Easy Trail

This un-named summit is near US Forest Service trail #313 south from Skalkaho Pass. The trail begins in a regenerated timber harvest unit and quickly transitions to old-lodgepole pine/Rocky Mountain subalpine fir forest partly burned by a wildfire in the early 2000’s.  Most of the trail is within this wildfire and is dominated by snags and windfall trees. Use caution traveling this area especially on windy days. In approximately one mile the trail enters a moist unburned large wet area dominated by large spruce.

Summary - 3420 (Mount Beacon) is on Weyerhauser's Longview land northwest of Merrill Lake and is most easily accessed through a gate at the end of Kalama River Road. The highway drive is roughly eighty minutes from PDX; to the trailhead, plan on another hour or so along logging roads. The hike is roughly 1.5 miles and an eight hundred foot climb and ends in a nice operating position with views to the west.  Don't count on two meters to make your four QSOs. There is no ATT cell service but APRS pings get picked up.

Nice easy walk, bike or drive up. Can be VERY windy.

Full report at https://w7mtb.blogspot.com/2022/11/activation-report-w7oce-068-pine.html

Very easy walk in all seasons. Summer is very busy.

Full trip report at https://w7mtb.blog/2022/11/activation-report-w7oce-188-lava-butte.html

No vehicle access to this peak now. A gate has been added since this write up: http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/k7atn/2019-november-17/peak-2260-or-november-2019

There is no signage at the gate. The gate is a bit up the road from the highway and there is room to turn around or park, but we parked just off the highway.

Three of us did the hike: Eteinne, K7ATN, Guy, NS0TA, and myself.

Skalkaho gets its name from the area in Salish meaning ‘many trails’.  Unrelated to the name, the summit does have several trails converging near its summit.  I chose the trail coming from the west off FS road #364.  This trail has many views of other SOTA summits and to the west the much higher elevation Bitterroot Range. 

The trail is well defined and approaches within ¼ mile of the summit, an easy off-trail scramble. 

Four curious mule deer greeted me near the summit and hung around.  Interested in CW, I thought?  

When I read Etienne’s trip report ( http://www.pnwsota.org/blog/k7atn/2016-march-21/peak-2340-or-march-2016 ), I made a small error in planning my approach to 2340.  Instead of “just west of Highway 26 Rest Area” I planned for  Olson Road, which is just *east* the Hwy 26 rest area. 

Palisade Mountain is a popular hike east of Corvallis, MT. The trail system is well maintained to within 500’ of the summit. The summit is a large talus rock pile with a several oddly-located whitebark pine trees.  Evidence of the 1930s lookout still exist as some rock work and old trails in the talus. The main trail does not go to the summit though a semi-improved travel way in the talus on the west side does. Excellent views exist from the summit including a large expanse of the Stony Mountain Roadless Area. 

Dome Shaped Mountain is a scenic and lightly traveled trail near Hamilton Montana. Much of the hike overlooks a large portion of the Stony Mountain Roadless Area. Alpine larch dominate the summit with brilliant yellow fall color in early October contrasting with green whitebark pine. Most of the trail system is in unburned forest with large wildfire burned areas to the east. Two unsigned trail junctions are worthy to note as they could be easily missed on the return trip.  See the directions narrative.

SOTA Summit 7560 could easily be termed “Magruder Ridge High Point”. It is located on Magruder Ridge approximately 1.0 mile south of Magruder Mountain that it dominates by a mere 138’. Magruder Mountain and Ridge are named for the massacre of Lloyd Magruder and his party of four others in 1863 near this area. See sign photo. The summit is mostly forested but has views of other highpoints in the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness and Salmon Mountain Lookout in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.