Hiking to Stack Rock
The fancy new parking area and trailhead for Stack Rock
Stack Rock is a large rock outcrop on the crest of one of the mountain ridges just north of Boise. It's very prominent and is visible from much of the Treasure Valley. Before someone built a house on the lot behind us, it was even visible from our bedroom window. There is a much closer view of it (but not THAT close) from the road to Bogus Basin. When I first moved to Boise in the late seventies I did some rock climbing, so of course I wanted to explore Stack Rock.
It turned out that it wasn't easy. First, back in those days, there were no hiking guides or trail maps. All we had to go by were USGS fifteen minute maps. An old climbing partner and I just parked along Bogus Basin Road one day and set off. There was a lot of private property in the area and I have to confess we ignored a couple of "No Trespassing" signs. We used old logging roads, game trails and even some cross country travel but eventually we pieced together a route to the base of the rock.
View of Treasure Valley from near the road crossing
On our first trip to the rock, we found a route to top along the east ridge that was just a hard scramble, although it did have some exposure. It was class 3, maybe class 4. On a subsequent trip we roped up and climbed a technical route on the northeast side which featured a large chimney. There were other possibilities but to be honest, I never was a very good rock climber, so we didn't put up any other routes. And getting there was a pain.
That changed in 2010. Thanks to some generous donations, the city of Boise was able to purchase the surrounding land which became the 1320 acre Stack Rock Reserve. After that private land was no longer a problem. Trails were improved by the Forest Service and became part of the Ridge to Rivers system. From an unmarked pullout area along Bogus Basin road, there's a trail that leads downhill and connects to a combination of old logging roads and trails that lead to Stack Rock. It's about four miles each way and is a pleasant hike. It's kind of cool because you have to know it's there. But it's a well known secret locally. The pullout is always full on weekends (about ten cars) during hiking season.
The trail contoured along the ridge through open forest
Earlier this year, when I drove up to Bogus Basin to do a different hike, I noticed a new sign along the road that said "Stack Rock Trailhead". It didn't point to the standard pullout though, but to a side road which disappeared up the hill on the opposite side of Bogus Basin Road. I checked it out and sure enough, there was a brand new, large parking area. There was a trailhead sign and even a fancy pit toilet. I was puzzled though because the trailhead was on the wrong side of Bogus Basin Road and I hadn't seen anywhere that a trail crossed the road. It wasn't until another trip a week or two later that I noticed a "trail crossing" sign about a mile down the road from the standard start point. I checked online and found out that the new trailhead had been built by the Forest Service and just opened last October. It used a different route to get to Stack Rock than the "old standby" and was about a mile and a half longer each way. I figured that I needed to give it a try sometime this summer.
Sandy and Abby at Stack Rock
I got a chance in the middle of August. This summer wasn't as hot as usual and since the trail was about three thousand feet higher than Boise it would be cooler than in town. Still, from studying the route online I could see that part of it traversed the ridgeline facing the Treasure Valley. It was sure to get warm updrafts on a hot day. I left home early so I could hike while it was still cool. I parked my car and was on the trail by 9 am.
From the parking area a nice new trail, Freddy's Stack Rock Trail, descended through the forest to where it crossed the road. By my GPS app, it was a mile and a quarter to reach that point. Not that far, but I knew that all the lost elevation would make for an unwelcome climb at the very end of the hike when I returned. There was a large pull out/parking area where the trail crossed the road. It seemed like that would be a much better spot to start the hike than the "official" trailhead, unless for some reason you were a masochist looking for an extra workout.
After crossing the road the trail traversed for two miles along a ridge with a beautiful view of Boise and the Treasure Valley. Stretches were grassland but most of it was open forest, providing shade (for which I was grateful on the way back) but still giving expansive views. I had this section of the trail pretty much to myself. The one exception was a group of four mountain bikers who zoomed through at high speed. Fortunately I heard them coming and got out of the way. Since the trail twisted and turned they couldn't see very far ahead and there could have been a nasty collision. Not exactly good etiquette on a trail shared by hikers and mountain bikers.
Steve and Abby on the way back
Other than that the hike was great. It was late in the season and the slopes were dry so I was surprised that there were still quite a few wildflowers. Although I enjoy distant views in the mountains, I also like to see wildflowers beside the trail.
Eventually the trail joined the standard route. From there it was about a mile and a half of steady uphill - hard work before finally reaching the destination. On this section there were a lot of people. Apparently even with the new trailhead and trail, most people still used the old route. When I reached Stack Rock I only took about a fifteen minute break, but there must have been six or seven parties who came through during that time.
The way back was pretty straightforward. I almost got run over by the same four mountain bikers, this time on the big hill below Stack Rock. And as I expected, climbing the last hill back to the car was no fun. But overall it was a really good hike, especially for one that is so easy to reach from Boise.
When I told Sandy about the hike she wanted to try it too. We had a chance exactly three weeks later and we brought Abby along as well. This time we started from the road crossing instead of the "real" trailhead. It actually made the hike better to not have the extra climb at the very end. It was a little cooler too in early September so it was even better than when I did it by myself. It was the first time that Sandy had ever been to Stack Rock - something that was long overdue. And as always, Abby enjoyed being in the mountains. She spent the hike giving the business to the local squirrels.
We capped off a good day in the mountains by stopping at West Side Drive In for lunch on the way home. It was the first time we had eaten out since early March.
