Idaho’s mountaineering history is discussed in depth on Pages 12-26 of the book. I wrote at the time the second edition was published that “The following is a thumbnail sketch of Idaho’s mountaineering history, filled with unfortunate, but unavoidable gaps.” I will try to fill these gaps on these pages as information comes in. The following posts constitute the next step in filling the gaps.
[Any material contained in the following posts that is or might be subject to Copyright protection is used solely for academic, educational and research purposes consistent with United States copyright statutes and the Fair Use Doctrine and is the property of the actual holder of the copyright.]
| The North Face of Mount Breitenbach by Bob Boyles | Mount Breitenbach, at 12,140 feet is Idaho’s fifth-highest summit and is located in the Lost River Range in ... read more |
| Kong and Us by Bob Boyles | [This article was first published in Idaho Magazine, July 2022.]
The Peak Tha ... read more |
| Guffey Tower (as told by Tom McLeod) by Bob Boyles | Most anyone who has driven ID Highway 78 from Walter’s Ferry to Murphy will notice the large rhyolite tower ... read more |
| 1895 Survey of Hyndman Peak | The Ketchum Keystone, August 24, 1895 The geological survey corps of E.T. Perkins, Jr., is now at Sawtoot ... read more |
| A 1940 Unplanned Bivouac on Borah | read more |
| First Female Ascent of Mount McCaleb | Mount McCaleb dominates the view eastward from Mackay, Idaho. read more |
| Wood River Peak-13,000 feet? | In this article Harry Curtis claims that in 1892 he climbed a peak at the head of Wood and Big Lost rivers tha ... read more |
| Big Trouble at the City | The City of Rocks—Politics, Climbing Hi ... read more |
| The City of Rocks and Dave Bingham | The City of Rock, a land of spectacular granite formations at the southern end of the read more |
| Terri Rowe Completes the Idaho County High Point List | On August 6, 2019, Terri became the first woman and only the 8th person to climb all of the Idaho County High ... read more |
| Ken Jones and Bob Packard: First to Complete Idaho’s County High Points by Ken Jones | Idaho’s county high point ... read more |
| T.M. Bannon by Rick Baugher | Thomas M. Bannon was also a self-taught mountaineer. Although his name is not widely known in mountaineering c ... read more |
| The Sawtooth Country of Idaho by Gary M Smith | This article was published in the April 1967 edition of the long defunct Summit Magazine. Perhaps the most ... read more |
| Ken Jones climbs all of Idaho’s 2,000 foot prominence peaks. | On September 28, 2015, Ken Jones rea ... read more |
| Brett Sergenian is the First to Climb the Highest 200 | Brett Sergenian, aka exflatlan ... read more |
| Lightning Strike on Borah 1954 | The Idaho Statesman reported this accident in its September 3, 1954 edition.
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| The First Ascent of Triple Peak | |
| Southern Lemhi Traverse by Daniel Todd | The Lemhi Range’s southern crest between read more |
| Mazamas Climb Mount Heyburn? | From the Idaho Stateman August 17, 1941.
