Getting to Sabe Mountain is an experience traveling the Magruder Corridor road, a 100-mile narrow road much of which is over 7500’, high for Northcentral Idaho roads. The are no services (gas or other) available along this route and the adjoining roads for 130 miles. According to the US Forest Service brochure, the road, constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1930s has changed little over the decades. It shows.
Nez Perce Peak is on the historic Nez Perce route to the eastern bison hunting grounds. It was also used by prospectors and traders. It is accessed by a steep-unmarked trail approximately 3 miles beginning on the Magruder Corridor road along Deep Creek. The open grassland summit has excellent views of the Selway Bitterroot Wilderness and Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. There are trees for wire antennas or lots of open space for other antennas. Only a few wires, outhouse trail and stacked rock remain of the old US Forest Service Lookout.
This old Forest Service Lookout site has only a crumpled outhouse, concrete anchor blocks and a few pieces of rusted metal remaining. Young trees have grown up and have limited somewhat the view of the surrounding landscape. It is a short, but steep hike very typical of the ‘ridge access trails’ climbing out of the Selway River. Along the trail though are many old ponderosa pine with large rectangles of missing bark on their boles where the historic Nez Perce people peeled back the bark centuries ago to remove the underlayer of sweet cambium, the growing part of a tree (see photo below). Peoples footprints have been on this area for thousands of years.
Indian Ridge is accessed by trail beginning on the Selway River near Indian Creek Campground. This US Forest Service primitive campground is famous from the humous outdoor book INDIAN CREEK CHRONICLES where the author, college student Pete Fromm spent a winter watching over an Idaho Fish and Game artificial salmon rearing channel. The well- marked summit trail climbs through towering centuries-old ponderosa pine open-forest and some recent fire snag forests.