up some last-minute tips for the three-day weekend, as always. 

Before we get into the camping ideas, Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain and Tamarack Resort all have some fun stuff going on this weekend, and the Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic at Ann Morrison Park runs daily through Sunday.  

Courtesy Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic

 

Steve fishing Rainbow Lake in the Trinities 

Now, on to the camping tips and other Labor Day ideas ... mountain weather  BTW looks a bit topsy-turvy Saturday-Monday with a good chance of thundershowers and high temps in the 60s. So make sure you've got a good rain tarp and dress warm! 

Recommended camping options: 

• Trinity Mountains - Go camping, day-hiking or backpacking in the Trinities. I recommend driving there via Featherville. Head for Big Trinity Lake, the trailhead and general dispersed camping area. It's definitely worth backpacking into the high mountain lakes to get away from the car-campers and enjoy some good fishing!
  
  
  
  

• Cascade area - Stolle Meadows and Landmark are my favorite camping areas in this neck of the woods. There are tons of primitive car-camping spots in both locations, east of Cascade, off the Warm Lake Highway. I've heard there may be some construction on the South Fork Salmon River Road? Plus, there are hot springs in the vicinity.

• 

  Lick Creek area in the Payette National Forest 
  
  

• McCall area - Camping, hiking and backpacking in the Lick Creek area NE of McCall should be fabulous. Some of the nice mountain lakes up there include Box, Snowslide, Duck, Hum, Enos and Thirty-three lakes. Pick up a Payette National Forest map or a McCall Adventure Map to get the details for access. Also, check my blog from earlier this summer on five easy-to-access kid-friendly mountain lakes in the McCall area. 

  

  Stanley Lake beach 

  
  
• Stanley area - I'm sure the Stanley area will be hopping with lots of campers at Stanley Lake, Redfish Lake, Pettit Lake and points along the Salmon River. 

  

  North and Middle Forks of the Boise River ... car-camping mecca 

• Idaho City area - The North and Middle Forks of the Boise River work great for car camping. See my post from last week.  
• Salmon River beaches - Upstream from Riggins along the Salmon River Road are many sweet spots for camping, hanging out and swimming. 

Salmon River beaches are the best in bare feet! Courtesy Winding Rivers Rafting

Also, Labor Day weekend is chock full of big sales at your favorite outdoor retailers in the Boise area, places like Idaho Mountain Touring, George's Cycles, Boise REI, Greenwood's, McU Sports, Alpenglow Mountain Sport and Idaho River Sports. They all have some fantastic clothing and gear on sale right now. Great deals! Go get 'em! 

- SS

Check out three unsung, flatwater paddling trips on the N. Fork of the Payette River

North Fork Payette River, south of McCall  

Hi all, 

For this week's outdoor tip, I wanted to highlight three, unsung flatwater sections of the North Fork Payette River that are most suitable for canoes, inflatable kayaks, sit-on-top-kayaks and SUPs. 

All of these trips would be ideal right now as a way to stay cool and see some new scenery. I just reprinted my Paddling the Payette river guide, now 5th edition; all three of these day trips are featured in the guide. 

The trips are as follows: 

• North Fork Payette from Sheep Bridge in McCall to Heinrich Lane or Smylie Lane 
• North Fork arm of Lake Cascade near Donnelly and Tamarack Resort
• Cascade to Cabarton Bridge   

Wendy and her friend Liz paddled the North Fork from Sheep Bridge to Heinrich Lane last Sunday, and had a great time. I've always thought it's a really scenic and fun place to paddle with great opportunities for seeing ospreys flying around and potentially diving for fish. This section is decent for rainbow trout fishing as well. 

The put-in is at Sheep Bridge is by the Smokejumper Base on Mission Street, south of downtown McCall. Leave a shuttle at your takeout spot on Heinrich or Hartsell Bridge, off Smylie Lane. 

Liz Paul taking a break on the North Fork. She paddled with Wendy in our Mad River canoe.  

