July 2021 Chamberlain Basin Fly In
Jul 29, 2021 18:01:29 GMT -8
trinity, MTalpine, and 2 more like this
Post by BorderCollieMike on Jul 29, 2021 18:01:29 GMT -8
2021 Chamberlain Fly-in
Mr. & Ms. Ohm first approached me in January 2021 about hiking a 47 mile piece of the Idaho Centennial Trail. This would be the final section of the ICT that Ms. Ohm needed to complete to reach the half-way point; upon completion, she would have hiked all the way from the Nevada border to the Magruder Corridor, half-way to Canada. Our starting point would be a remote grass airstrip at Chamberlain Basin Guard Station, an historic location deep in the middle of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness and accessible only by air, foot or horse. We worked with SP Aircraft, an air charter company in Nampa, ID, to arrange the drop-off and pick-up flights. Our pickup at the end of the hike would be at the Big Creek airstrip, which is still remote, but is at the end of a road with a large log cabin lodge. A lodge, by the way, where you can purchase a cheeseburger and a beer for lunch - reservations required. And thanks to Ms. Ohm, we had reservations.
During June the Inland Northwest suffered under the infamous Heat Dome for two+ weeks. While ten days of triple-digit weather doesn’t mean much to residents of Arizona or California, it’s simply debilitating for us in the mountains. All the hot, dry weather forced me to make the tough decision to leave my best bud, Mike the Border Collie, home. Even though the Dome had since moved east, we were still seeing weather 20 degrees above average and I wasn’t comfortable having Mike carry a load in those kinds of temps. It would be the first time in five years that I’d gone backpacking without him.
The day before we were to fly in I made the long drive to Boise and enjoyed the early summer scenery. Despite the drought this year everything in the high country is still lush and verdant. That evening we all convened at a local sushi joint in Boise to enjoy some sushi and beer and catch up on last minute items. I hadn’t seen Ohm in almost a year and barely recognized him when he and his wife walked through the door. He’d warned me that he had lost weight, but 60 pounds is a shock. He’s now a mere shadow of his former self. We traded hiking stories and reminisced over past trips. All too soon, our appetites sated, we made plans to meet at the Jackson Jet Center at 9 am the next day. I spent the rest of the evening in my hotel room double checking my gear and sleeping fitfully as I always do the night before a big trip. Morning arrived too soon, hot but clear. So far, no reports of any wildfires around our destination. But that would soon change.
The Route - Six Day Chamberlain Basin to Big Creek Hike Along the ICT
Day 0 - Boise Jackson Jet Center to Chamberlain Basin
That morning we met our pilot at the JJC and he advised us that a new fire had only just been reported north of our landing strip and was being called the Dixie fire, named after the small mountain town immediately to its west. Ohm, of course, was fully up to speed on the fire, its location and current size. After a short safety briefing (no TSA search) we climbed into our Turbo 206, taxied out and received permission to take off almost immediately.
SP Aircraft 206 Safety Briefing
The Turbo 206 is a sweet aircraft with power to spare - a real bonus when flying the short grass strips in the backcountry. We had a stiff tail wind and in fifty short minutes we were already in sight of our landing strip. A few minutes out of our destination our pilot pointed to a white haze on the horizon to the northwest and mentioned “that might be your fire”. I could just barely make it out at 3000’ AGL. Back at home and referencing a map, I can see that it was about 17 miles to our northwest and on the other side of the Salmon River. The pilot did a once around the strip to check for elk, moose and wind direction (none of any) and we landed smooth and easy. He taxied us to our campsite at the end of the strip and we made arrangements to check in periodically via InReach. Then he climbed back into his aircraft, fired it up and in about 100yds of airstip he was airborne and disappearing. That 206 is amazing. Look how blue the sky is. That’ll change.
Our 206 Leaving the Chamberlain Strip
At our Chamberlain camp we ran into a Forest Service trail crew that was just heading out to Cold Meadows (not our trail). They were the only other humans at the strip. The Guard Station cabin showed signs of recent habitation, but no one was home. We set up camp and spent the rest of the day sight seeing and watching the now-steadily-growing cloud of smoke to our northwest. Winds picked up in the afternoon and at one point the smoke became a pyroclastic column that was spinning off its own weather, with cumulus clouds spawning off it to the east. None of us are a stranger to wildfire in the wilderness and it has become more and more common to see them and travel in their smoke. But they still make me nervous. Ohm and his better half were unconcerned. And they were right, it never got any closer to us during the following week. Three weeks later, it has run down to the Salmon but has not crossed. It’s been tagged the Dixie-Jumbo complex and the estimated contain date is October 31, which means they have no illusions of ever controlling this fire before the snow flies.
Smoke Plume from the Dixie-Jumbo Complex, July 7, 2021
We made plans to hit the air mattress early and then get up and head out at o’dark-thirty to beat the heat. This would become our daily routine - wake in the dark, begin packing immediately and then start hiking in the cool light of dusk. We got our first whiffs of smoke just before bed time.
Day 1 - Chamberlain Basin to Moose Meadows - 8.7 miles, +2,350 feet ascent, -1,980 ft descent.
Five am arrives early in the Mountain time zone. By 6 am we are all packed, stretched and ready to roll. Ms. Ohm is running all aspects of this trip. She is responsible for the scheduling, breaks, water spots and route-finding. And it’s a very good thing she is. The Chamberlain Basin is a nexus for about a dozen different trails, not all of them signed. I would have had a difficult time trying to find our trailhead, let alone following the trail. Ms. Ohm had perfect regional awareness throughout the trip and led us right to our trail’s junction. We began heading southwest out of the Basin on trail 002. Our first day’s destination is a campsite at Moose Meadows, about 10 miles south and east. I last visited Moose Meadows in 2018 on our Ramey Ridge trip. It is a large, lush, open meadow with plenty of shade and good water.
Overnight the smoke from the Dixie-Jumbo fire had drifted into our basin. Between the smoky haze and the fog rising off of Chamberlain Creek our sunrise hike out of Chamberlain Basin felt a bit like an Orc march into Mordor. Thankfully the smoke gradually rose and the skies cleared about an hour later and we had clear but hot weather moving forward.
Chamberlain Creek, Leaving Chamberlain Basin
We reached Lodgepole Creek around 9am and watered up for the big climb over Macalla Ridge and then down into Moose Meadow. We would not have an opportunity to filter water again until we reached our campsite. Numerous switchbacks were the rule as we began climbing up the ridge through a recovering burn. By 10 am we had climbed above most of the smoke and had good views in all directions. Before we passed over the ridge we gained an excellent view of Rock Rabbit Point and Sheepeater Mountain to the west. In the following photo see the Ohms with Sheepeater Mountain in the far center.
