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Clarke Brogger
Mountain climber
Laguna Beach, Ca
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Topic Author's Original Post - Aug 12, 2015 - 05:31pm PT
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How would you consider Boise as a home base? Access to climbing and rivers, lakes? Local vibes?
Thanks for your input!
~ Clarke
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Aug 12, 2015 - 05:41pm PT
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Twenty five years ago no....now yes. Has become MUCH more cosmopolitan with the influx of people in high tech jobs.
Two of my alltime favorite climbing venues.....the Elephants Perch and the City of Rocks are in striking distance.
I'm not a boater but Rob Lesser (an alltime great kayaker) lived there for years.
Fritz will likely chime in about water sports.
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Aug 12, 2015 - 06:02pm PT
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Edit: Maybe I'm a couple 7 years dated in my a*#essment... but last time I checked, Boise's high tech industry consisted of a hard disk manufacturing plant or warehouse. Not exactly the brain trust for innovation.
Boise would be tough for me to accept. If I was going to live in a place with minimal culture or education base (the local college notwithstanding), I would want some sort of upside like immediate proximity to world-class outdoor stuff. Boise is still a few hours away from really great outdoor stuff. It gets very cold, but not enough snow to really play in. Summers are hot and muggy. West of Boise has a funky smell from a sweet potato or sugar beet processing plant. High restaurant culture is Applebees and Red Robin.
Imagine the time it takes to get from San Francisco and Silicon Valley to Yosemite, then compare that with Boise to City of Rocks, and I know which I would pick if I had the choice. There's a reason why the cost of living is so different.
Salt Lake City might be a better alternative- similar distance to City of Rocks (actually closer), and then access to the southern Utah stuff for committing weekends. And skiing close by.
My brother moved west of Boise a little more than a decade ago for economic reasons, i.e. it was cheap compared to Humboldt County CA where he was not able to make ends meet. Now he's moving to Oregon.
Edit for CMAC and RJ: Change your bad language filters to include any whitespace character after A-S-S .
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Aug 12, 2015 - 06:16pm PT
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Nut again,..guess you haven't been to the Elephsnts Perch....simply awesome! Driving to COR from Boise has one unbeatable advantage over SF to Yosemite.....0, did I say 0, traffic issues.
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Aug 12, 2015 - 06:27pm PT
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Ah Boise, the city that most-everyone else in Idaho hates.
Those folks that live in Boise think that Boise is the coolest city in the Rockies, they have culture, their access to outdoor adventure is the best, their excrement doesn't stink, & their shitty little university football program is "hot schist."
I do enjoy following their shitty little football team.
Go BSU!
Otherwise, Boise is a blight on right-wing Idontno!
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Aug 12, 2015 - 06:31pm PT
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Sounds like Boulder....nothing wrong with that! Except....if you live in Cali.
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NutAgain!
Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:12pm PT
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Definitely worth clarifying that I don't know what the heck I'm talking about, many grains of salt required to interpret my feedback. My experience is of visits to Nampa where my mom and brother lived (30-45 mins to the west), with brief excursions to Boise. I've never hung out next to the college campus to see what hip culture might be lurking there.
I will say that the Owyhee River from Oregon on into western Idaho looks like some amazing extended inner tubing- mile after mile of rippled glory with take-out spots next to the highway.
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:23pm PT
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Ah PotatoHead!
Re your crusty comment about my thoughts on Boise: if you are a self-righteous crusty little old man like Fritz it sucks. Better retirement homes elsewhere...like choss creek?? LoL
Yep!
It does appear that you are have become, since moving to Boise: A Boise Booster!
I'm sorry for your shisty & sordid Boise life.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:26pm PT
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Doesn't Lance "RokJox" Lynch live there?
You might want to factor that into your equation.
And whatever Boise is, it isn't Canmore.
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Charlie D.
Trad climber
Western Slope, Tahoe Sierra
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:28pm PT
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try to live closer to downtown/older Boise....better vibe and closer to the trails.
Right on, Boise is ahead of the curve in terms of good planning of its core. Great walkable communities are few and far between, Boise is landing on target for what will define a great city in the decades ahead. What better place to live than what Fritz just described as the place that the rest of Idaho hates, you guys are funny.