You might see other wildlife too like great blue herons, kingfishers, bald eagles soaring overhead and many different types of songbirds -- we even found some frogs on shore. You might see white-tailed deer hanging out in the riparian zone along the river, too.

The shorter trip to Heinrich Lane could take you about 3 hours, and the longer trip to Hartsell Bridge and Smylie Lane is a full day, usually about 5.5-6 hours. In the longer trip,  you'll need to portage around some big logs that block the river. It's pretty obvious when you approach that spot. 

Here's a shot from 10 years ago with Ellie in the kayak and Rosie in the canoe. 

Wendy and I have paddled our 16-foot Mad River Explorer canoe on this reach. It's a perfect boat for this river section. At 250 cfs, the river is pretty low and slow, but there should be enough cushion to make it through small riffles. You do have to pay attention to your lines through the riffles to stay in the deepest water (usually part of the tongue).

Check out this unsung section of the North Fork sometime when you have a full day of time and good weather. It's a treat.

This happy family paddles sit-on-top kayaks on Lake Cascade (courtesy Tamarack Resort)

North Fork arm of Lake Cascade - You could start at Tamarack Falls, Poison Creek Campground or or one of the other campgrounds with lake access from Tamarack Falls to Tamarack Resort. If you don't have your own gear, you could rent watercraft from Tamarack Resort for a 2-hour tour. Try to go in the morning or evening when the reservoir is not as choppy from boat traffic. 

In the upper arms of the reservoir, the water channels are more narrow and thus are more enjoyable to paddle in a lake kayak, canoe or Stand Up Paddle Board. The North Fork arm, Lake Fork arm and Gold Fork arm are all worth exploring. 

Trip time and length is up to you. 

Here Wendy is paddling her big whitewater canoe on the Cascade to Cabarton trip.  

Cascade to Cabarton Bridge - This is another one of those unsung, flatwater trips on the Payette River. Trip distance is 9 miles. Travel time is 3-5 hours, depending on flow and wind. 

The North Fork moves faster in the Cascade-to-Cabarton reach because in mid-summer, it is flowing at about 1,800 to 1,900 cubic feet per second, with the flows coming out of Lake Cascade upstream. You put in at the south bridge of Idaho 55 (parking and access are fine in that location) and take out at the Cabarton Bridge boat ramp, where the next Class 3 whitewater river section begins.

For people who would rather avoid whitewater and want a more relaxing paddling trip, this is a great option. Pack a lunch for your journey. The river winds through the valley and gives you broad views of West Mountain and East Mountain and the cattle pastures in between. 

You're likely to see herons, kingfishers, bald eagles, ospreys and other birds of prey.      

Fishing can be decent in this reach with rainbows that have washed out of the reservoir.

There you have it! Have a great weekend! 

- SS   

Oodles of outdoorsy ideas for the last big camping weekend of 2021 in Idaho!

Big Lookout Lake, Trinity Mountains

Hi all,

Labor Day weekend is upon us! It's the typical last hurrah of the camping season, so I'm dishing up some last-minute tips for the three-day weekend, as always. 

Before we get into the camping ideas, Bogus Basin, Brundage Mountain and Tamarack Resort all have some fun stuff going on this weekend, and the Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic at Ann Morrison Park runs daily through Sunday.  

Courtesy Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic

This weekend will be the final segment of Music on the Mountain at Bogus Basin on Saturday, Sept. 4, from 3-6 p.m., featuring Voice of Reason and the Afrosonics on the lawn outside Simplot Lodge. Plus you can partake in Fun Zone activities, including summer tubing, bungee trampoline, gem panning, climbing wall, mountain coaster or ride the lifts to access hiking and biking trails. 

Bogus will be open on weekends through October FYI. 

 

This will be the final weekend of operations at Brundage Mountain. Jeff Crosby and the Refugees will play live in the grass amphitheather in the final TGIF concert of the year Friday night. The event is free. Food and beverage available for sale on site. Also, Brundage is providing FREE lift service to retail, restaurant, service, hospitality and health care employees Friday-Monday. That's pretty cool! 

