missoula - Jul 24, 2022 9:21 am Date Climbed: Jul 23, 2022
Bitterroot 9ker number 17
Climbed this peak with Adam Drobish (fellow Rocky Mountaineer). There was a small lightning caused fire on the shoulder of Koch in early July, which had been contained by a fire crew. Their recent activity up there made the game trail a lot easier to follow at least into the small cirque area. Great views of the Como peaks and El cap.
Climbed the peak after many backtracks because I was too close to the ridge. The slope is quite easy with about half going through the trees and half bolder hopping. Good day hike, but I left too late in the day. 11hrs.
Iron Hiker - Jul 15, 2013 5:34 pm Date Climbed: Jul 13, 2013
First Bitterroot peak!
How many can say they climbed this as their first main Bitterroot peak....?
MTfred19 invited me to scale this peak with him and his friend, and we had a very enjoyable time. It wasn't easy, of course, since the footing was tough and the mosquitoes got pretty active, but the wilderness feeling of the upper half of the mountain was outstanding!
Mike Hoyt's general route is still good, although the "path" in the bottom half is perhaps a bit less defined than his description might make it look. It's not too hard going through the firebreak and the forest, thankfully. I took the "ledge" route right under the summit coming back and found it pretty straightforward - the ridge immediately east of that was actually a little tougher to navigate but no big difficulties presented themselves.
A very nice introduction to a major mountain range!
MTfred19 - Jul 15, 2013 10:53 am Date Climbed: Jul 13, 2013
East Approach - South Ridge
A great summit with excellent views, once again! There was a lot of tedious hiking on sharp rocks and a little downfall to negotiate but nothing technical or very steep. Maybe more enjoyable on snow due to the terrain, though. Lots of open views along the way to take in, particularly of El Cap and the Como Peaks! Dropped down to the beautiful little pond SE of the summit to re-water the dogs and climbed from there. Took a pretty easy 10 hour day with lots of lounging rest stops, but ended up a bit fatigued in the end from all the sunshine and the terrain! Great day, great companions!
Michael Hoyt - Jul 28, 2010 7:57 pm Date Climbed: Jun 29, 2010
Second Time Was Even Better
29jun10 - My second climb of this mountain was with a friend and was even better than the first. We discovered the ledges below the gendarmes are passable even when they are partially snow covered. Even getting drenched by rain during the descent didn't dampen our spirits. I will point out that out ascent proved that using the Alternate East Ridge Route is more difficult and taxing than the standard East Ridge Route.
9sep09 - The first time I climbed this mountain was by the South Ridge Route. I descended using the East Ridge Route. It was a great day with a couple of nice surprises - A young Red-Tailed Hawk spent a lot of time watching me climb and got close enough for me to take a few pictures plus the ledges below the gendarmes allowing for fairly easy passage.
missoula - Jul 24, 2022 9:21 am Date Climbed: Jul 23, 2022
Bitterroot 9ker number 17Climbed this peak with Adam Drobish (fellow Rocky Mountaineer). There was a small lightning caused fire on the shoulder of Koch in early July, which had been contained by a fire crew. Their recent activity up there made the game trail a lot easier to follow at least into the small cirque area. Great views of the Como peaks and El cap.
ColtonV - Jul 17, 2020 12:47 pm Date Climbed: Jul 16, 2020
Solo Climb left at 1:00pmClimbed the peak after many backtracks because I was too close to the ridge. The slope is quite easy with about half going through the trees and half bolder hopping. Good day hike, but I left too late in the day. 11hrs.
Iron Hiker - Jul 15, 2013 5:34 pm Date Climbed: Jul 13, 2013
First Bitterroot peak!How many can say they climbed this as their first main Bitterroot peak....?
MTfred19 invited me to scale this peak with him and his friend, and we had a very enjoyable time. It wasn't easy, of course, since the footing was tough and the mosquitoes got pretty active, but the wilderness feeling of the upper half of the mountain was outstanding!
Mike Hoyt's general route is still good, although the "path" in the bottom half is perhaps a bit less defined than his description might make it look. It's not too hard going through the firebreak and the forest, thankfully. I took the "ledge" route right under the summit coming back and found it pretty straightforward - the ridge immediately east of that was actually a little tougher to navigate but no big difficulties presented themselves.
A very nice introduction to a major mountain range!
MTfred19 - Jul 15, 2013 10:53 am Date Climbed: Jul 13, 2013
East Approach - South RidgeA great summit with excellent views, once again! There was a lot of tedious hiking on sharp rocks and a little downfall to negotiate but nothing technical or very steep. Maybe more enjoyable on snow due to the terrain, though. Lots of open views along the way to take in, particularly of El Cap and the Como Peaks! Dropped down to the beautiful little pond SE of the summit to re-water the dogs and climbed from there. Took a pretty easy 10 hour day with lots of lounging rest stops, but ended up a bit fatigued in the end from all the sunshine and the terrain! Great day, great companions!
Michael Hoyt - Jul 28, 2010 7:57 pm Date Climbed: Jun 29, 2010
Second Time Was Even Better29jun10 - My second climb of this mountain was with a friend and was even better than the first. We discovered the ledges below the gendarmes are passable even when they are partially snow covered. Even getting drenched by rain during the descent didn't dampen our spirits. I will point out that out ascent proved that using the Alternate East Ridge Route is more difficult and taxing than the standard East Ridge Route.
9sep09 - The first time I climbed this mountain was by the South Ridge Route. I descended using the East Ridge Route. It was a great day with a couple of nice surprises - A young Red-Tailed Hawk spent a lot of time watching me climb and got close enough for me to take a few pictures plus the ledges below the gendarmes allowing for fairly easy passage.