Ada County High Point Trip Report
Date: August 11, 2001
Author: Zach Vickery
The Ada county highpoint is on the Boise Ridge, overlooking Boise. The most direct route is via 8th Street,
which starts near downtown and eventually winds into the Boise foothills and reaches the tree line on the Boise Ridge.
Assuming you are starting in Boise, drive north on 8th Street and pass through some residential areas.
As you start to leave town, the road turns to gravel and it is signed as 8 miles to the Boise Ridge road.
I recorded the actual distance on gravel as about 7.5 miles to the ridge. The Boise Ridge Road is on the quad
and runs along Boise Ridge, passing right below the highpoint. At the ridge, you come to a T with the Boise
Ridge Road. Up to this point, it is straightforward 2WD driving, with only a few rough spots where you
need to take it easy. As you turn right at the T to head toward the highpoint, there are some steep, rough
spots that looked very questionable for a 2WD vehicle. From the junction it's only 1 mile to the highpoint,
so I parked there and hiked in. 4WD/high clearance vehicles should have no problem following the road to
within 100 feet of the highpoint. It's conceivable that a 2WD might could drive it all the way, but I would
not recommend that.
The high point featured a cairn with a register, which had 7 names in it. If the sky is clear, you'll also get
great views of the Treasure Valley below. Unfortunately, haze is much more likely.