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| High meadows at the end of Draw Creek road |
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| The road to peak 9235 and 9537 |
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| Near Wildcat GS |
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| The immaculate Wildcat Guard Station. No reservations required. |
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| Salmon Falls Creek |
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| The easy south ridge of peak 9537 |
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| Tabor Creek Campground |
- POLE CREEK has a road starting along the main road at N41 22339, W115 07048. It's closed during fire season, but the sat image shows it wraps all the way around to Loomis Creek where a road goes up to el 8300 near Tabor BM. Try that one in May. Posted 2018.
- TABOR BENCHMARK el 8846 is the high point of the Snake Mountains. A jeep road goes up the west ridge to el 7900 from the Tabor Creek Campground. The turnoff for the campground is at N41 23552, W115 07170 on the main road, about 25 miles from Wells. It's a mile and a half to the campground then over 3 miles along the creek to the end at a locked gate el 6400. At the third restroom reading 25838, 04797 el 6300 is the jeep road. It goes up and soon joins another road that is shown on the topo, but the first part of that road is badly rutted and should only be used by OHVs. At el 7450 the road crosses private land but it's open. The road goes up on the west ridge at 26438, 02424 el 7300 then a DIY road goes left to el 7900 on the ridge. Hiking straight up the ridge entails walking on talus. There's a wuss route in the drainage on the north side of the ridge. Walk up the ridge a tenth mile from the end of the road and into a minor saddle then go toward the drainage a few feet on a game trail to a viewpoint. A gap in the dense aspen is in view. Just walk thru it but don't go too high because there aren't any gaps higher, as I found out. It's a stroll to the north saddle el 8650 then another stroll to the reg at 26786, 00592. LOOMIS MOUNTAIN el 8737 is an hour away to the SE. It sure looked easy but there's a wide patch of light brush and talus about halfway down to the main saddle el 8150. I went thru it but I could see later it can all be avoided by swinging wide to the east. From Loomis, I retraced to the saddle then walked that level back around to the start. The loop took me 3 hours, 10 minutes with about 1700 gain. Just going to Tabor BM and back would be 90 minutes with 1000 gain and I think I could do it in shorts but Loomis needs long pants for light brush. Do this by June before all the grass on the road dries out. You could walk the road from the campground if you had to. The Pole Creek road might provide an alternate access, when it's open. Roads come high up the east side out of Loomis Creek but it's all private. The fee at the campground was $2. Take a lawn mower to cut the grass. If it's a 4wd mower, you can ride it up the jeep road and cut all that grass too. Posted 2018.
- PEAK 9235, PEAK 9537 are dominant in the SE corner of the Jarbidge Wilderness. Peak 9235 has a brilliant east face that is eye catching from 20 miles away. Turn off the main road at N41 32121, W115 12463 and go west about a mile across a wetland then keep right at a fork and go 5 miles on high clearance road to a main fork with signs. Left goes 6 miles on a decent road to Marys River with a cottonwood to camp under. The right fork goes to the peaks. Take it for 4 miles to the Draw Creek road at 38283, 18007 el 6450. Go up that 2 or 3 miles on 4wd to the last turnaround at 40016, 18921 el 7050. I got a cycle to el 7600, but it's ATVs only beyond there. Walk up the road until .4 mile before peak 9235 then go right on a grassy road that ends at el 8950 then a faint elk trail goes on up to the summit at 41802, 20112. Then follow the ridge down to the saddle el 8700 between the peaks where there is a man made trail going up the ridge toward peak 9537. It fades at el 9000 but it' a stroll on up to the summit at 43158, 19521. Return to the saddle and get on the trail at 42111, 19788 el 8700 and walk it around the west side of peak 9235 to the road el 8800 and stroll on back. That took me 5 hours with nearly 3000 gain, none steep, but I started at el 7600. It's a gorgeous area with no brush. A shorter hike just to peak 9235 would be worthwhile. As for backpackers, they would have water along the road, the last being at the high meadow reading 41492,20445 el 8650. Then they would want to walk the road to the end where the trail starts. Soon there is a fork at 41827, 20388 el 8800 where the right fork stays high and goes around to the saddle between the peaks. Snow was still around in late June. There won't be any traffic until hunting season. The roads here are a headache. Idiots drove the road on the flats after a major storm and plowed it up. A car could make it before that. The road connecting Draw Creek to Wildcat guard station is not good. Posted June, 2018.
