Hike North Idaho

Idaho Selkirks Harrison Peak is an easy approach once you get to the end of Upper Pack River Road which can take about 30-40 minutes after you turn off Highway 95. It is the last trailhead on the road with plenty of good parking and a pit toilet (in case you needed to know). The […]

Idaho Selkirks The trip to the trailhead for Long Lake means a bit of a drive from Sandpoint since it is beyond the Kootenai Wildlife Refuge outside of Bonners Ferry. Once you reach the trailhead, the hike is fairly easy up and over Pyramid Pass and along ridgeline hugging Long Canyon. Landon (Otis) and my […]

We drove to the trailhead for Caribou Lake by taking the Pack River Road west to Caribou Creek Road (No. 2684). Drive just more than 4 miles and then bear left for the final 2.5 miles which were fairly rough. The elevation here is 4,270 feet and the lake is 5,192 feet. The hike to […]

The trailhead starts at 4,450’ in Upper Pack River. We drove from Sandpoint and started out from the trailhead by 7:30 in cool conditions (gloves and long sleeve) until the sun reached us over the top of Roman Nose. Then, it proved to be one of the warmest days we experienced in the Selkirks once […]

Parker Peak is the highest named peak in the U.S. Selkirk Range. It is 7,670 feet but it is not an easy one to reach. Landon Otis and I started at the Pyramid Pass trail #13 (take Trout Creek Road No. 634 to the end — about 9 miles off Westside Road just north of […]

On September 25, we set out from an empty village on Schweitzer Mountain and made our way to the top for the Quad. The Nature Trail was compromised by construction and no signs have been placed for hikers. While it is difficult to get lost, the trail is simply not in good shape. I am […]

7,326 ft. 14 miles, 3200 feet of gain September 11 seemed like a good day to hike back into the backcountry of the Idaho Selkirks and we were not disappointed. A late start (10:30) meant we had to keep moving over the 14 roundtrip miles to the top of Mt. Roothaan. Cathy Schuller and Don […]

The trip into Harrison Lake is perfect for a first time hiker or even for a family. It is kid-friendly 2.5 miles one direction. The trip is worth the effort. The elevation gain is nominal and climbs gently to the lake for about 1500’ before offering first rate views of the crest and Mt. Harrison […]

What better way to spend Memorial Day weekend than climbing to the Selkirk crest near Chimney Rock? If you haven’t done this hike you owe it to yourself to put it on the calendar. It is a relatively easy 10 mile round-trip hike with about 2,700’ of vertical gain. It starts easy and crosses bridges, […]