Find Nearby Peaks

This peak is not in the book. Published November 2018

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Peak 8594 and Peak 8482 straddle Emigration Canyon and the Emigration Campground. They are both located near ID-36, so access is pretty easy. I unofficially name Peak 8594 “Emigration North” since it lies on the north side of the canyon and Peak 8482 “Emigration South” since it lies on the south side of the canyon. There is a formal campground in this area (Emigration Campground) as well as a large dispersed camping area along ID-36 about ¼ mile south of Emigration Pass (7,424 feet). Located in thickly forested terrain with no formal trails, neither of these peaks sees many hikers. USGS North Canyon

East Spur/Northeast Ridge, Class 2

Access

From the junction of US-89 and ID-36 in Ovid, drive west on ID-36 for 11.0 miles to a sharp left bend in the road. The Highline Trail/FST-316 crosses the highway here and is signed. The elevation at the northbound trailhead on the RHS of the road is 7,184 feet. This trailhead is located along ID-36, 0.2 miles northwest of the Emigration Campground turnoff and 0.8 miles northeast of Emigration Pass.

The Climb

From the northbound trailhead at ID-36, hike north up the Highline ATV Trail/FST-316 for about a mile to a signed trail junction at a saddle area at 7,860 feet. LEFT is FST-442; RIGHT is FST-316. Leave the trail here and bushwhack west up the east spur. This is a punishing bushwhack in thick veg and thick aspens. After about 250 vertical feet of bashing, reach the [blessed] northeast ridge. The going is initially easy up the ridge but it becomes more tangled in forest blowdown (pines and aspens). You soon reach the top of Point 8520+, a hump of rocks and trees.

Regrettably, you can see the summit to the southwest from here, but it is a solid ¼ mile away and the terrain between here and there is a bit tedious. Drop down the right/north side of Point 8520+ to an open forest saddle (a 70-foot descent) then climb west up through aspens and veg to the narrow summit ridge at a point just north of the summit high point. The north-to-south summit ridge is mostly open terrain—a mix of talus/scree and desert scrub. The scrub is thick here and it is difficult to pinpoint the exact high point.

There is an open rocky outcrop at the southeast end of the summit ridge with a torn-down cairn atop it. Perhaps this is the high point. No, it’s not. My altimeter measured it at 5 feet lower. The USGS topo map confirms this fact by positioning the 8,594-foot summit well away from the southeast corner of the summit area. I built a nice cairn atop the rock-and-scrub ridge at the highest point, in my judgment. There was enough loose talus nearby to accomplish this task. No signs of previous ascent.

Southwest Ridge/Southeast Face, Class 2

Access

Same as for the east spur/northeast ridge

The Descent

From the true summit, bushwhack southwest through thick aspens and scrub (not pleasant) to reach an open, narrow, flat section of the southwest ridge just northeast of Point 8408. The elevation here is about 8,380 feet. Leave the southwest ridge here and descend southeast down the face through aspens and thick scrub (initially) then through pine forest midway down, then through some open scrub areas lower down with cattle trails to help.

Finish the descent on an east-facing shoulder and drop into a dry gully to its north to reach ID-36 at a point 100 yards or so southwest of the trailhead for the northbound Highline Trail/FST-316 where you began today’s hike. Walk along ID-36 back to the trailhead and your parked vehicle.