Mineral Peak is an inactive US Forest Service Lookout and active Communication site.  It sits near the boundary of the Rattlesnake Wilderness and Rattlesnake National Recreation areas.  Summits views are good of the Rattlesnake mountains and a couple of distant cirque lakes.  Access is via trail up the Rattlesnake Corridor, approximately 16.5 miles or via a poorly maintained high clearance rough road approximately 5 miles off the East Fork Rattlesnake and Gold Creek Roads.

Crescent Butte should be a simple drive-up just off Highway 97 south of La Pine about 17 miles. The roads in the area are quite confusing, and the main track is quite dusty in the summer. Thoughtful consideration of these directions and Google Maps is recommended.

This old US Forest Service Lookout has good trail access from the trailhead on the North Fork of the Blackfoot River.  The trailhead is a popular access point into the Scapegoat and Bob Marshall Wilderness Areas for kayakers in the spring, fly fishers, backpackers, stock users and fall season hunters.  The summit has spectacular views of much of the Scapegoat Wilderness and high summits within the Bob Marshall Wilderness Area.

Trail Miles:  4.5 one way

Elevation Gain:  3700’

Water:  No water is available along the trail.

Nez Perce Peak is on the historic Nez Perce route to the eastern bison hunting grounds.  It was also used by prospectors and traders.  It is accessed by a steep-unmarked trail approximately 3 miles beginning on the Magruder Corridor road along Deep Creek.  The open grassland summit has excellent views of the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness and Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness.  There are trees for wire antennas or lots of open space for other antennas.  Only a few wires, outhouse trail and stacked rock remain of the old US Forest Service Lookout. 

This old Forest Service Lookout site has only a crumpled outhouse, concrete anchor blocks and a few pieces of rusted metal remaining.  Young trees have grown up and have limited somewhat the view of the surrounding landscape.  It is a short, but steep hike very typical of the ‘ridge access trails’ climbing out of the Selway River.  Along the trail though are many old ponderosa pine with large rectangles of missing bark on their boles where the historic Nez Perce people peeled back the bark centuries ago to remove the underlayer of sweet cambium, the growing part of a tree (see photo below). Peoples footprints have been on this area for thousands of years.

As far as summits go, Peak 2416 is pretty uninteresting.  On the edge of a clearcut that is about 10 years into regrowth, operators are left with little choice but to activate off of the old logging road that rises close to the summit.  That said, with an adventurous spirit and a small amount of navigation mojo, this summit is pretty easy to get to and activate.  It would be an excellent outing for someone that is still cutting their teeth

Indian Ridge is accessed by trail beginning on the Selway River near Indian Creek Campground. This US Forest Service primitive campground is famous from the humous outdoor book INDIAN CREEK CHRONICLES where the author, college student Pete Fromm spent a winter watching over an Idaho Fish and Game artificial salmon rearing channel. The well- marked summit trail climbs through towering centuries-old ponderosa pine open-forest and some recent fire snag forests.

This private timber land is owned by Stimson Lumber Company.  Stimson allows very limited access to their land with many, many stipulations.  The area access from Olson Road off of Highway 26 is not open to the public before 4:00 PM on weekdays due to logging and road building actitivies.  Non-motorized access is allowed on weekends.  The gates can be closed at any time and are usually only open to the public during hunting season on posted days.  In other words, expect the gates to be closed most of the time.

Here's an easy drive-up summit that you can do on the way to the coast. Any vehicle can make it on these well-graded roads.

University Mountain with an adjoining lower non-SOTA summit, Mount Sentinel overlooks the city of Missoula.  Access is by three main routes, a road (closed to motor vehicles) or two trails.  It is a communication site for several Agency repeaters and a popular summit in summer and winter for hikers, mountain bikers and cross-country skiers.  The subordinate summit to the west is a launch site for hang gliders.  Visitors can be expected on any of your SOTA activations here.