- WILDCAT GUARD STATION is open for public use. Turn off the main road at N41 39393, W115 11657 and drive 6 miles to it. The road gets better after 2 miles but it still takes 4wd. A fence just past the station is where grazing ends. Nearly half a mile past the station is a fork. Left goes 2/3 mile to el 7350 then a rough OHV track goes a little more then fades. The right fork goes to a TH at 41759, 17285 el 7350 where a trail drops 400 feet to Sun Creek. It's a half hour to the creek and back. The creek would have to be waded then you could take a crack at peak 9537, but I couldn't see a trail on the north side of the creek. Who needs a trail, anyway? A grand loop could be done from the guard station by walking the road to Draw Creek then hike the route to peak 9537 then down the ridge back to the start. I measured that on the map at 15 miles. Shortcutting across peak 7705 would make it a 12 mile hike, but that might get brushy. Shuttling on the road is an option but it ain't a good road. Posted 2018.
- CAMP CREEK has a trail. The turnoff for that is at N41 42878, W115 05420. Drive 7 miles on the rim on a high clearance road. Then drop to the creek on 4wd and in a mile or so is the TH at 43009, 13999 el 6550. I went 3 miles or so to a main fork at 44137, 16281 el 6950. The right fork had a trail but it's gone but the trail in the left fork keeps going. A basecamp could be set up here. Peaks in the area looked brush free. This is strictly a late summer affair when the creek is jumpable. The road in is mtn bikeable. Posted August, 2018..
- BLACK MOUNTAIN, COLD SPRING MOUNTAIN - these two are easy from the west side 4wd road. If you just want the latter, stay on the main road until it tops out at el 6800 next to that peak. Otherwise, use a 4wd road going north from the main road at N41 40591, W115 01475. All remaining coordinates are W114. Drive that road nearly 2 and a half miles to a cow trail at N41 41638, W114 59576 el 6950. That goes toward the easy north ridge then it's easy to run the crest to the reg at Salmon Benchmark reading 40621, 58072 el 8104. That takes 2 hours with 1200 gain. For Black Mtn, stay on the 4wd road to a fork at 42052, 59239 el 7000. Go right and it soon smooths out then park at a fence el 7350. Walk along the fence and it soon ends then go up to a saddle at 43140, 57969 el 7750. Then walk along the east side to the next saddle el 7700 and then stay near center for the rest to the Cold Benchmark at 43747, 58080 el 7873. Did I find a reg way, way out there? You'll have to hike it and see. That one took me 95 minutes with about 600 gain. There was a small amount of knee high grass on this one, but I would use shorts on both peaks. This peak has the best view of any in the Snake Mtns, overlooking the Salmon Falls Creek bad lands. Posted June, 2018.
- SALMON FALLS CREEK is hard to get at, but one way is to use the 4wd road to Black Mtn that goes north from the main road at N41 40591, W115 01475. The road runs along the west side of the mountain then bends east around it. Follow it to N41 44944, W114 55737 where a road goes left out to an overlook into the gorge. Nobody keeps going east because there is a tricky crossing that is overgrown. I could have drove a jeep to the crossing that day, but I didn't see an exit on the other side. Boulders are falling on the road so that route is best left to OHVs. A complete circle can be made around Black Mtn by retracing from the overlook to N41 45018, W114 56705 el 6300 and turning south. Stay left at the next fork and the road goes to el 6600 on the SW side of Little Devils Table el 6841. That makes a good short hike. Keep going south to a fork at Wrist Spring reading N41 42983, W114 57262 el 7100. Left is the most used road and it goes out to US 93, but I took the right fork over the saddle on the south side of Black Mtn and out. A jeep won't have any problem with these roads. Mtn bikers might want to scout a one way ride thru to Contact. I measured that to be 25 miles. Posted 2018.
- PEAK 8597 is the last thing I did in the Snake Mtns. About a third mile before the main road meets US 93, turn SW on a graded road for 9 miles to a working quarry. Just before the quarry, go right on a crude road to a fork at N41 32493, W114 57479 el 6600. I took the grassy right fork which had no erosion issues, but another way is to take the left fork to an old quarry where two roads go up a slope to meet the grassy road I took. The second road is less steep, at N41 32321, W115 00135 el 7150. That slope is the worst part of that road. Either way you go, go on to a fork at N41 32694, W115 01331 el 7850 then go right and the road goes up onto the high divide and follows a fence. I walked from peak 8397 where it got super steep. The road goes to peak 8454 then takes a steep dive into Jakes Creek. Peak 8597 is a half mile off the road at N41 33781, W115 03348. Jeeps have no problem as far as peak 8397, but the road to the old quarry is starting to get slides. Posted 2018.
