Exposed Trail

Steep, but Priusable route for activating Peak 2905. A one way hike of about 0.9 miles and 100 feet gain. The AZ is on Stimpson Timber land. 

May 28th, 2023.  Trip #3 up Rocky Top for me and activation #2.  But this time we were a party of 7, 5 of which were general class operators.  

Parking for Monument Peak summit (aka Peak 4740) is on Monument Peak Road (MPR) about 7.5 miles up from the Monument Peak Trailhead at the south end of Gates School Road.  Gates School Road is at milepost 33 on OR-22 east of Salem.  I recommend parking here: (44.6966, -122.3343), the junction of MPR and what is now a washed out logging road - 2WD vehicles need not apply. 

NC-128 is one of the "new" peaks added during the 2023 ARM update. It's on private Stimson land, but publicly accessible to walk-in during weekends and after 4pm on weekdays. The easiest access is drive-in/hike-in from the south via Turner Creek Rd past Barney Reservoir, but would also be accessible by long hike or bike via the north through the same roads as NC-066. If doing the drive/hike route, it's a 15 mile gravel road drive and a 1 mile gravel road hike to the summit. This is easily paired with Blind Cabin Ridge NC-031.

TL;DR - Cornell Mountain is on private property but the activation zone extends to the public right-of-way, so this is a side-of-the-street activation. You might be able to activate on HF with appropriate gear but expect the locals to give you the stinkeye if you spend much time loitering.

Goodnoe Benchmark is a unremarkable roadside activation - until you throw in the turbine blades whirring over your head. The summit proper is dominated by a wind turbine and the closest public place is only a fraction of a mile away - next to the gate for the property. Appropriately, the area is posted no trespassing, but there is a small pull off.

Standard Mt. Hood disclaimer: conditions vary by the hour, experience interpreting conditions and forecasts are essential for safe alpine travel.

There are several good trip reports that outline the route and condition aspects of this trip, so I'll try to stick to what was specific about this activation.

This is a pretty easy hike, with some elevation gain. My watch clocked 1070 ft of gain in 2.6 miles from where we parked the truck.

Turner Mountain in northwest Montana is approximately 22 miles north of Libby on Pipe Creek Road #567.  Turner ski area opened in 1961. It is currently active with a mile long double chairlift with 2100’ of vertical rise. The 1.8-mile vehicle access road is closed in the summer but open to mountain bikes and foot travel. I borrowed an ebike and rode to the summit via the reasonable grade ‘jeep road’.

Summit 7112 is at the head of Ninemile Creek and overlooks the Clark Fork valley to the north. It is a pleasant hike on cooler summer days.  The on-trail and off-trail are currently exposed with very little tree cover.