Bull Mountain is the highpoint of Box Elder County in Utah and boasts 3744 feet of prominence. In researching winter/fall climbs, I discovered that this peak was within 3 hours of Boise.

With good weather predicted, I organized an outing. John, Dylan, Splattski, and myself from Boise. Margo and Steve from eastern Idaho.

As the week progressed, the forecast deterioated a bit. At 4:30am on Sunday morning, there was a 40% chance of snow, ½ accumulation, and winds to 40mph predicted on top of the peak.

As we neared the peak, the clouds darkened. At the trailhead, it was snowing lightly. I think all of us expected it to snow a bit, blow a lot, and clear off at some point.


We planned to hike the peak from the Clear Creek Campground, northeast of the peak. There were numerous options, but we decided to follow a trip report we had read on the drive down. The route starts at the campground and heads south up a canyon on an ATV track.


As we hiked, it started snowing harder and harder. 30 minutes into the hike, it was snowing very heavily. But the wind wasn't blowing, so conditions weren't bad.

We headed up the canyon and eventually turned into a side canyon. This was a maze of downfall and really tested our balance, fitness, and mental stability. We hiked up to 8800'. Realizing we were likely not on route, low on time, not getting closer to the peak, and likely not able to see anything on the summit plateau anyway; we called it a day.

When we got back to the trailhead, our vehicles were covered in 9 inches of fresh snow. 9 inches of snow in 6 hours! And we all agreed more had accumulated up higher on the mountain.

On inspection Monday morning, we found that we were indeed way off our planned route. Oh well, it was a fun trip and some memories that will last.

Make your way to Malta, Idaho. From Malta, drive 23 mile south on Idaho 81. Turn west onto 3600 South Road (signed for Clear Creek Campground). Follow this road for 3.25 miles, then turn left (south) onto Clear Creek Road (also signed for Clear Creek Campground). Follow this road for 6 miles to the campground. The campground is easily reached by passenger car.

We were off route, however, the following week we used this directions to make it to the top:

From the eastern end of the campground (near the washout in the road), head south on the ATV track. At .8 miles you will pass the sign for Bull Flat, continue heading south. At 1.25 miles, you will cross Lake Fork Creek. Just after this crossing, at 1.3 miles, you will see a sign for Lake Creek. Turn right (west) and follow this trail. We had trouble staying on this trail, as it was snow covered and encountered downfall. However, one key to know is that it stays on the left side of the creek until 7900 feet, where it crosses and follows the right side of the peak.

I am not sure what the trail does from there, but we made our way to 8400 feet, then hiked nearly due west to meet the ridge at 9000'. This was a good route.

Now head southwest toward the peak. You will cross forested slopes between 9300 and 9600'. After that, just angle toward the peak.