 

At Tamarack, they're hosting a super fun Bikes, Brews & Bluegrass event on Sunday, Sept. 5, 1-5 p.m. Ride the lift and check out the hiking and biking trails on the mountain. They've got something for all abilities, including hard-core downhillers! In addition, there will be end-of-season sales with guest shop retailers, live bluegrass music by local Idaho musicians, and up to a dozen different beers all from local Idaho breweries! Guests must be 21+ to purchase cups and tokens for beer, but otherwise it's a family friendly FREE event!

 

Steve fishing Rainbow Lake

Now, on to the camping tips and other Labor Day ideas ... the weather looks stellar BTW for camping, hiking and biking this Labor Day weekend, with daytime highs in the 80s in the mountains, and 90s in the Boise Valley.

• Trinity Mountains - Go camping, day-hiking or backpacking in the Trinities. I recommend driving there via Featherville. Head for Big Trinity Lake, the trailhead and general dispersed camping area. It's definitely worth backpacking into the high mountain lakes to get away from the car-campers and enjoy some good fishing!
  
  
  
  

• Cascade area - Stolle Meadows and Landmark are my favorite camping areas in this neck of the woods. There are tons of primitive car-camping spots in both locations, east of Cascade, off the Warm Lake Highway. I've heard there may be some construction in the Stolle Meadows area so check with the Cascade Ranger District for any closures. Plus, there are hot springs in the vicinity.

• 

  Lick Creek area in the Payette National Forest 

• McCall area - Camping, hiking and backpacking in the Lick Creek area NE of McCall should be fabulous. Some of the nice mountain lakes up there include Box, Snowslide, Duck, Hum, Enos and Thirty-three lakes. Pick up a Payette National Forest map or a McCall Adventure Map to get the details for access. Also, check my blog from earlier this summer on five easy-to-access kid-friendly mountain lakes in the McCall area. 

  

  Stanley Lake 

• Stanley area - I'm sure the Stanley area will be hopping with lots of campers at Stanley Lake, Redfish Lake, Pettit Lake and points along the Salmon River. Backpacking in the White Clouds should be dandy, particularly from the East Fork side, being a three-day weekend and all. Don't forget the Marsh Creek Trail as another potential destination ... great hiking and fly fishing spot. Hike up to the junction of Bear Valley and Marsh Creeks, and there's a huge glory hole right there. 

  

  North and Middle Forks of the Boise River ... car-camping mecca 

• Idaho City area - The North and Middle Forks of the Boise River work great for car camping. See my post from last week.  
• Salmon River beaches - Upstream from Riggins along the Salmon River Road are some sweet spots for camping, hanging out and swimming. 

Courtesy Winding Rivers Rafting

Also, Labor Day weekend is chock full of big sales at your favorite outdoor retailers in the Boise area, places like Idaho Mountain Touring, George's Cycles, Boise REI, Greenwood's, McU Sports, Alpenglow Mountain Sport, Idaho River Sports, and Shu's Idaho Running Company, all have some fantastic clothing and gear on sale right now. Great deals! Go get 'em! 

A multitude of mountain lakes and hikes beckon in NW McCall

Hi all,

It seems that many visitors to McCall are attracted to the Lick Creek Road area for hiking to high mountain lakes for day trips or backpacking. Actually, the high country around McCall has high mountain lakes in many locations. But you shouldn't overlook the hikes and lakes off Goose Lake Road.

That's my topic this week.

Previously, I've blogged about numerous kid-friendly short hikes in McCall, including going to Upper Hazard Lake off the Goose Lake Road. Most of the hikes/lakes in that area are kid-friendly, from super young kids to teen-agers. Think about bringing a fishing pole. Don't forget your bug stuff, either.

Wendy and I joined our COVID buddies Mark and Laurie Anderson for a super pleasant hike to the Grassy Mountain Lakes last Saturday. Wendy and Laurie also were interested in climbing to the top of Granite Mountain, but since Mark and I had done that a number of times, we went for the Grassy Mountain Lakes.