Climbing McCalla Ridge, Sheepeater Mountain in the Background
Once we topped the ridge the trail meandered up and down through a beautiful Lodgepole Pine forest; high and remote, open and breezy. A really beautiful stretch of forest that would have been fun to spend several days just exploring. The forest has parts that burned in the past, but also lots of stands of mature Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine and Lodgepole Pine. There were Huckleberry bushes and Serviceberry bushes along both sides of the trail along with entire fields of asters, daisies and fireweed. A recovering forest is always a pleasant and happy surprise.
Open Lodgepole Forest, Top of McCalla Ridge
At exactly 12 noon we reached Moose Meadows Point, the high point of this day’s climb at 6774 feet elevation. At that point we had hiked eight miles and gained 2,350 feet. The rest of the day’s hike would be all downhill. Well, almost all downhill. We stopped for lunch, a well earned rest and a chance to explore the point. My lunch was dried fruit, peanut butter and Pilot Bread biscuits while the Ohms enjoyed some ahi tuna steaks and a creme brulee for dessert. I believe I need to rethink my lunches. After a bit of a rest and some exploring we continued on, now heading steadily downhill to Moose Meadows at 5,000 feet of elevation. Our descent was down a west facing slope, so completely exposed and hot as, well, it was really hot. We trudged on, downhill. Finally, at the corner of a switchback, we spied Moose Meadows off in the distance. Huge, lush green meadows only a stone’s throw away. This really raised our spirits and spurred us onward.
Moose Meadows from McCalla Ridge
But one last wrinkle awaited us before we made it into camp. Some beavers have dammed Moose Jaw creek right on top of the hiking trail. So we had to wade a small beaver pond to reach our campsite. The water was only about three feet deep and nice and cool. Initially it was difficult to tell how large the pond was. So I decided to leave my shoes on and see if I could avoid getting wet. Not. Even. Close. Fortunately, in this heat everything dries very fast, even shoes.
In my notes I wrote that I lost track of how much water I drank, but that it was certainly more than four liters. We reached our campsite around 1:30pm. We found some shade, filtered water and had a well deserved rest. Before I knew it, it was cocktail hour! Dinner was Mary Jane’s Farm Beef Chili, a first for me. It proved to be every bit as delicious as all the other MJF entrees - highly recommended.
By the time dinner was over and the food bags were hung the sun had finally decided to begin to drop down in the sky and the temperature finally began to drop. I retired to my tent to review tomorrow’s route. Both Mr. and Ms. had been saying how much they were looking forward to walking through Club Meadow (Club Med) tomorrow. We had passed above Club Med in 2018 and we all marveled at how lush and cool it looked from our point up on the ridge. I had assumed we were once again taking that 009 ridge trail, but now I realized I was wrong. Instead, the route Ms. Ohm intended to take would stay on 011, leaving the 009/011 junction at 7120’ to descend into the meadows. I studied my GPS and saw that the 011 trail descended into the meadow, but then it simply ended. I double checked my e-maps and then opened my paper maps to confirm. All the maps I had showed the trail ending in the meadow. There was apparently no other way out of the meadow shown on any of my maps. Odd. After double checking this I wandered over to the Ohms’ tent and asked if I understood this correctly. How were we supposed to climb back out of the meadow? Ms. Ohm didn’t hesitate for an instant and assured me that she had an older map with the 011 trail continuing through the meadow and then climbing out and back up to 009. It would save us a few miles and it would allow us to hike through the meadow and see something new. And, importantly, to water up. I remember saying okay, thanks, but I must have sounded skeptical. Later, Ms. Ohm insisted that I said something like okay, if you’re 100% sure we can get back out of there.... Sometimes it’s hard for me to completely relinquish control of something as important as navigation. But I’m learning. I returned to the tent, rechecked our mileage and prepared for sleep. As exhausted as I was, I had no trouble falling asleep.
I woke up at 10 pm and the temperature inside the tent had fallen from 95F to 54F. I slipped on a long sleeve pullover, answered the call of nature and fell back to sleep. At midnight the temperature had fallen to 41F, I slipped on my long johns and fell back asleep. At 3:30am the temp inside had fallen to 39 and I put on a hoody and a down sleeping hood. By 4:45 I was ready to wake up. The inside temperature was 37F. No time to put on more clothes - time to break camp and start the day.
Day 2 - Moose Meadows to Silver Creek - 9.4 miles, +2,440 ft ascent, -1,470 ft descent
We quickly packed up and then walked out of our campsite about 6:15 am heading South, skirting the meadow on the East side. After fifteen minutes of walking we came to the 002/011 trail junction and we took 011, crossing a bridge over Moose Jaw Creek and starting our 1,200 foot climb up the ridge between McCalla and West Whimstick creeks.
Bridge Over Moose Jaw Creek at Moose Meadows
As the switchbacks fell behind us we continued to steadily climb and remove layers of clothing. Halfway up the climb the sun finally rose over the horizon and caught us. Now it would begin to get hot. We continued our climb, stopping every hour for a ten minute break to grab a snack and apply more sunscreen. Eventually we came to the unsigned trail junction where 011 drops down into the meadow. It was 9 am. The trail junction is unsigned and I was ready to march right on past it, it was so well hidden. But Ms. Ohm was already expecting it and knew exactly where it should be.
So we began our descent into the meadow on a poorly (or maybe never?) maintained trail, stepping over downed trees when we were able to and skirting around them when we could not. When we were only a few hundred feet above the meadow we heard a loud rattle and shriek that Mr. Ohm identified as a Sandhill Crane Alarm. We heard several more alarm calls before we reached the bottom of the trail. True to the map, the trail immediately disappeared into a swampy morass of thigh high grass and boggy brush. The Ms. set out to scout out a proper crossing for us. This time we all took off our shoes, rolled up our pants and waded across Whimstick Creek. Barefoot we continued across the boggy bottom until we reached the rising ground on the opposite side and climbed up to dry land. Here we stopped to dry off, put our hiking shoes back on and filter more water. We looked for, but never did see the Sandhill Cranes. We all enjoyed the break, but soon it was time to move on. And now it was time for Ms. Ohm to locate the historical trail and lead us out of the meadow. Referring only to her map she led us, contouring around the hills bordering the meadow and then climbing up the West Fork Whimstick Creek drainage. It wasn’t ten minutes before she found evidence of an abandoned trail and, shortly over that, blazes on trees. An easy steady climb over a fine trail led us uphill beside the west fork of Whimstick Creek and towards the ridgeline. It was an amazing example of careful route finding. When we were only ten yards from the top I misjudged my step over a tree and fell forward in an epic face-plant and a cloud of dust.
