Mountain Adventures – Hiking with Kids!

COVID-19 Perspective: We had the trail completely to ourselves! As we were pulling away from trailhead two cars showed up but the trail was fairly wide in most places to allow for social distancing, with only a few places where it was too narrow to provide distancing.

The Trail:

Length: 4.6 miles
Moving Time: 02:13:22
Elevation Gain: 817 feet
Difficulty Rating: Easy
Trail Surface: Packed dirt and some rock
Areas of Caution: At the top there were some steeper areas where we would not let the kids roam too far but for the most part the peak was flat with lots of room to move around.
Running Wild: The only thing that stopped us from letting them run too wild and free was the evidence of large animals. One couple that pulled into the trailhead as we were leaving carried a firearm and I suspect this is for good reason.

What’s in it for the Kids: Lots of space to roam around up top for exploring and prime picnicking.

What’s in it for the Adults: The hike was nice and easy, with pretty awesome views from the top. The ease of the hike was a plus, as the kids were able to tackle it no problem.

Overall Rating: 7/10 – I prefer more of a challenge from a hike, which is why this one is rated a little lower but you cannot go wrong getting to the top of any mountain.

We had a slower start this morning and hit the road by 6:30 am. We had planned a longer hike but were not feeling overly motivated and decided to go for a shorter and easier hike. Biff and I purchased new hiking shoes the previous day because his just were not comfortable for him and mine had deteriorated enough overtime that I had gotten some pretty hideous blisters over the past two days. We were both pretty excited to try out our new shoes! On our drive to the trailhead we saw a Mountain Lion run across the road – it was incredibly awesome!!

The first portion of the trail was mostly flat and straight through the forest. After a quick ascent we reached Queen Lake. This was a small lake in the middle of the forest, which looked so peaceful and secluded that I really wished we could have camped there.

From there it was a rather steady climb to the top. The trail itself transitioned from hard packed dirt to more dust/sand with rocks (big and small) scattered throughout. We even saw a huge pile of bear poop! From there on out we made sure to make tons of noise singing songs from the Sound of Music and telling silly fart and poop jokes.

Our first “peak” was not actually the top but a nice ridgeline with awesome views. From there we could see another higher portion of the mountain and made our way there.

The peak was awesome! We found two geological markers!!! Blaze is quite fond of geological markers and when Biff found the second one, he was so proud to be able to show his daddy his AMAZING find! We also found the remains of an old wood structure with broken glass, bullet casings, screws, wood planks, etc. The peak was flat and allowed for exploring, which we took full advantage of and stayed exploring and snacking for 45 minutes, give or take.

Three days prior, someone from California placed a can with a jar, notebook, and pencil as a peak register. We were only the second group to sign!

On our way back down the mountain we sang Christmas songs with our own versions, including poop and fart talk, picking on one another the entire time. Dad is VERY talented! We saw one couple pull into the trailhead as we were leaving and several other cars heading up the mountain as we travelled down. Looks like we were there at the right time and had the place to ourselves!

Thank you for joining us on our little adventure! Hiking does wonders for our soul, contact with nature in general does and at this point in our journey I could finally feel the stress melting away. It almost seemed like the pandemic was no longer a part of our lives – if only we could bottle that feeling up and take it with us everywhere. As always, take care, stay safe and HAPPY HIKING!!

COVID-19 Perspective: Early in the morning we only saw a few people on the trail but it was quite crowded by the time we made it down. There was enough space on the trail to allow for social distancing and everyone we met on the trail was polite and gave us space, as we gave them space.

The Trail:

Length: 7.3 miles
Moving Time: 04:14:49
Elevation Gain: 3,317 ft
Difficulty Rating: Moderate
Trail Surface: Packed dirt to the top and tons of scree at the peak
Areas of Caution: We felt pretty comfortable with the kids on this one. Just be cautious on the scree and of the Mountain Goats (yep Mountain Goats!)
Running Wild: We certainly did let them run wild and free on the way up and more so on the way down. But we definitely exercised hand holding at the top, just in case.

What’s in it for the Kids: Did I mention the Mountain Goats?!

