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White Cloud Peak #3 (WCP-3) is located in the northern part of the White Cloud Mountains. It is grouped together with several other unofficially named peaks that get only a simple number designator. The group of peaks is quite spectacular and the lack of official names likely comes from the fact that very few people have had a chance to see them up close. I'd never been to this area of the White Clouds and wondered if the beauty would live up to what I'd seen in other portions of the range. Well, after having been there, that concern is now totally out the window.
We didn't have a whole lot of information on the difficulty of our planned route, but our chances seemed good based on the topo maps. The goal for the day had been to climb WCP-3, traverse the ridgeline over to WCP-2, and then possibly summit WCP-1 on our way back if there was time. Sometimes when you set lofty goals, it helps you to achieve them. But no such luck today.
I left Boise just before 5am and then met up with Super Sean and Super Kyle in Stanley for the remainder of the drive up to the Slate Creek Hotsprings trailhead. We were off and hiking by just after 8am, making our way past the old mine near the trailhead and the massive piles of silty white tailings. Soon we were heading up an old grown over mining road leading to Hoodoo Lake. The road had many obstructions so only foot traffic had been on it for at least a decade or so. The going was a little confusing at times because of various forks, and we took one wrong turn that forced us to do some early bushwhacking up a steep slope to get back on the trail. Eventually we reached the lake and had a great view of WCP-3 in the distance as well as WCP-1 to the west. After circling halfway around the lake, we headed up the hillside until we arrived in a beautiful subalpine basin at around 8900'. The terrain was open and the hiking was easy on our way to the southwest corner of the basin. Then we began some steeper climbing to reach a saddle up on the ridge between WCP-1 and WCP-3. From the saddle we could see that the climb up to WCP-3 wouldn't be an issue. However, the traverse over to WCP-2 may be a different story based on what we could see from this vantage point. We decided to wait and see the conditions for ourselves up close.
Reaching WCP-3 from the saddle was uneventful and the views from the 10588' summit were truly outstanding. We could see most of the other WCP's and also had an unobstructed view of the entire Sawtooth crest in the distance. But we still couldn't tell for sure if WCP-2 would be reachable. There would be only one way to find out, so we made the 1000' vertical drop to the low point on the ridge between WCP-3 and WCP-2. Kyle decided to wait here while Sean and I tried our luck on the ridge. The going was challenging through sustained class 3 & 4 crumbly rock, but we made steady pace. At one point, Sean ended up leaving his pack laying on a ledge (we'd get it later) to get better balance while downclimbing a very exposed pitch. As we continued, the ridge was relentless and soon we got to another tough section. Sean was a little hesitant, and I was more than little concerned. After some deliberation, we decided to turn back. This was a tough decision because of how far we'd come, but I think it was the right one. After retracing our steps along the ridge, we finally got back to Kyle. It had been two hours since we'd left him. We were both mentally and physically tired after our adventure, but there was still a lot of ground to cover to get back to the trailhead.
We re-climbed the 1000' to the summit of WCP-3 before dropping back down the ridge and finally getting some shade amongst the trees. When we finally returned to the basin below, the grassy terrain was welcomed cushioning for our feet and knees. We made pretty quick time on the remaining couple of miles back to the truck, arriving at just after 4pm. Even though we'd only reached one of the three summits that I'd hoped for, it was still a great day. The scenery was awesome and the experience reaffirmed why the White Clouds are my favorite area in Idaho.
Map of our route.
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WCP-3 in the distance from Hoodoo Lake.
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WCP-1 from Hoodoo Lake.
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WCP-3 from a gorgeous basin at around 8900'.
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WCP-3 from the saddle on the north ridgeline.
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Sean on the summit of WCP-3.
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Kyle on the final portion of the climb before reaching WCP-3's summit.
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The view from WCP-3 includes The Chinese Wall, Caulkens Peak, WCP-9, D.O. Lee Peak, WCP-6, WCP-7, & WCP-5.
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The ridgeline leading from WCP-3 to WCP-2 is class 4+. The Sawtooths are in the distance to the left, with Lookout Mountain off to the right.
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This is the very impressive WCP-4 rising above Swimm Lake.
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WCP-5 above the remote Swimm Lake.
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Looking back on WCP-1 from WCP-2's east ridge.
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WCP-3 from the ridgeline that connects it to WCP-2.
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WCP-2 from the east. We turned back at that white stripe in the distance. Ahh, so close.
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Looking back on one of the more challenging sections we crossed. Sean's pack is laying on a ledge on the left side of the ridge.
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Sean with Swimm Lake in the background and WCP-5 directly behind it.
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Me standing on the summit of WCP-3.
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Looking down on Hoodoo Lake from the summit of WCP-3.
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One last view of WCP-3 as we leave Hoodoo Lake.
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Peak 10848' stands at the northern end of the Chinese Wall. This is a shot taken from the trail about half way between Slate Creek and Hoodoo Lake.
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