Ms.< up ahead, triumphant>: “Okay, got it. I’m standing on the ridge trail!”
Mr.<sounding worried>: “Uh, Bill is face-down in the dirt.”
Me <shouting into the dirt>: “I’m fine, nothing to see here, move along.”
I decided Mother Karma was telling me to check the hubris and pay a little more attention. I swear on my GPS I’ll never again doubt Ms. Ohm’s now legendary route finding skills. It was 11:30 am and we were back on the ridge trail after a pleasant and lovely climb out of Club Med. Now back on the main ridge trail we continued on until we reached a minor peak at 7,430 feet. This was the highest point we would reach on the trip. It was essentially all downhill from here to Big Creek for the next two and a half days. We found some shade, had some lunch and congratulated ourselves for a very successful morning. By myself I would never have found the nerve to travel off trail and bushwack. But it was a wonderful trip through the meadow.
After lunch we continued on the 011 trail, turning south now towards the headwaters of Silver Creek and then descending about 400 feet into Silver Creek Meadows. There were no campsites in the meadow at the bottom of the grade. So we continued on another thirty minutes, crossing Silver Creek three different times on logs or crude bridges until we eventually found a wide enough spot to pitch our tents at about 2pm.
Silver Creek Crossing, Campsite Approach
Every evening at dinner we tried to find a safe place to fire up the stove. Tonight it was a few hundred yards back towards the last bridge where a previous fire had left some bare ground. While we sat there eating, Mr. Ohm spied something red on the hill side across the creek. I couldn’t even see it until he sat me down and pointed it out. It was on the ground and red. Really bright red. I had to go investigate. The Ohms stayed at the dinner site while I crossed the creek and climbed up the hill. I wasn’t able to see it now and the Ohms had to direct me until I could reach it. It was a mylar party balloon. It had floated from who knows where into the middle of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness until it ran out of gas and settled on a log on a hillside. I collected it and put it with the rest of my garbage. Note: for each of us, this is not the first mylar balloon we have carried out of the wilderness.
We started hiking today in the smoke, but by 11am it had disappeared. Then it returned at 1pm and stayed with us until 5pm when it disappeared again. It returned once more around 8pm and stayed for the night. After dinner (Backpacker Pantry Pad Thai: A+) I took a walk down the trail to investigate tomorrow’s first water crossing. On my way down to the creek I noted several large rocks and big logs that had been ripped up or rolled over along the trail. A local, hungry bear had been looking for ants and grubs, not very long ago. The water crossing was a shoes-on hop-over affair and nothing to worry about. So I hiked up back to camp paying closer attention to the bear sign and once back in camp discussing it with the Ohms. We hung our food bags a little higher and a bit further out that night.
I had once again consumed four or more liters of water during the day. So I was forced to get up numerous times during the night, and each time I checked the temperature inside the tent. At 10pm it was 60F. At 12:30 am it was 56, at 3:30 am it was 39 and at 4:50 am it was 36. I had started the night with all my cold weather clothes on. This was initially too hot, but by the middle of the night I was glad to have everything on. I slept well knowing that we had a short hike the next day.
Silver Creek Campsite
Day 3 - Silver Creek to Crescent Meadows - 5.7 miles, +260 feet ascent & -1,560 ft descent
With an easy day ahead of us we got to sleep in a bit this morning. Still, we were packed and hiking south by 8:30 am. Mostly our trail today is downhill and easy. We spied lots more bear sign and some very large bear scat. During our second break of the morning, we met 3 ICT through hikers climbing up and out of Crescent Meadows. Two women and a man at the front wearing bear mace on his hip and a G30 .45 ACP on a chest rig. They had just run into our bear and the man told us it was the biggest bear he had ever seen. His eyes were wide and I had every reason to believe him. We were lucky not to have stumbled into it earlier. We traded stories & trail conditions, caught them up on the fire situation and they continued on. They were young and strong with many miles to go. They were planning to retrace our trail, passing through Chamberlain Basin and continuing on the Three Blaze trail down to Campbell’s Ferry on the Salmon River. (I later learned that Mr. Ohm had notified the Big Creek ranger of their route and the ranger sent in a SAR (Search and Rescue) team. The SAR reached them before they got as far as Campbell’s Ferry and routed them back to the Chamberlain airstrip where they were flown out. By then the Dixie-Jumbo Fire had grown too large to allow any hikers that close.)
We looked for and found the “Spring (warm)” shown on the topo map. It turned out to be not much. The water was not really warm and there were no soaking pools. We continued on down the hill and at the junction with Crooked Creek we turned right and south. After another mile we made the Crescent Meadows campsite. Lots of sign of beaver on Crooked Creek and too many frogs to count. There were tiny little green frogs and lots of medium sized green and brown frogs and even a bunch of very large brown ones. And lots of birds too. This is a very nice campsite at 5,656 feet of elevation with lots of sagebrush and buckbrush and good views in all directions. There is plenty of water, room for several tents and even a fire ring.
Crescent Meadow Trail Junction on Crooked Creek
Across Crooked Creek is (allegedly) our trail out of the valley tomorrow. Once camp is set up we hide out in the shade and try to puzzle out where our trail climbs the hill. Once across the creek we will have a 864 foot climb to the top of the ridge and then down into the headwaters of Coxey Creek which eventually runs into Big Creek.
Crescent Meadows Campsite
It got quite hot during the afternoon and we followed the shade around the campsite. And it stayed smoky the rest of the day. Tomorrow is a big climb day, hiking directly across the creek from our camp and so we’re going to sleep early and rising early tomorrow morning at o’dark thirty again.
Day 4 - Crescent Mdws to Mile Flat on Big Creek - 8.5 miles, +864 ft ascent, -2,200 feet descent
It was 36F again at 5am. Brrr. Ate a cookie while breaking down and packing up. Ready to walk at 6am. First we had to cross Crooked Creek, a shoes off exercise. After we changed back into our hikers, we climbed 864 feet of switchbacks to the ridge top south of our campsite and then crossed into the headwaters of Coxey Creek. After that climb the day’s hike was all a regular steady downhill through wide flat meadows. The trail is good but it is getting more smoky by the hour.