Driving up the Goose Lake Road, it's pretty obvious that Goose Lake itself is well-known and popular with campers, paddlers, anglers, SUPs, etc.

It took a little over 30 minutes from McCall to the well-marked trailhead for Grassy Mountain. It's only two miles to the lakes. We hiked to the top of Grassy Mountain for a bigger view of the whole countryside, and my oh my, what a view! The Wallowas way off to the west. Cuddy Mountain. Seven Devils. Bruin Mountain. Hard Butte. Patrick Butte. The Little Salmon River canyon. The Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness. And then looking back to McCall, you can see a whole series of peaks and ridge-tops that comprise the Payette Crest. In other words, it's God's Country!

All of that is really inspiring to me, refreshes my soul.

We even found some snow on top of the mountain for Huck to check into for a fresh drink.

Looking west, we also could see Coffee Pot Lake, Disappointment Lake and Lake Serene. We'd leave those for another day, since we were day hiking.

On our way back, we took a dive in upper Grassy Mountain Lake, and that was super refreshing ...

Farther up the Goose Lake Road, you'll also should check out:

    - Hazard Lake and Upper Hazard Lake - car-camping, hiking and fishing at the main lake, with an option to hike to Upper Hazard on an easy trail. 

    - Twin Lakes, Hard Butte Lakes, Rainbow Lake - Much longer drive to the end of the Goose Lake Road to reach those lakes. Park and hike from there. I've biked to Twin Lakes and Rainbow Lake.

    - Climb Hard Butte if you're in the 'hood.

Pick up a McCall Adventure Map or a Payette National Forest map for driving directions and general reference. I also like to create a more detailed topo map for my hikes for easier route-finding.

Have fun!

- SS

 

Here are some camping, outdoor adventure ideas for Labor Day weekend; avoiding the smoke Part IV

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New printing of Mountain Biking in McCall hits the streets; here's 6 must-do rides from the book

Gregg Lawley riding the Bear Basin Trails. 

Wendy in the lower end of the Payette Rim Trail ... tall grass and singletrack. Yum. 

Morgan Hine cruises along on the Loon Lake singletrack 

Loon Lake - Perfect spot for a lunch break half way through the ride.  

Elk Trail! Brundage Mountain Resort 

Cool viewpoint off the Payette Rim Trail. 

Bonus shot: Flowers galore on Bear Pete Trail ... try it sometime 

Hi all,

My guidebook Mountain Biking in McCall  has been super-popular lately, particularly in the McCall market, where it's flying off the shelf. I recently ran out of books in early July and had to quickly reprint to satisfy the demand.

I did update the Bear Basin and Payette Rim Trail descriptions to reflect a few changes/additions that have occurred lately, and otherwise, there are 41 mountain bike rides in the book, and all of them are absolutely SWEET! IMHO.

This week, I'll recommend six must-do rides from the book for different abilities, starting with easy trails and moving up to expert rides. After you're done riding, be sure to take a dip in Payette Lake and cool off. There are several public beaches on the south side of the lake, and also at North Beach on the north end. The lake is a great temperature right now, totally refreshing but not too cold.

1. North Valley Rail-Trail - Location: South of McCall, starting from River Ranch on Mission Street, near the Forest Service Smokejumper Base. You also can start from downtown McCall, and pick up the paved trail heading south to the airport by McCall City Hall or McCall-Donnelly High School. The North Valley Trail is 3.5 miles long, and if combined with the paved trail, it's 5 miles out and back, or 10 miles total. Check out this YouTube video of yours truly riding the trail with my son. The trail is also a great place to hike and run. Great for families and all abilities. 

2. Ponderosa State Park - Ride the gravel Fox Run Trail and then the Huckleberry Trail through thick woods up to the Osprey Point Overlook. It's a 7-mile loop from the park entrance. Fox Run features a moderate climb, and then a fast downhill to the Huckleberry junction. Gear down to your small ring and spin through the woods over rocks and roots, and climb a steep series of switchbacks to the main gravel road, and then climb up to Osprey Point for a great viewpoint and a well-deserved breather. BTW, there is no park entrance fee if you ride to the park on a bike from wherever you are staying. 