What’s in it for the Adults: The views were amazing almost immediately and just kept getting better as we continued on. The Mountain Goats were a real treat and definitely a favorite part of the hike for all of us.

Overall Rating: 9/10 because of the amount of people towards the end – we really like hiking on our own away from the crowds. If we had gotten there an hour or two earlier, this would have been a 10/10 hands down. Perfect start to our 2020 summer adventure!

We were up at 5am and were greeted by an amazing sunrise off our bedroom, open porch. What a way to start the day!

We were on the road to Scotchman’s Peak by 6am. Combo had chosen this trail because the description said people saw many Mountain Goats and it was all she could talk about. The road in was bumpy and we missed the initial turnoff, driving nearly a mile before we noticed. Note: do not use the driving directions provided by All Trails. There are a few reviews which give you far better directions and will save you a TON of time. We ended up using our GPS map to navigate to the trailhead and boy oh boy was the road bumpy!! When we reached the trailhead there were two cards there, one of which had a person sleeping in it.

We hit the trail and were met with switchback after switchback and a steady incline. Some portions were steeper than others but it was definitely a steady rise to the top. About halfway up, the thick tree coverage started to lighten up as we discussed the various animals and crops, we would have if we won the lottery and started a ranch in Montana. At this point we encountered three gentlemen, one with a shotgun (which the kids questioned) whom had camped on the mountain the previous night. The kids were in such an awesome mood and we praised them to the moon and back. They were delighted when we told them this would be the hardest hike in Idaho. I might have also told them that the longer the hike, the more we would spoil them. They actually asked for more miles!!

As we climbed and climbed the view became more and more expansive and spectacular. We could see the surrounding mountains and gorgeous Lake Pend. Pictures do not do the beauty justice nor do words. Amazing!!

In a few places the tree’s stopped and we hiked through mountain grass and portions of scree, this was where the views were the best! And the scree is where Combo heard and saw Picas! Combo squealed with delight, which made our hearts soar. The kids were thrilled by this time and had an extra pep in their step.

The top of the mountain was covered with scree and a little difficult to navigate but manageable. Nearby we saw snow but were unable to reach it as it was on the side of a cliff. The kids had just about given up hope of seeing a Mountain Goat when we reached the false summit and BAM there were 3 standing right on the trail we needed to take! We stood around taking pictures and making lots of noise, hoping the Goats would move on but no luck, they started to approach us! Signs were posted which asked people to maintain at least 100 feet from the goats, so we retreated. The goats followed us for some time but when we noticed they had stopped, we stopped for lunch. We found a large rock and sat down to enjoy our late morning treats. This was cut short because the goats found us again! We packed up and headed back down.

We saw at least 30 people on the way down and Biff warned each and every one of them of the goats, like he was an expert. It was pretty cute. As the number of people grew, our pace quickened to the point were running often, kicking up copious amount of dust and we were completely covered by the end!

Back at the car we were so proud of the kids and they happily chittered away about this was their favorite hike yet! And even cooler, we actually saw a Minnesota license plate! Boom! Blaze and I wholeheartedly agreed. We drove through the host town of Clark Fork, which was really quaint and somewhere we could see ourselves visiting on another trip out West. One odd thing we did see was a car that was riddled with bullet holes and broken out windows. Odd.

That was it for this one folks. If you are ever in the panhandle of Idaho, this is a definite must see! We have hiked many trails and I would put this one in my top 20, for sure! I’ve been slow to write about our summer adventures in light of everything that is happening in our world around us today. It has taken a toll on us all. I feel compelled to say this. Please take care of those around you, love with compassion, accept the differences of others and celebrate those differences, treasure every human life, be kind, bring joy and not hate. If we are to overcome all that is happening, we need to unite and be in this together and I mean truly together. We owe it to one another. We owe it to future generations. We need to do better and it starts with each and every one of us. We need to stop fighting and strive to understand the beliefs and opinions of others. We need to do better. And if we stick together, we can do better and we can create a world full of love, compassion, and acceptance. Take it for what it is worth but please, do what you can to make the world a better place, one act of kindness at a time. Take care and HAPPY HIKING!!