Coxey Creek Descent
We continued a steady descent on good trail through wide valleys of scrub and brush. Coxey Creek on the left and Big Creek at the bottom of the hill. The views were broad and spectacular, but the smoke continued to roll in. There was no avoiding it.
As we got closer to Big Creek the terrain became more lush with more and different plants and flowers on either side of the valley.
We were eventually rewarded with a nice view of Coxey Hole at the junction with Big Creek and trail number 196. We stopped for a break here. From here we would hike upstream for two days, gradually gaining elevation until we reached the trailhead at Smith Creek and then the Big Creek Lodge and airstrip. Also, Big Creek Lodge has cheeseburgers.
Coxey Hole on Big Creek
Although we had originally planned to stop today at Soft Boil Bar, we decided to continue on past it to Mile Flat where Ms Ohm had once observed a campsite she was interested in exploring. Putting a few more miles behind us would also make the next day’s hike to Copper Camp shorter and easier to finish earlier in the morning when it was still cool. We stopped at the historic Tom Moore Ranch on Acorn Creek for lunch. Ms Ohm speculated that the steep open field below us was a landing strip at one time. I was sceptical - it was too short and too steep and if you missed you were either in the creek or in the side of the mountain. [We would later ask our exfiltration pilot, William, if he knew the area. Oh yes, he told us. He had once flown into that strip to recover wreckage from a Piper Cub that had crashed on landing. He agreed that it was a short strip and you really had to know what you were doing.]
We also paused at the ford across Big Creek at the junction with the Lookout Mountain Trail. This is the spot where, in 2020, Ms. Ohm had finished her ICT leg from Marble Creek to Big Creek. Mr. Ohm was supposed to meet her here and resupply, but that is another story for another time. It is enough to say that upon reaching the Lookout Mountain Trail junction Ms. Ohm had completed the entire ICT from the Nevada border to the Magruder Corridor, roughly half of the trail completed and halfway to Canada. Congratulations were offered and toasts were made later that evening to celebrate.
Lookout Mtn. Ford & Trail Junction
The campsite at Mile Flat was unremarkable except for two things. First, the temperature rose to 105F in the shade that afternoon. It grew so hot that we were forced to periodically retreat to the creek, wet our hats and shirts and don them cold and wet. It was a good way to stay comfortable. The second reason to remember Mile Flat is that there is a stretch of Big Creek there that runs out of an upstream series of rapids before sliding down into a deep hole against a tall basalt cliff. Over dinner we sat along the creek watching some large trout rise up from the depths to gulp a mayfly and then disappear in a swirl.
Because we are now in a deep canyon, the sun is setting behind the ridge to the west a little earlier this evening. But also because we are in a canyon, the temperature didn’t really cool off like it had at higher elevation. Still, at 5 am the next morning it was 54F. Good enough to begin hiking.
Day 5 - On Big Creek, Mile Flat to Copper Camp - 6.5 miles, +1,060 ft ascent, -720 feet descent
We were walking in the cool temps by 6:10 am today. All morning we hiked along Big Creek in and out of the shade. This is beautiful fly fishing water and once again I regretted leaving my Tenkara rod in the car. At 8 oz it was a poor way to save weight. Until 10 am it stayed fairly cool and pleasant. By 9:30 we made it to Monumental Creek where there is a bridge over Crooked Creek. This is the creek we descended from Bismark Spring in 2018.
Crooked Creek Trail Junction at Big Creek
By 11 am we had reached Copper Camp, our day’s goal. Copper Camp was once a boom town with a double-track road into it and 210 buildings on both sides of the creek. I walked through the area looking for any signs of anything man made. But beyond a few very old logs cut square, there was no sign that there had ever been anything here. The trail was a bit wider, but hardly what I would call a road. We spent another hot afternoon chasing the shade around the campsite, dousing our shirts and hats in the cold water of the creek and dozing.
Day 6 - Copper Camp to Big Creek Lodge - 8 miles, +2,050 feet ascent, - 1,100 feet descent
On Tuesday, July 13 the temperature was 50 F at 4:30 am. We were walking by 6:15 am in thick smoke. We have roughly three miles until we get to Beaver Creek, where we started our 2018 hike. Then another 3 miles to the trailhead at Smith Creek and about a mile and a half beyond the trailhead to reach the airstrip and the Lodge (and the cheeseburger). Motivation was established and confidence was high. We reached the trailhead at 9am.
Ohm and Frank Church at Smith Creek Trailhead
We hiked the last mile plus to the lodge together and at 10 am we walked through the Big Creek Lodge gates. Eight miles in less than four hours or 2 miles an hour. Including some serious uphill climbing. That is what cheeseburger motivation will do I suppose.
Big Creek Ranger Station
Big Creek Lodge
The “Finish Line” on the Front Porch of the Big Creek Lodge
In short order we were able to purchase a hot shower, and then a cheeseburger and a cold beer. We had reservations for dinner that evening as well. We eventually wandered over to the campground, set up camp and sent an InReach message out to SP Aircraft that we had arrived and were hoping for a ride home the next day. There was some concern due to the amount of smoke in the area. We really could not see the end of the runway and the pilots must have 2 miles of visibility in order to legally fly. But the following day it dawned clear and cool and as we were finishing up a delicious breakfast of bacon, eggs and hashbrowns our pilot walked in the door.
After another cup of coffee and some small talk we walked out to the airstrip to stow our gear. We were going to fly out on a different aircraft today - a new one for me - a Cessna 210 Turbo. Our pilot William described it as a cadillac of an aircraft for what we were doing. It has retractable gear and no wing struts, so the view out the windows was exceptional.
“2 Delta Whiskey” on the Big Creek Airstrip
Our takeoff was uneventful - the 210 has plenty of power to spare. By 11 am we were back at the Jackson Jet Center at the Boise Airport. The flight back showed us that the smoke was pervasive throughout the state. In the eight short days we had been gone numerous wildfires had popped up all over the state, including a half-dozen in the wilderness area we were hiking through. As I write this there is a new fire, called the Club Fire, on a ridge just above the Club Med hike we took on Day 2. There’s another one below Coxey Hole on Big Creek called the Vinegar Fire. We met some hikers that were heading down to the airstrip there at Cabin Creek for a pickup. I wonder if they got out before the fire closed the strip down.
I’m very grateful to both Ms and Mr Ohm for including me on their ICT hike this summer. They are both seasoned hands and know this part of the “Frank” better than most. I always learn a lot when I hike with them and their company is always exceptional. And I always come away from these trips with more areas of the map I want to explore.
