Excellent Day to Hike in The Owyhee Mountains – Sort of

I planned this hike a few weeks ago but life got in the way so when Sunday March 7th arrived with a forecast for great weather I was excited.  I was headed down to the Owyhee Mountains off Mud Flat Road to hike up Peak 4602.  This mountain isn’t exactly the most visually pleasing mountain but it’s easy to get to.

I knew there was something wrong almost immediate when I started heading up Mud Flat Road.  Trucks with motorcycles and quads where headed out of the mountains.  By the time I got near the mountains I saw a big gaggle of campers and trailer parked out in the desert and signs for a motorcycle race.  The usual solitude of the Owyhee Front wouldn’t be there today but I certainly would let that stop me from enjoying my day.

I parked and headed up a canyon that would take me towards the base of Peak 4602 enjoying the scenery along the way.  Cross-country travel through the sage brush was rather easy and I was soon most of the way up the north side of the peak.  Higher up, I found a few widely scattered rocks with veins of common opal running through them and this is always a good sign.  Peak 4602 turned out be a fun hike that included some good samples of semi-gem quality opal which made this hike even better.  The views from the top were excellent with deep blue skies and snow covered peaks to the south.  

Video from the Top of Peak 4602

Overall, the entire hike lasted about 4 hours but I certainly wasn’t in a hurry.  I took a different way back to the car through some cool canyons/washes that made it more interesting than a straight out and back hike.  I must have seen 10 rabbits during this hike which was probably more rabbits than I saw all of last year.  I also saw a lot of antelope in the distance from the higher points of the hike.

 

The Bad Motor-Scooter Rant?
While I will defend the rights of others to use our public land for recreation as they see fit, I do have a problem with "some" dirt bike riders.  Common sense and following the law of the land are required to be good stewards of our land.  So when I was in a semi-isolated portion of the hike, well away from any trail, and saw rather fresh tracks from a dirt bike winding through the desert sage brush, I got a little annoyed.  People who ride off-road and off trail like this person can and will ruin my opportunity to explore the "trailed" portions of Idaho on my ATV.  People like this moron give all ATV’er a bad name and eventually someone will insists on very restrictive ATV laws.  Just know if I come upon someone running through the desert or mountains riding illegally or not be responsible, I will take pictures and follow up with the authorities.   

Link to More Pictures
Here is a link to a few more pictures of my hike up Peak 4602 along the Owyhee Mountain Front.  These picture are also "Geocoded" to show the location of where they were taken.
URL: http://picasaweb.google.com/tim.bondy/Peak4602On7March2010?feat=directlink