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| Seeing Idaho from Borah Peak by Robert Fulton | [Editor’s Note: In 1938, Robert Fulton publ ... read more |
| Neil McAvoy 1933 – 2012 | Neil McAvoy of Kellogg, Idaho was an active technical climber and guide in the 1960s and 1970s. He was also me ... read more |
| The Underhill Sawtooth Story by Ray Brooks | “Rugged country. Awful rugged country. Miles and miles of sharp jagged pinnacles of firm granite.” A paint ... read more |
| FIFTY YEARS OF SAWTOOTH CLIMBING 1934-1984 By Dave Bingham | When Robert and read more |
| Climbing the Bighorn Crags of Idaho by Lincoln Hales | Mountaineers Journal, Vol. 48, No. 13, 1955. Editor's Note: This article is all we know about ... read more |
| Leading a Cat by Its Tail by Miriam E Underhill | Editors Note: Appalachia Vol. 20, 1934. This article put the Sawtooth Range in the national spotlight. Use ... read more |
| Before There Were Guidebooks by Ray Brooks | When I started climbing in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains in 1970, there was no guidebook for the range, or any ... read more |
| Fred, Pete and Jack’s Big Sawtooth Adventure by Ray Brooks | The Summer of 1949: Fred Beckey, Pete Schoening and Jack Schwabland went into Idaho’s Sawtooth Range to fini ... read more |
| Sawtooth Mountaineering by Frank Florence | Editor’s Note: Sawtooth Mountaineering was Boise’s first climbing shop. It was founded by Lou and Fran ... read more |
| 1938–Ski Mountaineering Sun Valley Style | This December 4, 1938 Idaho Statesman published a Sun Valley promotional article written by the resort’s man ... read more |
| Idaho’s First Climbing Classes. | The Union Pacific Railroad’s Sun Valley Resort was a leader in ski resort development, including designing a ... read more |
| A 1903 Ascent of Freeman Peak | The following account of an early ascent of read more |
| Idaho Mountaineering 1939 | This July 23, 1939 article briefly surveys Idaho Mountaineering at the time. Unfortunately, the climbers shown ... read more |
| The Missing Link: Norman Clyde in Idaho |
Idaho is a virtual sea of mountains. While there is no doubt that Native Americans rambled across the ... read more |
| Chimney Rock Off-Belay Magazine 1972 | Off Belay Magazine was THE climbing magazine of its day. The following articl ... read more |
| The First Winter Ascent of Mount Heyburn | The first Winter ascent of Moun ... read more |
| The Decker Flat Climbing & Frisbee Club By Ray Brooks | I guess we were the Decker Flat Climbing & Frisbee Club (DFC&FC) before anyone, inclu ... read more |
| Mount Borah: Dirty Traverse and Northeast Ridge Variation – East Face by Bob Boyles | Bob Boyles provided the following history and, with Wes Collins, the route descriptions (below) for these ... read more |
| Gordon K. Williams by Ray Brooks | Editor’s Note: see additional photos assembled by Jacques Bordelea ... read more |
| Appendicitis Hill and T.M. Bannon | On February 26th, 1926, the Sunday Idaho Statesman published the following report by E.S. Crawford describi ... read more |
| 1975 Fatality on El Capitan | [Editor’s note: This August 6, 1975 article by UPI was published in the Idaho Statesman. No other details ar ... read more |
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| An 1884 Ascent of Mount McCaleb by J.D. Martin | [Editor’s note: J.D. Martin was an early settler of the Lost River Valley. As he was nearing his 90th year, ... read more |
| Boise National Forest Fire Lookouts | Fire Lookouts are a great way to experience the mountain world. I just discovered a Boise National Forest broc ... read more |
| An Overview of the Lookouts in the Salmon National Forest by Bing Young (1982) | According to A History of the Salmon National Forest, by 1916 there were ... read more |
| 1987 Death on Borah | In 1987, an experienced climber descending Mount Borah fell on the snowpack and lost control of his self-arres ... read more |
| Death on the Way to Mount Church | Editor’s Note: On August 4, 2006, a fatality occurred on a summit attempt of Mount Church. What follows is t ... read more |
| The First Ascent of the North Face of Snowslide Peak by Art Troutner | [Editor’s Note: Art Troutner is a pioneering Idaho mountaineer who was involved in many firsts in the 1970s ... read more |
| The First Winter Ascent of the Finger of Fate by Jacques Bordeleau | The first winter ascent of the Finger o ... read more |
| Off Belay Magazine —The Sawtooth Issue 1975 | Off Belay Magazine was THE climbing magazine of its day. The following articles contained the most extensi ... read more |