Mr. & Ms. Ohm first approached me in January 2021 about hiking a 47 mile piece of the Idaho Centennial Trail. This would be the final section of the ICT that Ms. Ohm needed to complete to reach the half-way point; upon completion, she would have hiked all the way from the Nevada border to the Magruder Corridor, half-way to Canada. Our starting point would be a remote grass airstrip at Chamberlain Basin Guard Station, an historic location deep in the middle of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness and accessible only by air, foot or horse. We worked with SP Aircraft, an air charter company in Nampa, ID, to arrange the drop-off and pick-up flights. Our pickup at the end of the hike would be at the Big Creek airstrip, which is still remote, but is at the end of a road with a large log cabin lodge. A lodge, by the way, where you can purchase a cheeseburger and a beer for lunch - reservations required. And thanks to Ms. Ohm, we had reservations.
During June the Inland Northwest suffered under the infamous Heat Dome for two+ weeks. While ten days of triple-digit weather doesn’t mean much to residents of Arizona or California, it’s simply debilitating for us in the mountains. All the hot, dry weather forced me to make the tough decision to leave my best bud, Mike the Border Collie, home. Even though the Dome had since moved east, we were still seeing weather 20 degrees above average and I wasn’t comfortable having Mike carry a load in those kinds of temps. It would be the first time in five years that I’d gone backpacking without him.
The day before we were to fly in I made the long drive to Boise and enjoyed the early summer scenery. Despite the drought this year everything in the high country is still lush and verdant. That evening we all convened at a local sushi joint in Boise to enjoy some sushi and beer and catch up on last minute items. I hadn’t seen Ohm in almost a year and barely recognized him when he and his wife walked through the door. He’d warned me that he had lost weight, but 60 pounds is a shock. He’s now a mere shadow of his former self. We traded hiking stories and reminisced over past trips. All too soon, our appetites sated, we made plans to meet at the Jackson Jet Center at 9 am the next day. I spent the rest of the evening in my hotel room double checking my gear and sleeping fitfully as I always do the night before a big trip. Morning arrived too soon, hot but clear. So far, no reports of any wildfires around our destination. But that would soon change.
The Route - Six Day Chamberlain Basin to Big Creek Hike Along the ICT
Day 0 - Boise Jackson Jet Center to Chamberlain Basin
That morning we met our pilot at the JJC and he advised us that a new fire had only just been reported north of our landing strip and was being called the Dixie fire, named after the small mountain town immediately to its west. Ohm, of course, was fully up to speed on the fire, its location and current size. After a short safety briefing (no TSA search) we climbed into our Turbo 206, taxied out and received permission to take off almost immediately.
SP Aircraft 206 Safety Briefing
The Turbo 206 is a sweet aircraft with power to spare - a real bonus when flying the short grass strips in the backcountry. We had a stiff tail wind and in fifty short minutes we were already in sight of our landing strip. A few minutes out of our destination our pilot pointed to a white haze on the horizon to the northwest and mentioned “that might be your fire”. I could just barely make it out at 3000’ AGL. Back at home and referencing a map, I can see that it was about 17 miles to our northwest and on the other side of the Salmon River. The pilot did a once around the strip to check for elk, moose and wind direction (none of any) and we landed smooth and easy. He taxied us to our campsite at the end of the strip and we made arrangements to check in periodically via InReach. Then he climbed back into his aircraft, fired it up and in about 100yds of airstip he was airborne and disappearing. That 206 is amazing. Look how blue the sky is. That’ll change.
Our 206 Leaving the Chamberlain Strip
At our Chamberlain camp we ran into a Forest Service trail crew that was just heading out to Cold Meadows (not our trail). They were the only other humans at the strip. The Guard Station cabin showed signs of recent habitation, but no one was home. We set up camp and spent the rest of the day sight seeing and watching the now-steadily-growing cloud of smoke to our northwest. Winds picked up in the afternoon and at one point the smoke became a pyroclastic column that was spinning off its own weather, with cumulus clouds spawning off it to the east. None of us are a stranger to wildfire in the wilderness and it has become more and more common to see them and travel in their smoke. But they still make me nervous. Ohm and his better half were unconcerned. And they were right, it never got any closer to us during the following week. Three weeks later, it has run down to the Salmon but has not crossed. It’s been tagged the Dixie-Jumbo complex and the estimated contain date is October 31, which means they have no illusions of ever controlling this fire before the snow flies.
Smoke Plume from the Dixie-Jumbo Complex, July 7, 2021
We made plans to hit the air mattress early and then get up and head out at o’dark-thirty to beat the heat. This would become our daily routine - wake in the dark, begin packing immediately and then start hiking in the cool light of dusk. We got our first whiffs of smoke just before bed time.
Day 1 - Chamberlain Basin to Moose Meadows - 8.7 miles, +2,350 feet ascent, -1,980 ft descent.
Five am arrives early in the Mountain time zone. By 6 am we are all packed, stretched and ready to roll. Ms. Ohm is running all aspects of this trip. She is responsible for the scheduling, breaks, water spots and route-finding. And it’s a very good thing she is. The Chamberlain Basin is a nexus for about a dozen different trails, not all of them signed. I would have had a difficult time trying to find our trailhead, let alone following the trail. Ms. Ohm had perfect regional awareness throughout the trip and led us right to our trail’s junction. We began heading southwest out of the Basin on trail 002. Our first day’s destination is a campsite at Moose Meadows, about 10 miles south and east. I last visited Moose Meadows in 2018 on our Ramey Ridge trip. It is a large, lush, open meadow with plenty of shade and good water.
Overnight the smoke from the Dixie-Jumbo fire had drifted into our basin. Between the smoky haze and the fog rising off of Chamberlain Creek our sunrise hike out of Chamberlain Basin felt a bit like an Orc march into Mordor. Thankfully the smoke gradually rose and the skies cleared about an hour later and we had clear but hot weather moving forward.
Chamberlain Creek, Leaving Chamberlain Basin
We reached Lodgepole Creek around 9am and watered up for the big climb over Macalla Ridge and then down into Moose Meadow. We would not have an opportunity to filter water again until we reached our campsite. Numerous switchbacks were the rule as we began climbing up the ridge through a recovering burn. By 10 am we had climbed above most of the smoke and had good views in all directions. Before we passed over the ridge we gained an excellent view of Rock Rabbit Point and Sheepeater Mountain to the west. In the following photo see the Ohms with Sheepeater Mountain in the far center.
