Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route - 2015

[cjdunn]

Since the TDR, CTR etc. get new threads each year in Ultra Racing I thought maybe a 2015 thread for people planning to do the Idaho Hot Springs Route might be a good idea since, although not a race, it has become very popular.

I'm planning to head up from AZ with my family to do the main route starting from Hailey going clockwise.  We hope to start around June 20 or so.
 
Is there any current route conditions info out there? 

Who else is planning to do it this summer?

Looks like the snowpack and rivers are much lower than usual this year.

[cjdunn]

We hope to leave AZ Saturday June 20 and start riding out of Hailey on Monday going CCW.  Anybody else going to be out there?

[jaybo]

I'll be heading out of Boise on the 26th.

[ScottM]

Hoping to squeeze this in, late August, after the Pacific Northwest Trail.  Who knows how we'll feel after that.

I know of one rider starting Aug 16th, too.  Not sure if he has an account here or not.

[cjdunn]

Looks like we should have started a week earlier. It is supposed to hit 109F in Idaho City next week.  We will have to get in the hot springs to cool off.

Does anybody know of a good place to leave our truck for two weeks in Ketchum?  We were planning to leave it at a friend's condo in Hailey but that might not work. We are about two hours away now so I imagine there won't be a lot of views of this but I thought I'd ask. Hopefully we will be heading toward Stanley tomorrow morning

[mathieu]

These folks got permission to park their car at the USFS office in Ketchum www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=tS&page_id=376118&v=Nr

[harryonaspot]

We left 2 cars at the Park Headquarters about 12 miles north of Ketchum. Just show up, go inside and let them know. It is right on the route. No shade though

[timon_o]

I just got back from riding a modified version of the south loop - The main route is all easily rideable, but the info that I received from other riders is that high elevations of the singletrack sections still have some snow making things difficult - I personally encountered snow at 7800 feet.

Also, based on my experience, I would highly recommend not riding the Lowman cutoff on a Sunday, the traffic is pretty heavy and moving fast trying to get home to Boise. I personally witnessed a motor vehicle collision along the way due to careless driving. I think that riders would be wise to consider riding the slightly longer Bear Valley Road instead to avoid traffic (I wish that I had - even though it does skip the Sourdough Lodge): https://goo.gl/ygYrMq

Caveat: I did not ride this alternate route, so I don't know for sure what the riding conditions are along it, but if the other roads on the route are any indication it would be a nice ride.

If anyone is interested in a doable shortcut to skip Ketchum (my time was limited so I crossed the Smoky Mountains from the South Fork of the Boise River to Smiley Creek), here is my tracklog: https://app.strava.com/activities/332753823

The hike up over the Emma Creek/Smiley Creek pass is not really rideable until you crest the pass going eastward, it's a hiking path with some rideable sections, but it is hike-a-bike-able with no major obstructions and shortens your route by a day or two.

For people who are flying in with bike boxes, I stayed at the super 8 by the airport on my first and last nights, and they stored my box for me in the interim - your mileage may vary, call to verify that they will do the same for you.

Edit: Also, for anyone riding the Bogus Basin cutoff to get back to Boise, water is nonexistent after Harris Creek - fill up before you start climbing or you'll be in for a rough ride.

[cjdunn]

We are currently in Idaho City on day 9 of the main loop going CCW from Hailey. It has been a great trip with my family but we finally hit really hot weather today. It was 104F when we arrived today. It had been mostly too hot to soak in hot springs. We hit the private spring at Mtn Village Lodge in Stanley and Mile 16 on the South Fork of the Salmon. If anybody wants to ask any main loop questions hit me up after the 4th of July. We plan to finish on the 3rd before the crazies come out for the holiday weekend.

[caseygreene]

Here's my outlook for folks looking to ride in July/August/Sept 2015:

HOT: We are experiencing August like conditions in the Northern Rockies right now with no relief in sight.

FIRES: Plan on reroutes. The maps were to designed for this. On most parts of the route you can see logical solutions to get yourself around a fire. Check this site regularly: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/state/13/#

SMOKE: This is the worst. Again, plan to be flexible.

The cure for this would be precipitation - sans lightning - and cooler temps. It's not likely, but I've seen it happen before in July.

