The fall weather was perfect... warm, sunny, and the forest fire smoke was gone from most of the state.

Dave was trying to finish all 50 peaks in the White Cloud range over 10,000 feet in elevation. He was seeking partners to accompany him on his final 2, which were both somewhat technical.

Tom was also invited and interested, so the 2 of us drove up to meet Dave for Six Lakes Peak and then Dave would climb Grand Finale Peak the next day with John to complete his feat.

Tom and I left the smoke in Boise, headed for Stanley. The weather seemed great, but we did worry the haze from the fire near Boise might have made it to the Stanley area. Luckily it hadn't.

We met Dave in Stanley and he jumped in with us for the ride to the Fourth of July Creek Trailhead.

The 4x4 road continues past the trailhead and toward the base of the peak. We followed it less than a mile and parked (you could follow it even further, but it's already a short ascent).

We chose to climb Six Lakes Peak from the east side, via the steep southeast couloir used by Rick Baugher in 2009.

We followed the road to around 9000' and then cut through the forest to the base of Six Lakes Peak and eventually to a nice basin below the east face of the peak. Once we spotted the couloir, we stopped for a break and enjoyed the sunshine.

After our break we started up the couloir. At the beginning, it is fairly mellow, but eventually narrows. The crux occurs where the couloir reaches its most narrow point. Here a chockstone blocks the center couloir and forces one to climb to the left of the obstacle to obtain the upper portion of the couloir. I thought this was a class 3 move, but wouldn't argue if someone else called it class 4.

Above the crux, the couloir remains steep, but less technical. The couloir splits above the crux. We ascended the left fork and descended the right. Both are steep and have some loose rock, but I'd say the right is more direct to the summit.

Eventually we topped out of the couloir and scrambled the final 75 feet to the top of this fine peak.

We signed the register that Rick had left and ate some lunch while taking in the great views from the summit. After a group shot, we started our way down. Once out of the couloir, our speed increased and soon we were on our way to Stanley for bacon cheeseburgers.

Great day in the mountains.

From Idaho 75 south of Stanley, turn east on the signed turnoff for the Fourth of July Creek Road (3.6 miles south of Obsidian or 3.3 miles north of the Petit Lake turnoff), which heads into the White Cloud Mountains. After about 10 miles, you reach the end of the road at the Fourth of July Creek trailhead. You'll find plenty of parking, a trail register, and a bathroom at the trailhead. This road was rebuilt in the 1990's to accommodate cars of all types.

With a 4x4, you can drive a bit further down the road that leads south towards Phyllis Lake. We drove down the road approximately 3/4 of a mile.

We followed the road to around 9000' and then cut through the forest to the base of Six Lakes Peak and eventually to a nice basin below the east face of the peak. We found the obvious southeast couloir and utilized it for the ascent. The peak is just north (climber's right) of the top of the couloir.