Climbing McCalla Ridge, Sheepeater Mountain in the Background
Once we topped the ridge the trail meandered up and down through a beautiful Lodgepole Pine forest; high and remote, open and breezy. A really beautiful stretch of forest that would have been fun to spend several days just exploring. The forest has parts that burned in the past, but also lots of stands of mature Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine and Lodgepole Pine. There were Huckleberry bushes and Serviceberry bushes along both sides of the trail along with entire fields of asters, daisies and fireweed. A recovering forest is always a pleasant and happy surprise.
Open Lodgepole Forest, Top of McCalla Ridge
At exactly 12 noon we reached Moose Meadows Point, the high point of this day’s climb at 6774 feet elevation. At that point we had hiked eight miles and gained 2,350 feet. The rest of the day’s hike would be all downhill. Well, almost all downhill. We stopped for lunch, a well earned rest and a chance to explore the point. My lunch was dried fruit, peanut butter and Pilot Bread biscuits while the Ohms enjoyed some ahi tuna steaks and a creme brulee for dessert. I believe I need to rethink my lunches. After a bit of a rest and some exploring we continued on, now heading steadily downhill to Moose Meadows at 5,000 feet of elevation. Our descent was down a west facing slope, so completely exposed and hot as, well, it was really hot. We trudged on, downhill. Finally, at the corner of a switchback, we spied Moose Meadows off in the distance. Huge, lush green meadows only a stone’s throw away. This really raised our spirits and spurred us onward.
Moose Meadows from McCalla Ridge
But one last wrinkle awaited us before we made it into camp. Some beavers have dammed Moose Jaw creek right on top of the hiking trail. So we had to wade a small beaver pond to reach our campsite. The water was only about three feet deep and nice and cool. Initially it was difficult to tell how large the pond was. So I decided to leave my shoes on and see if I could avoid getting wet. Not. Even. Close. Fortunately, in this heat everything dries very fast, even shoes.
In my notes I wrote that I lost track of how much water I drank, but that it was certainly more than four liters. We reached our campsite around 1:30pm. We found some shade, filtered water and had a well deserved rest. Before I knew it, it was cocktail hour! Dinner was Mary Jane’s Farm Beef Chili, a first for me. It proved to be every bit as delicious as all the other MJF entrees - highly recommended.
By the time dinner was over and the food bags were hung the sun had finally decided to begin to drop down in the sky and the temperature finally began to drop. I retired to my tent to review tomorrow’s route. Both Mr. and Ms. had been saying how much they were looking forward to walking through Club Meadow (Club Med) tomorrow. We had passed above Club Med in 2018 and we all marveled at how lush and cool it looked from our point up on the ridge. I had assumed we were once again taking that 009 ridge trail, but now I realized I was wrong. Instead, the route Ms. Ohm intended to take would stay on 011, leaving the 009/011 junction at 7120’ to descend into the meadows. I studied my GPS and saw that the 011 trail descended into the meadow, but then it simply ended. I double checked my e-maps and then opened my paper maps to confirm. All the maps I had showed the trail ending in the meadow. There was apparently no other way out of the meadow shown on any of my maps. Odd. After double checking this I wandered over to the Ohms’ tent and asked if I understood this correctly. How were we supposed to climb back out of the meadow? Ms. Ohm didn’t hesitate for an instant and assured me that she had an older map with the 011 trail continuing through the meadow and then climbing out and back up to 009. It would save us a few miles and it would allow us to hike through the meadow and see something new. And, importantly, to water up. I remember saying okay, thanks, but I must have sounded skeptical. Later, Ms. Ohm insisted that I said something like okay, if you’re 100% sure we can get back out of there.... Sometimes it’s hard for me to completely relinquish control of something as important as navigation. But I’m learning. I returned to the tent, rechecked our mileage and prepared for sleep. As exhausted as I was, I had no trouble falling asleep.
I woke up at 10 pm and the temperature inside the tent had fallen from 95F to 54F. I slipped on a long sleeve pullover, answered the call of nature and fell back to sleep. At midnight the temperature had fallen to 41F, I slipped on my long johns and fell back asleep. At 3:30am the temp inside had fallen to 39 and I put on a hoody and a down sleeping hood. By 4:45 I was ready to wake up. The inside temperature was 37F. No time to put on more clothes - time to break camp and start the day.
Day 2 - Moose Meadows to Silver Creek - 9.4 miles, +2,440 ft ascent, -1,470 ft descent
We quickly packed up and then walked out of our campsite about 6:15 am heading South, skirting the meadow on the East side. After fifteen minutes of walking we came to the 002/011 trail junction and we took 011, crossing a bridge over Moose Jaw Creek and starting our 1,200 foot climb up the ridge between McCalla and West Whimstick creeks.
Bridge Over Moose Jaw Creek at Moose Meadows
As the switchbacks fell behind us we continued to steadily climb and remove layers of clothing. Halfway up the climb the sun finally rose over the horizon and caught us. Now it would begin to get hot. We continued our climb, stopping every hour for a ten minute break to grab a snack and apply more sunscreen. Eventually we came to the unsigned trail junction where 011 drops down into the meadow. It was 9 am. The trail junction is unsigned and I was ready to march right on past it, it was so well hidden. But Ms. Ohm was already expecting it and knew exactly where it should be.
So we began our descent into the meadow on a poorly (or maybe never?) maintained trail, stepping over downed trees when we were able to and skirting around them when we could not. When we were only a few hundred feet above the meadow we heard a loud rattle and shriek that Mr. Ohm identified as a Sandhill Crane Alarm. We heard several more alarm calls before we reached the bottom of the trail. True to the map, the trail immediately disappeared into a swampy morass of thigh high grass and boggy brush. The Ms. set out to scout out a proper crossing for us. This time we all took off our shoes, rolled up our pants and waded across Whimstick Creek. Barefoot we continued across the boggy bottom until we reached the rising ground on the opposite side and climbed up to dry land. Here we stopped to dry off, put our hiking shoes back on and filter more water. We looked for, but never did see the Sandhill Cranes. We all enjoyed the break, but soon it was time to move on. And now it was time for Ms. Ohm to locate the historical trail and lead us out of the meadow. Referring only to her map she led us, contouring around the hills bordering the meadow and then climbing up the West Fork Whimstick Creek drainage. It wasn’t ten minutes before she found evidence of an abandoned trail and, shortly over that, blazes on trees. An easy steady climb over a fine trail led us uphill beside the west fork of Whimstick Creek and towards the ridgeline. It was an amazing example of careful route finding. When we were only ten yards from the top I misjudged my step over a tree and fell forward in an epic face-plant and a cloud of dust.
