The Mazamas Took Idaho Summit Registers to Oregon

Brian Westphal discoverd that the Mazamas climbing club took a number of historic summit registers home with them after climbing excursions in Idaho. Those registers taken were from Mount Borah, He Devil, McGowan Peak and Thompson Peak. The contents of these registers undoubtedly includes valuable historical information. Hopefully, these registers will be returned to Idaho at some point. The Idaho … Continue reading

The First Ascent of La Fiamma 1962

La Fiamma is an impressive rock spire located on the southwest shoulder of Packrat Peak. It was first climbed by Fred Beckey, Steve Marts, and Dan Davis in 1963. See IDAHO, SAWTOOTH RANGE, LA FIAMMAin the American Alpine Journal.September 23, 1962. Kaden Platt obtained a copy of Dan Davis’ journal entry for the climb which is set out below. La … Continue reading

The North Face of Mount Breitenbach by Bob Boyles

Mount Breitenbach, at 12,140 feet is Idaho’s fifth-highest summit and is located in the Lost River Range in Central Idaho. Thanks to the efforts of the Idaho climbing pioneer Lyman Dye, Mount Breitenbach was named for John Edgar (Jake) Breitenbach. Breitenbach was killed by a collapsing ice wall in the Khumbu Ice Fall on March 23, 1963 while climbing with … Continue reading

The Sawtooth Country of Idaho by Gary M Smith

This article was published in the April 1967 edition of the long defunct Summit Magazine. Perhaps the most interesting information in the article is the author’s recounting of his interview of early Sawtooth surveyor, Arval Anderson. Summit Magazine published by was founded in November, 1955 by Jene Crenshaw and Helen Kilness. They published the monthly magazine from mid-1955 until 1989 when they … Continue reading

Neil McAvoy 1933 – 2012

Neil McAvoy of Kellogg, Idaho was an active technical climber and guide in the 1960s and 1970s. He was also member of the Spokane Mountaineers and an early contributor to the book. His exploits on the Selkirk Range’s Lions Head’s two summits are briefly recounted on Page 38 of the book and are set out below in more detail. The … Continue reading

FIFTY YEARS OF SAWTOOTH CLIMBING 1934-1984 By Dave Bingham

The Elephants Perch from Braxon Peak

When Robert and Miriam Underhill first gazed from the top of Galena Summit in Idaho’s Sawtooth Wilderness, before them stretched a wild mountain panorama never before seen by mountaineers. It was 1934 and in those days the road past the future site of Sun Valley to the summit was little more than a rutted sheep wagon track. Approaching the remote … Continue reading