Tuesday, April 22, 2014

STATELINE final









"I was down and sliding before I knew it...."    it's ironic that this close to the end of my 7 year quest to hike the Idaho Centennial Trail, that I almost bought the farm.    I almost didn't get to finish the ICT.      This is the final part of the ID-MT Stateline trail that I completed.   It is a 10 mile section between Cascade Pass at Cedar Creek Road,  and Dry Creek Road.    Hiking with me were Jerry "Frog" Finnegan, and my son-in-law Tyler Parrish.    We got separated from the trail near Frog Lake, and Tyler got the "good save award" for Navigation, by getting us back on the actual ICT with his GPS.   then a few miles later, Jerry got the "good save award" for Life Saving, that is my life was saved.   I took an unexpected slide down a snow slope near the western face of Eagle Cliff.    I tried to self-arrest, but my hiking pole merely bounced off the hard icy cupped snow surface.   Jerry leaned out and got a hand on me as I went by.   He grabbed the lanyard of my GPS hanging from my pocket.  This caused the GPS to rip out of my pocket, but the tug was enough to slow me down.    For a brief few seconds I honestly thought I was sliding to my death.    It shook me up a bit, but we carried on and finished the hike.      






Thursday, April 17, 2014

ROSS PEAK ICT 2009

just posted 2 YouTube videos of a 2009 Idaho Centennial Trail hike.

Previously these videos existed as a Playlist consisting of 60 different videos.  Due to upload constraints I had to load them to YouTube individually.

presenting Ross Peak part A and part B.


ICT  Mattingly Divide to Ross Peak
through the Sawtooth Mountains
completing the hike at Willow Creek campground
and the bridge over the Middle Fork of the Boise River
September 2009

the only thing better than finishing the Idaho Centennial Trail, is to help a friend finish it.  in September of 2009 I joined my friend Jerry Finnegan for his last segment of the ICT through the Sawtooth Mountains.   Jerry and friends started at Grandjean trailhead.   I caught a plane ride to the backcountry airstrip at Atlanta, Idaho, and hiked in a few miles to meet the group at Mattingly Creek.  From there, we hiked up Mattingly Divide, crossed through the north and south drainages of Ross Creek, and climbed to the highest point on the ICT.  The pass near Ross Peak is 9,200 feet elevation.  From there we descended 11 miles along Willow Creek, and to the grand finale' for Jerry at the bridge over the South Fork of the Boise River.   A group of friends and family were waiting to celebrate Jerry's completion of the ICT.

at the end of  part A, Jerry climbed up to the 9,200 foot saddle near Ross Peak.   This is the high point of the ICT, and it was a very powerful experience for all of us to share in Jerry's triumph.

in part B,  we celebrate with Jerry at the saddle below Ross Peak.   Then we descend the ICT down the Willow Creek drainage.    Friends and family are waiting for Jerry at the trailhead to celebrate his completion of the ICT.


I created this video with the YouTube Video Editor (http://www.youtube.com/editor)

ROSS PEAK part B

ROSS PEAK 2009 part A