Davis Mountain is a sizable flat top butte on the east side of the Cascade Lakes National Scenic Byway. The six point summit tops out at 6,625 feet asl. It has undergone considerable fire activity in recent years, and the top has very sparse vegetation.
This is an easily accessible summit in the southern end of the East Pioneer Mountains. Getting there follows the Wise River/Pioneer Mountains Scenic Byway. This truly scenic route is much like driving through Yellowstone National Park’s mountains and lodgepole pine forests, and meadows, but absent the geysers, mud pots, and bison. The mountains are closer and more rugged and cattle instead of bison are scattered in summer throughout the forest and meadows. There are many well maintained campgrounds along the route.
This ridgeline hike follows a user trampled trail to Morrell Mountain, W7M/GA-068 and then becomes mostly an open rolling ridgeline to the unnamed summit, 8004. Along the entire route are excellent views of the Seeley Lake valley and the Mission Mountains, Scapegoat and Bob Marshall Wilderness Areas.The trailhead is in a saddle just below a closed gate access to Morrell Lookout.
Trail miles: 1.0 plus off trail ridgeline hike of 2.0 miles one way. Elevation gain: ~600’ Terrain: open rock and rolling ridge. Map: Lolo National Forest, Seeley Lake Ranger District
Upper Table Rock is a very pleasant 1.25 mile, 736 foot gain (one-way) hike east of Central Point, Oregon. The trail is quite popular, but you should easily find a place to activate away from the crowds on the huge summit.
Mineral Hill is scenic 8383’ open rock and high elevation tundra appearing summit on the boundary of the Scapegoat Wilderness. Normal scrambling/trail gear including bear spray is recommended. There are two main trail routes to access Mineral Hill. One from the west fords the North Fork Blackfoot River and the other from the south jumps across small streams.
Trail Miles: 8 Miles one way. Elevation Gain: 3700’. Difficulty: Good climbing trail, Challenging river crossing, Short easy 0.25 mile scramble to the summit. Map: US Forest Service, Seeley Lake Ranger District
Table Rock, near Silver Lake, OR, is a distinctive flat topped butte that is visible for many miles away. It is a four point summit at 5621’ asl, that can be a drive up if you have a high clearance, 4x4 vehicle and some nerve. Its south central OR location is fairly remote, but I think it is worth the drive. My XYL, Christina, did most of the driving.
I read up on K7ATN's activation from 2015 and spent a fair amount of time looking at the maps. It seemed like there was an easier way to the summit than the highly rutted road that he had taken. Sure enough, there are good roads all the way to the bottom of the approach.
Huckleberry Mountain and its lookout is well known and for very good reasons. The catwalk around the elevated lookout offers wonderful, 360 degree views. All of the major snow capped peaks from Mt Hood to Thielsen and McLoughlin are visible. In addition, detailed views down into the nearby foothills are there for our enjoyment. The lookout makes a great place to do radio.
A bit of research showed several gems waiting to be Activated, while the high country is still buried in deep, unstable snow. Tibbetts Mountain is a 4 point SOTA Summit, of a modest 4,115 feet elevation. It has a fantastic vantage point, overlooking the beautiful Wenatchee River Valley, the City of Wenatchee, and several towns lying along SR 2, the major east / west highway connecting western and eastern Washington State. We opted for the more reasonable north approach, which is mainly a very steep forest service road, with about 1/4 mile of easy off road climb along the summit ridge. The total distance is 6.2 miles RT, with approximately 1,850 feet elvation gain. A bonus was that the apple orchards in the Wenatchee River Valley were in full bloom, and the mountain flower were awaking from winter slumber.