The Nestucca River Byway is a very secluded and off-the-beaten-path route through the North Coastal Range, between HW6 to the North and HW18/HW22 to the South. It's paved from Carlton at least as far West as the turnoff South to Willamina, but not maintained in the winter, so the sign says when approaching from the East from Carlton.
I activated W7Y/TT-086, AKA Steve Baugh peak, last summer. It's a beautiful summer hike with spectacular views of the Tetons. The approach is pretty moderate in summer or winter. I decided to do it again this winter and had a perfect, calm, bluebird day with specatacular views of the Teton range.
This summit is directly north across the township of Lava Hot Springs ID. located on state land. This summit is located above the Lava Hot Springs Idaho hot pools. It is a short 2 mile round trip hike. Sometimes snowshoes may not be needed but are nice to have just in case. This is mostly a bushwhack hike. After this hike enjoy the Hot Springs for a nice soak.
This was a winter activation and I had hoped for a one-way ride on the Pomerelle Triple Chair lift. After an e-mail and phone inquiry I received no response. I then planned a hike from the Pomerelle parking lot along established roads to the top of the lift and then a very short hike to the summit.
Previous writeups and activations have accessed Wildcat via the Stimson parcel that starts at Northwest Hayward Rd. Email communication with Stimson confirms that they have closed this parcel to public access, and activators should not use this path. Signage has been mixed, but the core issue is firearms use in the area that bothers the private neighbor. According to Stimson, "The entry point is actually on their property and we try to be accommodating with our neighbors."
All is not lost! Fortunately the summit itself, and a complete path of access, is on public state land.
7 Mar 22: Parked at the "Blanchard Hump" parking area on East Blanchard road. Ample parking, only one other car present on a weekday. I elected not to take snowshoes based on trail conditions at the parking lot. Most of the trail is exposed; almost no snow in sunlit areas. I followed the trail and track from K7DJL [available on SOTL.as] to the summit, about 2 miles. The trail is an ATV track and goes steeply up the face of the summit. There are a couple false summits and snow coverage increased approaching the final hill.
In looking for my next winter activation, I came across Tom Dick and Harry (W7O/CN-032) which is on the upper portion of SkiBowl West.
From Hwy 93, turn east at 42.06156, -114.67514. This is near mile marker 5 (5 miles north of the Nevada border/Jackpot). Take an immediate right and then left. Continue east up a well-graded road. The road begins to deteriorate after about a mile into deep ruts. A high clearance vehicle is recommended.
We did this summit as a winter snowmobile trip with Cooper Mtn. and Poison Peak.
See full report here:
http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/wu7h/2022-march-04/cooper-mountain-wa-feb-2022
We did this summit as a winter snowmobile trip with Cooper Mtn. and Fox Peak.
See full report here:
http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/wu7h/2022-march-04/cooper-mountain-wa-feb-2022