-------

On another note, FR 582 over Clear Creek Summit does go. It's nice dirt road riding. The only reason it wasn't included in the routing is that it does not hit any hot springs.

[KungFuBykRide]

I just finished the lower half (plus some... we parked cars in Crouch and Cascade to give us bail out options via Lohman and Warm Lakes, went counterclockwise from Crouch, took the Lohman cutoff back to Crouch, and then biked up to Cascade).  It was 100+ degrees much of the time, but we tried to get most of cycling done in the mornings and after the sun started to set, and had fun jumping into the rivers midday and soaking in hot springs at night or in the morning.  There was already a wildfire off of 55 while I was biking... looks like fire season is here early.  

My cycling blog is updated with my day-by-day trip details and tips (http://kungfubykride.blogspot.com).

CJDunn, it was fun to bump into you and your family on the trail!  Let me know if you'd like a copy of the picture I snapped of your family before we parted ways!

Cheers,
LeeAnn

[wbcmaelstrom]

Is the hot weather normal or is it just this year?

I am not planning on doing it this year, but debating doing either IHS or CTR next year.

[caseygreene]

It's year-to-year on when the 100+F heat comes. It's rare to show up in late June - as was the case this year. Usually a better bet would be lateish July. Late September or early October would be decent times to shoot for as well.

Another factor to keep in mind is that elevations range from 3000ft in Crouch, to 10000ft above Ants Basin in the White Clouds. It's definitely possible to have a 30 degree temperature difference between those two spots.

It sounds like the Middle Fork of the Boise is getting a well deserved reputation for it's exposed sun and heat. If it's 100+F down there I'd probably jump in the river every 5 miles.

[cjdunn]

We finished our trip on July 3 back in Hailey after 12 days and 542 miles.  Our only deviation from the route was to avoid the heat S. of Idaho City we went over Rabbit Creek Summit then the Swanholm Rd. to stay shadier and higher.  It worked great.  We were able to ride in the mornings and evenings to avoid the worst of the heat but it was still 105 in Featherville when we got there.  We hung out at the Cyndie's Featherville Cafe (very biker friendly) most of the day eating and drinking then got in 20 miles toward Dollarhide before dark.  We wanted to get off the roads before the crowds of the 4th of July weekend got too bad and we made it just as things were getting busy. 

The trip was great and all bikes and bodies held up well.  We did more swimming in rivers than soaking in hot springs and we would have liked to sleep in and have more casual days but the heat forced us to ride early and late but I think we fared pretty well considering.  We met lots of nice folks along the way but only three riders.  LeeAnn and Ryan and Frank from Holland.  It was a great experience for all.

Yes LeeAnn I'd love a copy of the photo.  We just returned home yesterday and are still going through our own photos.

[FrankDekkers]

Hi Chris, here Frank from Holland!
Indead we met between Warm Lake and Stanley.
I have a nice picture of you and your family.

I returned to Holland on Juli 5th

Great to see you back here on the forum.

Frank.

[cjdunn]

Thanks for the photo Frank.  We were so excited to see another rider when we met you out there.  I'm glad you made it home safely.

[idahospud]

In the past couple weeks we've had a span from 105F and dry to 75F with rain and hail. The current forecast calls for days of thunderstorms. The neighbors tell me it even snowed years ago on the 4th of July in Crouch. Be prepared for anything.

[Bsimpson]

A friend and I are heading out soon on the trail. Fly into Boise on the 18th and head out of town on the 19th.  Return late on the 24th or early the 25th and fly out the 25th back to PA. 

The debate I'm having is whether to stick with this route or do the Smoke and Fire route? I did the Tour Divide a couple years ago so feel ok with ability and my buddy will do fine also. We're looking for a more casual adventure, around 60 miles a day.

[idahospud]

From a quick look on-line at the Smoke n Fire website, the two routes look identical from Arrowrock Res to Ketchum and again from Cape Horn to Bear Valley (near Deadwood). The difference is the stretches of singletrack between Sun Valley and Cape Horn. If you want casual then definitely skip all the singletrack. The elevation gains will be challenging enough. I think the most beautiful areas are the Sawtooths near Stanley (cooler temps too) and Bear Valley and above Cascade.

I can provide more info if you have specific questions.

[harryonaspot]

Bear Valley was my favorite part of the whole route. And not just because it was flat!