3.  Payette Rim Trail - The Rim trail is a longtime favorite ride in the McCall area. It's a 10-mile ride that takes about 1.5-2 hours. 1,000 feet of climbing. Three years ago, logging on Idaho State Lands really tore up the trail. But locals and CIMBA have re-routed the singletrack around the logging disruption, and the trail now takes you all the way down to the corrals by Bear Basin, creating the possibility of riding the rim trail and then making a loop around the Bear Basin Trails to add another 5+ miles to the ride. Thanks to McCall mountain bikers for the awesome re-route!

4. Eagle's Nest Trail - East of Cascade off the Warm Lake Road. Distance: 13.1 miles. Advanced/expert ride. It's kind of a brutal climb up Forest Road #400 (2,800 vertical feet of climbing), but after you reach the singletrack, it's all downhill, and it's a blast. If you're hiking, start the hike on the singletrack by the big highway pullout 4 miles east of Idaho Highway 55. (This is where you park for the bike ride). You'll see the sign for Trail #111. It's 7.7 miles one-way to the jct. with Forest Road 400 at 6,650-foot elevation. 

5. Loon Lake Short Loop - Location: 30+ miles north of McCall. Distance: 10 miles. Advanced intermediate ride. Drive Warren Wagon 30+ miles north of McCall, past Burgdorf Hot Springs, to Chinook Campground. The Loon Lake Loop is what I call "an Idaho classic," one of the top 10 rides in the state. I prefer to ride the loop counter-clockwise, but others prefer clockwise. The trail tread is all singletrack, with plenty of roots, rocks and steep climbs. Best-suited for advanced riders, but some strong intermediates can make it. Pack plenty of food and drink and make a fun day of it. Have lunch at the lake and go swimming. Watch out for other trail users -- it's a very popular place to go.

6. Bear Basin-Elk Trail-#488 Loop - This is one of 14 advanced/expert rides in the book. It's one of my favorite loops in McCall. It's 18.2 miles, 2,580 feet of climbing, and it takes about 3-4 hours. You ride up the Bear Basin dirt road about 7 miles to the top of Brundage Mountain Ski Area. Then you descend on Elk Trail, a super-fun singletrack that weaves across the front side of the ski area for 4+ miles, all downhill. And then, before making the final descent to the base area, you turn left on Growler, and do a moderate climb on Growler over to an unsigned junction with Forest Road #488. It's all downhill back to Bear Basin Road ... a ripping descent, not much traffic, so let 'er rip! 

There you have it! Mountain Biking in McCall  retails for $12.95. It's available at Gravity Sports, Hometown Sports, Ridley's Market, Paul's Market, Shore Lodge gift shop, May Hardware, The Hub and McCall Drug. It's also available at Idaho Mountain Touring, George's Cycles, Boise REI and Barnes & Noble in Boise.

You also can download six free rides/maps on my web site anytime, and individual rides from the Mountain Biking in McCall book can be purchased for 99 cents each. Or, you can purchase a hard-copy book or the full-color ebook on my web site.

There are tons of places to camp outside of McCall in the Payette National Forest. If you don't want to camp, check into lodging at the McCall Chamber of Commerce, InIdaho.com, or vrbo.com.
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Here are two save-the-date items coming up in August from George's Cycles:

• Bogus Basin Hill Climb - Saturday, Aug. 17. 
• George's MS Wine Ride - Aug. 25. Thirty-mile ride starts and finishes at the Sawtooth Winery. Benefit for the Idaho MS Society.  

Visit the George's web site for more information. 

Have fun!
- SS

Lots of things to do over Labor Day weekend; What sounds best for you? Avoiding the smoke Part III

Fire/smoke map from NASA dated Aug. 28, 2012

Hi all,

We've got a three-day weekend coming up for Labor Day weekend, and there are lots of fun things going on in SW Idaho. With three major wildfires burning well over 100,000 acres each, the big challenge still is trying to avoid the smoke. We might call this week's post "Avoiding the Smoke - Part III."