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| Mountain Peaks: Determining the True Summit and the True Elevation by Livingston Douglas | Mountain climbers and obsessive peak-baggers have a common goal: to stand atop ... read more |
| The First Winter Ascent of Mount Regan | The following newspaper article covers the first Winter ascent of Mount Regan. Joe Leonard has written an exte ... read more |
| The First Idaho Guidebook: Sun Valley Ski Guide | The first Idaho backcountry skiing and Winter climbing guidebook, “Sun Valley Ski Guide,” was published in ... read more |
| Before it was Stack Rock | This August 19, 1922 article from the Idaho Statesman called "Castle Rock" what we now know today as "Stac ... read more |
| A Sawtooth Range Glacier | This article from the Idaho Statesman was published on August 1, 1926. In 2018, we know that there are no ... read more |
| Castle Peak and Molybdenum | In the 1960s, the American Smelting and Refining Company was preparing to develop an open pit molybdenum mine ... read more |
| Lyman Marden | Lyman Marden was a member of the USGS team that surveyed the Borah Peak quadrangle. He wrote an article entitl ... read more |
| Which Idaho Peak is the Highest? | In the early 1920s, Hyndman ... read more |
| Lee Morrison | Lee Morrison was a USGS topographic engineer who led many mapping expeditions in Idaho in the 1920s and 1930s. ... read more |
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| A 1949 Climb Up Borah | This article was published in the Aberdeen Times on August 18, 1949.read more |
| 1929 Borah Declared Idaho’s Highest Peak | The book discusses the discovery of Borah Peak as the highest point in Idaho on Pages 16 and 17. This entr ... read more |
| 1938 Account of a Mount Borah Ascent | The following article was published in the Salt Lake Tribune. read more |
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| Climbing the Slopes of Mount Borah—the Dean of Idaho Peaks | Editor’s note: This article from The Idaho Statesman (February 10, 1935) was written by Lyman Marden, one ... read more |
| A. H. Marshall | A. H. Marshall was the first person to visit the high points of the 48 contiguous states, accomplishing the ta ... read more |
| 1948 Idaho Statesman Article: Here’s a Club for You to Join But It’s A Rough Organization | [Editor’s Note: This September 13, 1948 article was referenced on Page 18 of the book in the Mountaineering ... read more |
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| Robert Fulton | Robert Fulton was an active Idaho climber in the 1930s. Robert was was fascinated with Mount Borah and wrote s ... read more |
| Iowa Mountaineers | The Iowa Mountaineers climbing club was a major player in the in early Sawtooth Range exploration. The club wa ... read more |
| Robert Limbert (1885-1933) | “Two Gun” Robert Limbert is probably the most interesting personality associated with Idaho Climbing Histo ... read more |
| Robert Underhill (1889-1983) | Robert Underhill and his wife read more |
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| Miriam Underhill (1899-1976) | Unquestionably the leading American female alpinist of her time, read more |
| From Diamond Peak to Hyndman Peak: Kelly Lance’s 12er Traverse by Tom Lopez | Kelly Lance, a 49-year-old endurance runner from Pocatello, climbed all of Idaho’s 12,000-foot peaks in a 11 ... read more |
| The End of the Last Idaho Ice Age By Bob Boyles | I first saw the North Face of Mount Borah in the Summer of 1972 while working under contract with the U.S. For ... read more |
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| Death on Castle Peak | Fatal mountaineering accidents are rare in Idaho, but they do occur. Rarer still are fatalities from Summertim ... read more |
| Andy Henning | Andy Henning was the author of the first Idaho backcountry ski guidebook, "read more |
| Wayne Boyer | Wayne Boyer was a compatriot of Lyman Dye and one ... read more |
| Robinson Bar Ranch by Joe Leonard | [Editor's note: Robinson Bar Ranch holds a unique spot in Idaho's climbing history as it became the home of th ... read more |
| THE LOST AND WANDERING by Joe Leonard | [Editor's Note: read more |
| Lyman Dye 1932 – 2020 | Lyman Dye was one of the giants of Idaho climbing. Lyman was a major contributor to the Sawtooth Ran ... read more |
| EE DA HOW Mountaineers | The EE DA HOW Mountaineers was a both a climbing group from Eastern Idaho formed by read more |
| Mount Borah: East Face, Dye-Boyer Route by Bob Boyles | Note from the Editor: This wonderful article, provided for the Climbing History Section of the website, includ ... read more |
