Find Nearby Peaks

This peak is not in the book. Published November 2018

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Peak 7848 sits just above the confluence of the Hawks Roost drainage and the Left-Hand Fork Georgetown Canyon drainage. It is a fun scramble. The peak has a steep, forested west face and a gentler south ridge. Sheep trails abound on this peak. Hopefully, they won’t be up here when you climb this mountain and, better yet, the mountain won’t stink of their unending scatters of poop. If they are up here, bring a clothespin for your nose. You’ll need it. USGS Harrington Peak

West Face, Class 2+

Access

From the signed turnoff on US-30 in the center of the bustling metropolis of Georgetown, ID, turn east onto Georgetown Canyon Road (which is called Stringtown Road within the city limits). Drive up the road to a junction at 2.3 miles. Bear LEFT onto CR-1095/Left Hand Fork Road, which is a paved road. Reset your odometer to 0.0 here. At 3.5 miles, you will pass an unmarked junction with Hawks Roost Road/FSR-680 (RHS). At 4.0 miles, you reach the trailhead for the Shale Creek Trail/FST-675 (signed) on the LHS of the road. Park here. The elevation at this trailhead is 6,895 feet.

The Climb

From the Shale Creek trailhead, walk north up the Left Hand Fork Road briefly to find an open slope on the west face of Peak 7848. Leave the road and climb steeply up the gravel and short scrub on the face. You will find numerous sheep trails criss-crossing the slope. You will soon run out of open terrain and reach the forest. Bushwhack east up through the steep, thick forest. You will have to navigate through blowdown and lots of veg between the trees. You will eventually reach the summit ridge, probably a bit north of the high point.

Follow the narrow, semi-open ridge southward to the high point. You will find a game trail near the ridge crest to help you. The ridge crest itself is a mix of boulders, trees, and blowdown. The summit is at the south end of the ridge crest. There are two ridge points of equal height; the southern one is marked with a cairn. I’m not sure which point is highest. There are too many trees on top to get a good view from the summit.

South Ridge, Class 2

Access

Same as for the west ridge. You can ascend this route via Hawks Roost Road/FSR-680, which is located 3.5 miles up CR-1095 from Georgetown.

The Descent

From the summit, descend south through the forest. The south ridge is not well defined here. You will soon break out of the forest into easy, open terrain and have a good view of the terrain that lies between you and Hawks Roost Road. Stay right/west of a wide gully as you descend this section. At about 7,400 feet, the south ridge does a “fork” of sorts. The left/southeast fork requires you to cross a gully to reach a forested ridge which leads down to Hawks Roost Road. The right/southwest fork is a better option. It descends a mostly-open face down to a saddle at the head of a gully (7,180 feet). From the head of the gully, descend the easy gully south-southeast using game trails to reach Hawks Roost Road. Follow Hawks Roost Road west to its junction with the Left-Hand Fork Road/CR-1095. Walk north up Left Hand Fork Road ½ mile to your parking spot at the Shale Creek trailhead.