Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route - 2015

[aaron w]

Has anyone seen this closure first hand?  Wondering if I can hike through/around?  Thanks.

[jabantik]

Just put up a crude journal at crazyguy if anyone cares: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/jabantik2015 <- counterclockwise main route with White Clouds, Eagles' Nest, and the road part of Willow Creek options.

Has anyone seen this closure first hand?  Wondering if I can hike through/around?  Thanks.

You can hike it if you aren't in possession of a bicycle. From Casey's map on the previous page, it looks like you could ride to Bowery, up to and along Germania Creek, and come out at the 4th of July lakes trailhead. I dunno if you can get to the Casino Lakes trails or if they are still legal to ride, but it would be worthwhile if you can and they are.

[bikee]

Made it to Featherville, the word at the restaurant is, the road is still washed out and it's going to be a long time until it gets repaired due to budget constraints.
That said, evidently a party of four left here a few days ago expecting to be back but isn't so the assumption is they made it through.
Sounds like the river changed course and the roadway is now the river.

[aaron w]

Thanks Bikee.  Are you traveling towards Ketchum?  If so please let me know what you see. 

There was a similar closure in this region last year but cyclists were able to traverse the hillside above the road and get around the washout.  Hoping that is the case this time too...

[jabantik]

Has anyone seen this closure first hand?  Wondering if I can hike through/around?  Thanks.

oh the road near skeleton creek? this is how it was the morning after the storm. dunno how it is now. i couldn't see how far it was, but someone said 1/2 mile. you might be able to traverse the talus hillside, but it will be likely be slow, strenuous, and dangerous. or you might be able to cross the river and crosscountry up the other side. i dunno

[idahospud]

Just put up a crude journal at crazyguy if anyone cares: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/jabantik2015 <- counterclockwise

Just looked at the route near Boiling Springs/Silver Creek. I have two better suggestions. The second one skips Silver Creek Plunge, which is a concrete pool anyway.

These are both ATV trails but are nicer and flowier and way less rocky than East Mtn ATV Trail (099) and you're going right past them anyway. Each one has 1 to 2 miles of climbing at the start but then it's virtually all downhill. I ride these on my mtn bike. Both can be seen on-line on the Boise NF map for the Emmett District. They also show up as white lines on Jabantik's maps in his ride report.

#1 ATV 440
Overgrown in some places and steeper and rutted near the end but otherwise, its a blast.
After completing East Mtn ATV trail south from Clear Crk Summit, continue on route to FS600 eastbound. Go 5 or 6 miles on FS600 to FS604 (Wet Foot Creek Road, signed) and take it uphill.  At 0.5 miles on 604 stay left at a fork. At 1.5 miles on 604, come to a gate with an ATV bypass. That is the start of 440 trail. A little more climbing then follow it downhill for 11 miles to the tee with FS698. Turn left (north) and go 1 mile to Boiling Springs Campground.

#2 ATV 465 Pine Creek
From Boiling Springs Campground, go east on FS 678 towards Silver Creek Plunge. Go 2.8 miles on 678 and turn right (south) on 465 ATV trail (it might not be marked but there are some gate posts). Go uphill for a mile or so (you'd have to climb another mile anyway to the summit if you stayed on 678) and then enjoy 10 miles of downhill to where Silver Creek meets FS 698. Turn left (south) and continue on route to Crouch. (IMHO the Silver Creek Plunge area/Peace Valley is a zoo overrun by ATVs and non-stop traffic on the 671 road. I don't go there at all in the summertime.) This trail also avoids the climb south out of Peace Valley.

[idahospud]

More info on the 440 ATV trail. There is also a single track trail, The Wet Foot Trail, which goes from East Mtn ATV to the 440 ATV Trail. I have never been on it but I would guess it is steep and gnarly, if it is like the other single track in the area.

[idahospud]

More info on the 465 Pine Creek ATV trail.

[mathieu]

Last week I rode about half of the IHS route, between Warm Lake and Featherville. My favorite part was the hills in the Payette River basin between McCall and Crouch. I am sure that Casey is aware that there is lots of potential to extend the route north of McCall - maybe you'll have to carry the hot spring. See www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?o=tS&page_id=434642&v=8U

[aaron w]

For anyone interested I was able to hike around the washout east of featherville. Only 1/4 mile but quite difficult. Had to carry the bike. Took me about an hour...

[bikee]

Glad you made it aaron. After my trip, by the time I got to Featherville, I wasn't up to taking the chance. I bailed and got a ride back to Hailey after riding south past the resevoir near Pine.

[bikee]

A couple of notes on my trip on this route - My trip straddled two weekends, prime time for 4wheelers, FWDs and lots of traffic on the FS roads. Lots of dust.
Both weekends meant special events in the towns I was near at the time, one good, the other just busy. Stanley had a music festival (great music and more my kind of folk) and Crouch was a rodeo (lots of motor toys etc).
Two of the remote 'convenience store/lodges' were essentially useless for resupply. Deadwood Lodge (south of Warm Lake) was a gorgeous lodge with a very sweet woman, Amity, who brewed a great cup of cowboy coffee, but they only cook meals for clients and the supplies were like from a snack machine, Oreos and chips. They have a stuffed mountain lion she claimed was the Louis and Clark recordholder.
The other disappointment was Twin Springs, along the Middle Fork of the Boise R, a bar with a few shelves with Spam, charcoal lighter fluid, motor oil and large cans of stew. And maybe some bug spray. No restaurant, the only food was bags of chips and oreos. However you could get a cans of Coors Light or Coke.
That said, they both had wifi and were OK with me charging my phone.