Two weeks ago, I recommended Priest Lake, N. Idaho bike trails and McCall. Last week, I recommended some spots in the West Central Mountains and provided a number of useful, if not critical resources for determining where it may not be as smoky in SW Idaho and Central Idaho.

Here's Irene on the summit of 12,140-foot Mount Breitenbach

Thanks to Facebook, I am noticing that a lot of people are boldly going where they want to go regardless of the smoke! Watch for an upcoming column soon on Irene Vogel, who is climbing all of the 12,000-foot peaks in Idaho in one field season! I think most, if not all of those peaks are in the Pioneer Mountains and the Lost River Range. Her pictures look kind of smoky, but the high peaks appear pretty clear. She's going for the summit of Leatherman Peak this weekend to finish off her journey. Go Irene!

Fires burning slowly on the bank of the Salmon River ... no big deal! (courtesy Ted Kielley) 

I also saw that Ted Kielley did a week-long trip on the Main Salmon in various amounts of smoke and haze, but he felt that it was a trip of a lifetime! I put out a news release for the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Association last week, pointing out that Middle Fork trips are still happening without incident, the road is still open to Boundary Creek, and outfitters like Mystic Saddle Ranch is still offering horseback trail rides in the upper Wood River Valley and the Sawtooths, and guests are happy! 

"We are fully open for our trail rides, and there are no fires burning in the Sawtooths," says Deb Bitton, co-owner of Mystic Saddle Ranch. "I was at our corrals in the upper Wood River Valley yesterday, and it was a glorious day with no smoke in the air. There's still a lot of good fishing to be had in the high mountain lakes."

I think the main thing to remember is that "Conditions are changing on a daily basis." 

Leo Hennessy, who is a trip leader for the Idaho Outdoors Yahoo Group, has been traveling to different places every weekend for the last month. "I'm trying to thread the needle of smoke and haze between Sun Valley, Stanley and McCall, and all I can say is, "It changes day to day. It seems to be the most clear around McCall and Lick Creek, and that's where I'm going this weekend." 

Leo is going with a group that's backpacking into the Prince Lakes. It's very steep and challenging, trip leaders forewarn. If you'd like to tag along, see the invite on Idaho Outdoors.

He Devil Peak (courtesy Summit Post)

Pete Zimowsky asked four guidebook authors for their recommendations on high alpine lakes to explore this fall in the Statesman, and those folks recommended a number of hikes in the Bighorn Crags, Sawtooths, Seven Devils and Pioneers. Smoke-wise, I think the Seven Devils might be the best bet this weekend.
Smoke considerations aside, all of the popular campgrounds at Redfish Lake are open. See the Sawtooth National Recreation Area web site for a full report. Another good spot might be the Bear Valley and Elk Creek areas north of Lowman. That's a great spot for camping,  canoeing and wildlife-watching.  

Blue Lake near Snowbank Mountain (courtesy Dave Williams, from Boise Trail Guide)

Another option this weekend might be to go camping in the Lake Cascade area and take in the bluegrass festival in Round Valley nearby. You also could go hiking to Blue Lake or on the high ridge by Snowbank Mountain (you can drive to the top), go biking on the Eagle's Nest Trail (get free sample  trail/map download from my book Mountain Biking in McCall), or go boating on the Cabarton stretch of the North Fork Payette River. 

Well, hopefully these ideas will provide inspiration this weekend. If  you're stuck in town, I bet a ton of people will go to the Barley Brothers beer fest in Meridian Friday and Saturday. And plus, there are a number of great Labor Day sales at Boise's outdoor retailers. Idaho Mountain Touring, Boise REI, Greenwood's, McU Sports, Alpenglow Mountain Sport and Idaho River Sports all have some fantastic clothing and gear on sale right now. Great deals! 

Have fun! 
-- SS