Keeping up with Kathryn: Seven Devils Backpack

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Norma on the trail in front of Devils' Thumb.

Norma and I went to do the Seven Devils Loop which circumnavigates the Seven Devil Mountains in the Hell's Canyon Recreational Area. Neither of us had been there and were not quite sure what to expect, so sort of an exploratory trip. We had both been in Hell's Canyon and it usually lives up to it's name. However, in the mountains it was much cooler and only a few ticks and mosquitoes to worry about.

We anticipate that we probably did around 34 miles in 4 days. Only the first day provided any level land. Afterwards it was either up or down in the terrain.

We started our trip by heading up to Seven Devils campground. The road around the campground was rough and we would not suggest anyone with a trailer even thinking of trying it out. We car camped Wednesday night there so we could get a good start in the morning. We started the loop clockwise, heading east from Windy Saddle Trailhead. We used the information we gathered out of 'Falcon Guide's Hiking Hells Canyon and Idaho's Seven Devils Mountains' and 'Backpacking Idaho'. Both recommended camping at mile 7.5 at Dog Creek.

The next day, it was mentioned in the books that water would not be for 9 miles, so we were sure to carry enough to last us. At this time of year, though, there were other water options with numerous streams and a few ponds that may not be there in a few weeks more. We hiked over High Lake Pass and changed from Boise trail 517 to Seven Devils Trail 124.

Going towards pass at southern point of loop.

The scenery on the east side of the mountains consisted mostly of a view of the mountains to the east, a lot of burned forest, but a lot of wildflowers. We were beginning to wonder if the whole recreational area was burned. (appropriate considering the name of where we were) Once we got over the pass, the view over the Hell's Canyon was impressive. We headed for Baldy Lake for our second night out. Baldy Lake is nestled under Devils Throne mountain.

Baldy Lake camp site

The third hiking day, we started off by going the wrong way on the trail as it was hard to figure out where Seven Devils trail turned from the Baldy Lake Trail. Part of the reason for that is that most do the loop in the opposite direction so signage was built for that. After struggling to get over Baldy Creek we continued on until we couldn't find the trail near Cow Camp. All the rivers had to be crossed by logs or rocks. No bridges existed and some of the streams could be quite high. We became quite good at balancing on logs to get across these waters. When we got to Dry Diggins trail, we decided to go ahead and give it a go to hike on up to the Dry Diggins Lookout to view Hell's Canyon from the top. It took us 9 hours but we finally made it. The views were well worth it. Awesome views. Afterwards, we headed on down to Bernard Lakes to camp which took another hour to get to. Boy, were we tired by the time we got to camp. It was all we could do to put up our tents and cook some freeze dried dinner.

The last day, we were to finish the loop back to Windy Saddle. It was about 7 miles of straight up or straight down. We had one stretch of 2 miles of switchbacks. I have never ever come across an uphill like that and hauling a backpack as well. It seemed neverending. We finally reached the end, Norma first, of course. When she arrived, some guy came up and asked if she needed water, she looked so beat. I came hobbling up shortly after. We packed up and then headed for Riggins for a well deserved burger and fries and shake.