Highlights included a couple of bear sightings, during the day and not in camp - a cub while descending the pavement from Warm Lake and another adult that ran away when I came around a corner, again on a descent. A wolf sighting coming off Thorn Creek Butte. Lots of eagles. The climb from Galena Lodge to the summit. Being from NM, I loved the water everywhere. Lick Creek was pretty but a hell of a climb. Gold Fork HS, Russian John HS (warm spring), Mile 16 HS & Snake Pit (warm)HS in Stanley were all very nice. I was lucky, dry weather and great temps for my whole trip, Aug 28 - Sept 9. The Featherville restaurant is great.

I had a slow leak in my rear tire that extra sealant wouldn't cure, and with no wet spots I couldn't find the leak. I went to Gravity Sports in McCall and Aaron nailed the problem right away and fixed me up in a jiffy between other jobs at the end of the day. (It was a folded rim tape on my Stans rim - evidently common). Super service. The only mechanical I had for the trip.

Lots of washboardy roads and lots of climbing with attendant descents. Too much traffic on the weekends. Were I to do it again, I'd certainly check out idahospud's atv routes ( see above).

[idahospud]

My trip straddled two weekends, prime time for 4wheelers, FWDs and lots of traffic on the FS roads. Lots of dust.
Both weekends meant special events in the towns I was near at the time, one good, the other just busy.

If you can, I recommend avoiding Labor Day weekend and the entire week near 4th of July.

[caseygreene]

CLOSURE: between Sept 28th and Oct 2nd 2016, the S Fk Salmon Rd (FR 674) will be closed between Warm Lake Rd and Poverty Flats Campground. There will NOT be an opportunity for riders to walk around. The reroute is Johnson Creek Rd (FR 413) to Yellow Pine, then Fr 412. Or, vice versa.

If you are going this way there is a hot spring to access that is not on the map. I believe it is called Johnson Creek Hot Springs, but not sure on that. To access the spring start at the airstrip located between Ice Hole and Golden Gate Campgrounds. Here are the directions i found online:

 - "There's a trail from the middle of the airfield on the west side, take that about 2ish miles and it'll go right to it. I sat in it for over an hour... nuff said."
 - "The tub is on the east facing slope, aligned north/south. The hike takes about an hour to get to the tub. Roughly 3/4 of the hike is south, then for the last 1/4 you'll make a 90 degree turn to the west, uphill to the tub. It sits in a patch of rock. Nice, easy hike worth doing."

There is also a picture here: https://www.backcountrypilot.org/forum/johnson-creek-hot-spring-4342

[mathieu]

I just returned home from eight fabulous weeks of biking in the US, including a big part of the Idaho Hot Springs MTB route. I can't refrain from suggesting a northern extension of the IHS route, a loop from Stanley to Warm Lake around the Frank Church Wilderness.
Rough location description : Stanley - Custer Motorway - Challis - Morgen Creek Rd - Panther Creek Rd - Shoup - Horse Creek Pass - Alta Montana -  Magruder Corridor - Elk City - Hungry Ridge Rd - Allison Creek Rd - Salmon River - Riggins - French Creek Rd - Burgdorf - Warren Wagon Rd - South Fork Salmon River - Elk Summit - Big Creek - Yellow Pine - Johnson Creek Rd - Warm Lake.
See http://ridewithgps.com/routes/10783744
It involves 550 miles of mostly dirt roads with 55,000 ft climbing. There are three 5000 ft climbs in this loop!
There are many hot springs along the loop, so it fits the general characteristic.

[caseygreene]

I just returned home from eight fabulous weeks of biking in the US, including a big part of the Idaho Hot Springs MTB route. I can't refrain from suggesting a northern extension of the IHS route, a loop from Stanley to Warm Lake around the Frank Church Wilderness.
Rough location description : Stanley - Custer Motorway - Challis - Morgen Creek Rd - Panther Creek Rd - Shoup - Horse Creek Pass - Alta Montana -  Magruder Corridor - Elk City - Hungry Ridge Rd - Allison Creek Rd - Salmon River - Riggins - French Creek Rd - Burgdorf - Warren Wagon Rd - South Fork Salmon River - Elk Summit - Big Creek - Yellow Pine - Johnson Creek Rd - Warm Lake.
See http://ridewithgps.com/routes/10783744
It involves 550 miles of mostly dirt roads with 55,000 ft climbing. There are three 5000 ft climbs in this loop!
There are many hot springs along the loop, so it fits the general characteristic.

Great route.

[idahospud]

REVAMP OF TIE CREEK CAMPGROUND NORTH OF CROUCH

The Boise NF wants to upgrade the Tie Creek Campgrd. This is a popular spot for Hot Springs riders because it is the first camp north of Crouch on the Middle Fork Payette River. The upgrades include creating tent pads. I don't think the campgrnd has any now because it was designed more for car and RV campers.

The info is attached. Please send an email supporting these upgrades to Ranger Everado Santillan at esantillan@fs.fed.us.