| Harrison “H” Hilbert | Harrison "H" Hilbert was the first director of the Idaho State Universi ... read more |
| Bill March | Bill March was a British mountaineer and ice climber who, along with Rick Albano, is credited with the first W ... read more |
| The East Face of Mount Borah by Bob Boyles | https://www.idahoaclimbingguide.com/east-face-mt-borah-bob-boyles/ ... read more |
| The Early Climbing History at Table Rock by Bob Boyles | For those who live in the vicinity of Boise, Table Rock is an unmistakable landmark rising up on the Northeast ... read more |
| Summit Idaho by Outdoor Idaho | In 2013, Idaho Public Television's iconic series Outdoor Idaho broadcast a show dedicated to mountain ... read more |
| The Early Climbing History of the Black Cliffs by Bob Boyles | During the Summer of 1972, three of my friends and I took a basic rock climbing class at Table Rock from Frank ... read more |
| First Ascent of Grandjean Peak’s Point 9144 and Peak 9180+ | Sean Duffy and Chris Reedy made the first ascent of 2 of Grandjean Peak's 5 summits in 1995. read more |
| Lost River Climbers | Back in the 1970s when I started to climb, it seemed as though every climber was associated with some sort of ... read more |
| Lou Florence | Lou Florence served in Africa and Italy in WWII. He moved to Boise with his family in 1972. He and his son Fr ... read more |
| Chuck Ferguson by Rick Baugher | The late Chuck Ferguson (1940-1998) is not as well known as one would expect, considering his accomplishments ... read more |
| Dr. Evilio Echevarria | Evilio Echeverria was on a personal quest to explore the world when he arrived in Sun Valley from Chile in 195 ... read more |
| Louis Stur | The following is extracted from Page 21 of the book.
In 1951, Louis Stur came to Sun Val ... read more |
| The First Ascent of the North Face of USGS Peak | |
| 1977 Borah North Face Winter First Ascent | Bob Boyles, Mike Weber, Art Troutner and Frank Florence made the first Winter ascent of Borah's North Face. Be ... read more |
| Photos from the 1976 first ascent of the Direct North Face of Borah | Below you will find Bob Boyles' favorite photos from the first ascent of the Direct North Face of Borah (Octob ... read more |
| Lost River Range Traverse by Wes Collins | Editor's Note: The following report by Wes Collins documents his remarkable Lost River Ra ... read more |
| Mount Breitenbach: North Face – North East Ridge | First Ascent: Bob Boyles, Mike Weber and Curtis Olsen
Rating: Grade III, 5.8, A2
DescriptionProv ... read more |
| Missing Eleveners and New Routes by Judi Steciak and Carl Hamke | Editor's Note: Carl Hamke and Judi Steciak recently became the third and fourth climbers to s ... read more |
| One Person’s Junk Is Another’s Treasure by Rick Baugher | They say that one person's junk is another's treasure. Archeologists of future millennia should have a field ... read more |
| Fossils of Idaho’s High Peaks by Rick Baugher | Some of the best examples of Idaho's marine Paleozoic fossils are found near the summits of mountain peaks (10 ... read more |
| Where Do Mountain Names Come From? | The history, evolution and process of naming mountains is discussed on Pages 32-33 of the book. However, t ... read more |
| The East Face of Mt Borah by Bob Boyles | Idaho has nine summits that reach over 12,000 feet and all but two lie within the Lost River Range in central ... read more | |
| Borah: Where Gray Granite Crags and Idaho’s Azure Skies Meet By DICK d’EASUN | Bob Boyles found and transcribed a scanned copy of the following 1929 article which discusses read more |
| Arval Anderson, Early Sawtooth Explorer and Surveyor | Arval Anderson, a civil engineer, was an early USFS Surveyor who was stationed in the Boise Mountains and ... read more |
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| Elephants Perch – Pacydermial Pleasantries 1977 by Ray Brooks | |
| Lost River Range Volcanoes by Rick Baugher | Volcanoes and related igneous flows are a staple of the Pacific Northwest landscape, so it is interesting to o ... read more |
| Fire Lookouts By Rick Baugher | For more on fire lookouts see the following articles: read more |
| Idaho County High Points by Andy Martin (Revised 2023) | Based on LiDAR data the high point for Nez Perce County is now on a different point on Craig Mountain. As a re ... read more |
| Idaho’s Albion Range, Published in Summit Magazine Vol. 30, No. 2 March-April, 1984 | Text and Photos by Tom LopezThe Albion Range is Idaho's most important destination for climbers sou ... read more |
