Find Nearby Peaks

This peak is not in the book. This summit was remeasured by LiDAR and recently identified as a ranked peak. Published October 2023

---

Ibex Creek Peak is located northwest of Culmination Peak on a ridgeline that runs north and ends at the confluence of the South Fork East Fork of the Salmon River and Ibex Creek. First known ascent (10/7/23): Derek Percoski and Taylor Amato. USGS Galena Peak

Until October 2023, it was not known this was a ranked 11er so this peak had not been thoroughly explored. Taylor Amato and I climbed the west/northwest rib, primarily because of our choice to approach the peak from Pole Creek on e-bikes via the Grand Prize motorcycle trail instead of driving all the way to the East Fork Salmon River. Future climbers will likely choose other routes due to practicality of access. For those, I can only offer speculative insights. While the mountain likely has a few purely Class 2 options, the best routes probably all involve a few Class 3 sections, essentially traveling on stable ridges rather than loose faces.

Access

The most direct access to the peak is from the Bowery Trailhead [(C)(2) on Page 242]. Note that, as of 2022, the owner of the last private property out East Fork Salmon has started locking their gate and allowing only non-motorized access to pass through. This means an extra 1.5 miles of road hiking each way. USFS hopes to negotiate a new easement. The most direct route from this access is the north ridge, which *APPEARS* to be almost all Class 2. To access the west rib, continue on the Grand Prize trail to the South Fork East Fork Salmon Trail.

For those with serious stamina: the approach from the Grand Prize Trailhead via Pole Creek [(A)(1.1.1)(a) on Page 229]. This is a 17-mile, 3,000-foot elevation gain round trip of immaculate trail, in addition to the 4,000-foot ascent of the mountain. Another option is the 1.5-mile ridge connection from Culmination Peak and back, which also *APPEARS* to be mostly Class 2 with one Class 3 section in the middle. Both of these approaches involve serious mileage.

Northwest Rib, Class 3 

From 1/2 mile up the South Fork East Fork drainage, begin ascending the west face just south of an unnamed creek. We found an excellent game trail that led us exactly where we want to go up through the forest section. Once the trees end, the rib begins to take shape. There are short scrambling sections along the way. Most or all could be avoided with a detour onto the west face if that’s your style. For the descent, we chose to scree ski down the west face for 1,000 vertical feet before returning to the west rib.