Ms.< up ahead, triumphant>: “Okay, got it. I’m standing on the ridge trail!”
Mr.<sounding worried>: “Uh, Bill is face-down in the dirt.”
Me <shouting into the dirt>: “I’m fine, nothing to see here, move along.”
I decided Mother Karma was telling me to check the hubris and pay a little more attention. I swear on my GPS I’ll never again doubt Ms. Ohm’s now legendary route finding skills. It was 11:30 am and we were back on the ridge trail after a pleasant and lovely climb out of Club Med. Now back on the main ridge trail we continued on until we reached a minor peak at 7,430 feet. This was the highest point we would reach on the trip. It was essentially all downhill from here to Big Creek for the next two and a half days. We found some shade, had some lunch and congratulated ourselves for a very successful morning. By myself I would never have found the nerve to travel off trail and bushwack. But it was a wonderful trip through the meadow.
After lunch we continued on the 011 trail, turning south now towards the headwaters of Silver Creek and then descending about 400 feet into Silver Creek Meadows. There were no campsites in the meadow at the bottom of the grade. So we continued on another thirty minutes, crossing Silver Creek three different times on logs or crude bridges until we eventually found a wide enough spot to pitch our tents at about 2pm.
Silver Creek Crossing, Campsite Approach
Every evening at dinner we tried to find a safe place to fire up the stove. Tonight it was a few hundred yards back towards the last bridge where a previous fire had left some bare ground. While we sat there eating, Mr. Ohm spied something red on the hill side across the creek. I couldn’t even see it until he sat me down and pointed it out. It was on the ground and red. Really bright red. I had to go investigate. The Ohms stayed at the dinner site while I crossed the creek and climbed up the hill. I wasn’t able to see it now and the Ohms had to direct me until I could reach it. It was a mylar party balloon. It had floated from who knows where into the middle of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness until it ran out of gas and settled on a log on a hillside. I collected it and put it with the rest of my garbage. Note: for each of us, this is not the first mylar balloon we have carried out of the wilderness.
We started hiking today in the smoke, but by 11am it had disappeared. Then it returned at 1pm and stayed with us until 5pm when it disappeared again. It returned once more around 8pm and stayed for the night. After dinner (Backpacker Pantry Pad Thai: A+) I took a walk down the trail to investigate tomorrow’s first water crossing. On my way down to the creek I noted several large rocks and big logs that had been ripped up or rolled over along the trail. A local, hungry bear had been looking for ants and grubs, not very long ago. The water crossing was a shoes-on hop-over affair and nothing to worry about. So I hiked up back to camp paying closer attention to the bear sign and once back in camp discussing it with the Ohms. We hung our food bags a little higher and a bit further out that night.
I had once again consumed four or more liters of water during the day. So I was forced to get up numerous times during the night, and each time I checked the temperature inside the tent. At 10pm it was 60F. At 12:30 am it was 56, at 3:30 am it was 39 and at 4:50 am it was 36. I had started the night with all my cold weather clothes on. This was initially too hot, but by the middle of the night I was glad to have everything on. I slept well knowing that we had a short hike the next day.
Silver Creek Campsite
Day 3 - Silver Creek to Crescent Meadows - 5.7 miles, +260 feet ascent & -1,560 ft descent
With an easy day ahead of us we got to sleep in a bit this morning. Still, we were packed and hiking south by 8:30 am. Mostly our trail today is downhill and easy. We spied lots more bear sign and some very large bear scat. During our second break of the morning, we met 3 ICT through hikers climbing up and out of Crescent Meadows. Two women and a man at the front wearing bear mace on his hip and a G30 .45 ACP on a chest rig. They had just run into our bear and the man told us it was the biggest bear he had ever seen. His eyes were wide and I had every reason to believe him. We were lucky not to have stumbled into it earlier. We traded stories & trail conditions, caught them up on the fire situation and they continued on. They were young and strong with many miles to go. They were planning to retrace our trail, passing through Chamberlain Basin and continuing on the Three Blaze trail down to Campbell’s Ferry on the Salmon River. (I later learned that Mr. Ohm had notified the Big Creek ranger of their route and the ranger sent in a SAR (Search and Rescue) team. The SAR reached them before they got as far as Campbell’s Ferry and routed them back to the Chamberlain airstrip where they were flown out. By then the Dixie-Jumbo Fire had grown too large to allow any hikers that close.)
We looked for and found the “Spring (warm)” shown on the topo map. It turned out to be not much. The water was not really warm and there were no soaking pools. We continued on down the hill and at the junction with Crooked Creek we turned right and south. After another mile we made the Crescent Meadows campsite. Lots of sign of beaver on Crooked Creek and too many frogs to count. There were tiny little green frogs and lots of medium sized green and brown frogs and even a bunch of very large brown ones. And lots of birds too. This is a very nice campsite at 5,656 feet of elevation with lots of sagebrush and buckbrush and good views in all directions. There is plenty of water, room for several tents and even a fire ring.
Crescent Meadow Trail Junction on Crooked Creek
Across Crooked Creek is (allegedly) our trail out of the valley tomorrow. Once camp is set up we hide out in the shade and try to puzzle out where our trail climbs the hill. Once across the creek we will have a 864 foot climb to the top of the ridge and then down into the headwaters of Coxey Creek which eventually runs into Big Creek.
Crescent Meadows Campsite
It got quite hot during the afternoon and we followed the shade around the campsite. And it stayed smoky the rest of the day. Tomorrow is a big climb day, hiking directly across the creek from our camp and so we’re going to sleep early and rising early tomorrow morning at o’dark thirty again.
Day 4 - Crescent Mdws to Mile Flat on Big Creek - 8.5 miles, +864 ft ascent, -2,200 feet descent
It was 36F again at 5am. Brrr. Ate a cookie while breaking down and packing up. Ready to walk at 6am. First we had to cross Crooked Creek, a shoes off exercise. After we changed back into our hikers, we climbed 864 feet of switchbacks to the ridge top south of our campsite and then crossed into the headwaters of Coxey Creek. After that climb the day’s hike was all a regular steady downhill through wide flat meadows. The trail is good but it is getting more smoky by the hour.
Coxey Creek Descent
We continued a steady descent on good trail through wide valleys of scrub and brush. Coxey Creek on the left and Big Creek at the bottom of the hill. The views were broad and spectacular, but the smoke continued to roll in. There was no avoiding it.
As we got closer to Big Creek the terrain became more lush with more and different plants and flowers on either side of the valley.
| As we got closer to Big Creek the terrain became more lush with more and different plants and flowers on either side of the valley. |  |
We were eventually rewarded with a nice view of Coxey Hole at the junction with Big Creek and trail number 196. We stopped for a break here. From here we would hike upstream for two days, gradually gaining elevation until we reached the trailhead at Smith Creek and then the Big Creek Lodge and airstrip. Also, Big Creek Lodge has cheeseburgers.
Coxey Hole on Big Creek
Although we had originally planned to stop today at Soft Boil Bar, we decided to continue on past it to Mile Flat where Ms Ohm had once observed a campsite she was interested in exploring. Putting a few more miles behind us would also make the next day’s hike to Copper Camp shorter and easier to finish earlier in the morning when it was still cool. We stopped at the historic Tom Moore Ranch on Acorn Creek for lunch. Ms Ohm speculated that the steep open field below us was a landing strip at one time. I was sceptical - it was too short and too steep and if you missed you were either in the creek or in the side of the mountain. [We would later ask our exfiltration pilot, William, if he knew the area. Oh yes, he told us. He had once flown into that strip to recover wreckage from a Piper Cub that had crashed on landing. He agreed that it was a short strip and you really had to know what you were doing.]
We also paused at the ford across Big Creek at the junction with the Lookout Mountain Trail. This is the spot where, in 2020, Ms. Ohm had finished her ICT leg from Marble Creek to Big Creek. Mr. Ohm was supposed to meet her here and resupply, but that is another story for another time. It is enough to say that upon reaching the Lookout Mountain Trail junction Ms. Ohm had completed the entire ICT from the Nevada border to the Magruder Corridor, roughly half of the trail completed and halfway to Canada. Congratulations were offered and toasts were made later that evening to celebrate.
Lookout Mtn. Ford & Trail Junction
The campsite at Mile Flat was unremarkable except for two things. First, the temperature rose to 105F in the shade that afternoon. It grew so hot that we were forced to periodically retreat to the creek, wet our hats and shirts and don them cold and wet. It was a good way to stay comfortable. The second reason to remember Mile Flat is that there is a stretch of Big Creek there that runs out of an upstream series of rapids before sliding down into a deep hole against a tall basalt cliff. Over dinner we sat along the creek watching some large trout rise up from the depths to gulp a mayfly and then disappear in a swirl.
Because we are now in a deep canyon, the sun is setting behind the ridge to the west a little earlier this evening. But also because we are in a canyon, the temperature didn’t really cool off like it had at higher elevation. Still, at 5 am the next morning it was 54F. Good enough to begin hiking.
Day 5 - On Big Creek, Mile Flat to Copper Camp - 6.5 miles, +1,060 ft ascent, -720 feet descent
We were walking in the cool temps by 6:10 am today. All morning we hiked along Big Creek in and out of the shade. This is beautiful fly fishing water and once again I regretted leaving my Tenkara rod in the car. At 8 oz it was a poor way to save weight. Until 10 am it stayed fairly cool and pleasant. By 9:30 we made it to Monumental Creek where there is a bridge over Crooked Creek. This is the creek we descended from Bismark Spring in 2018.
Crooked Creek Trail Junction at Big Creek
By 11 am we had reached Copper Camp, our day’s goal. Copper Camp was once a boom town with a double-track road into it and 210 buildings on both sides of the creek. I walked through the area looking for any signs of anything man made. But beyond a few very old logs cut square, there was no sign that there had ever been anything here. The trail was a bit wider, but hardly what I would call a road. We spent another hot afternoon chasing the shade around the campsite, dousing our shirts and hats in the cold water of the creek and dozing.
Day 6 - Copper Camp to Big Creek Lodge - 8 miles, +2,050 feet ascent, - 1,100 feet descent
On Tuesday, July 13 the temperature was 50 F at 4:30 am. We were walking by 6:15 am in thick smoke. We have roughly three miles until we get to Beaver Creek, where we started our 2018 hike. Then another 3 miles to the trailhead at Smith Creek and about a mile and a half beyond the trailhead to reach the airstrip and the Lodge (and the cheeseburger). Motivation was established and confidence was high. We reached the trailhead at 9am.
Ohm and Frank Church at Smith Creek Trailhead
We hiked the last mile plus to the lodge together and at 10 am we walked through the Big Creek Lodge gates. Eight miles in less than four hours or 2 miles an hour. Including some serious uphill climbing. That is what cheeseburger motivation will do I suppose.
Big Creek Ranger Station
Big Creek Lodge
The “Finish Line” on the Front Porch of the Big Creek Lodge
In short order we were able to purchase a hot shower, and then a cheeseburger and a cold beer. We had reservations for dinner that evening as well. We eventually wandered over to the campground, set up camp and sent an InReach message out to SP Aircraft that we had arrived and were hoping for a ride home the next day. There was some concern due to the amount of smoke in the area. We really could not see the end of the runway and the pilots must have 2 miles of visibility in order to legally fly. But the following day it dawned clear and cool and as we were finishing up a delicious breakfast of bacon, eggs and hashbrowns our pilot walked in the door.
After another cup of coffee and some small talk we walked out to the airstrip to stow our gear. We were going to fly out on a different aircraft today - a new one for me - a Cessna 210 Turbo. Our pilot William described it as a cadillac of an aircraft for what we were doing. It has retractable gear and no wing struts, so the view out the windows was exceptional.
“2 Delta Whiskey” on the Big Creek Airstrip
Our takeoff was uneventful - the 210 has plenty of power to spare. By 11 am we were back at the Jackson Jet Center at the Boise Airport. The flight back showed us that the smoke was pervasive throughout the state. In the eight short days we had been gone numerous wildfires had popped up all over the state, including a half-dozen in the wilderness area we were hiking through. As I write this there is a new fire, called the Club Fire, on a ridge just above the Club Med hike we took on Day 2. There’s another one below Coxey Hole on Big Creek called the Vinegar Fire. We met some hikers that were heading down to the airstrip there at Cabin Creek for a pickup. I wonder if they got out before the fire closed the strip down.
I’m very grateful to both Ms and Mr Ohm for including me on their ICT hike this summer. They are both seasoned hands and know this part of the “Frank” better than most. I always learn a lot when I hike with them and their company is always exceptional. And I always come away from these trips with more areas of the map I want to explore.