The single best thing about it all is you're in the Intermountain West, so if you like mountains there you go.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:38pm PT
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Idaho sucks..Wasn't it just last week that Fritz got caught in traffic behind some redneck RV'ers and had to unholster his enforcer...? Don't even get started on the marmot stampdedes...
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Aug 12, 2015 - 07:53pm PT
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RJ! Exactly.
Boise is the worst of Idaho & Idaho is the worst of the Northern Rockies.
Don't believe anything Potatoehead writes. He is obviously a-
shudder-gasp!!!!
Realtor!
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:01pm PT
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Fritz...REALTOR...? Delete that before the thread gets frozen...rj
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MisterE
Gym climber
Being In Sierra Happy Of Place
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:07pm PT
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And whatever Boise is, it isn't Canmore.
And who says Canadians don't lob bombs across the border...
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:08pm PT
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There are some funny comments here. I drove down 55 into Boise just last June and before that almost ten years ago. Quite a difference. Before that I stopped into the downtown in 1979 on the way to the Tetons for a burger. I liked it.
From what I've seen in other cities and towns in the west that have been traditionally rural hubs for a widespread and relatively diverse economy but still removed from major population centers, when rich city folk start to move there or a major industry makes inroads, the locals get jiggy. I don't blame them but I see there is little they can do about it. Locals either hide or go along with the increase in there property values. Unfortunately, some of the generational poor farmers can't afford the taxes now to live and work on their land.
Other than that, I think it a fine place to live I have friends and family that enjoy their lives there.
Edit- Say what you want spud-breath, choss creek is pretty cool. Fritz has earned his life there and his views on Idaho have always seemed spot on to me, even if he is a little crusty in spots. It's the Idaho sunshine!
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:09pm PT
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Canmore is great for skiing and ice climbing....the rock climbing is below average.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:13pm PT
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I heard the local ski hill is a co-op...Bogus Basin...? And lift tickets are affordable ...? Any truth to this...?
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:17pm PT
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Skully? What say you?
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Fritz
Trad climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:27pm PT
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Ah poor Potatoehead.
He is so recently an immigrant to Idaho,
or--------shudder-gasp!!!!!
a -----
Realtor
or both
He has not grasped the essence of, loving Idaho,
(and even loving-------------- fuking Boise)
IS!
Not loving Idaho------or fuking Boise.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:36pm PT
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When i lived in Idaho in the mid 80's the highways had strange messages painted on the highway pavement such as " don't be a guberif "...Was guberif slang for realtor...?
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feralfae
Boulder climber
in the midst of a metaphysical mystery
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:38pm PT
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If you are birder, Lucky Peak has a migrant trap program sponsored by the university. Excellent diversion.
ff
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:38pm PT
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Canmore is great for skiing and ice climbing....the rock climbing is below average.
Anyone can climb granite. It takes a man to climb limestone.
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AP
Trad climber
Calgary
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:43pm PT
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Donini is wrong, Canmore has a great selection of rock. The weather is below average, not the climbing.
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WBraun
climber
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Aug 12, 2015 - 08:54pm PT
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Anyone can climb granite. It takes a man to climb limestone.
So true.
When I was in Europe I had a hard time on limestone.
PotatoHead ..... lol, you crack me up gettin ole Fritz all riled up .....
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phylp
Trad climber
Upland, CA
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Aug 12, 2015 - 09:18pm PT
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The LA Times travel section recently had an article on Boise as a "destination weekend". For whatever that's worth!
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Clarke Brogger
Mountain climber
Laguna Beach, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 12, 2015 - 11:35pm PT
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Ummm... thanks? I cant figure who to listen to. Some make it sound super epic... some miserable.
What I want is a local crag within 20 mins drive to boulder at or solo moderates, some hefty mountains within a few hours to trip to, and some outdoors to train in. I dont want to get beat up for my semi-liberal and open mentality nor do I want to fry in the summer or freeze in the winters. However, I'd like to shovel my driveway in the winters, and cool off in local waters in the summer.
Whaddya say?
Where's choss creek? Haha.
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healyje
Trad climber
Portland, Oregon
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Aug 12, 2015 - 11:52pm PT
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As armpits go I'd put it at or near the top of the list; basically a larger version of Spokane.
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Captain...or Skully
climber
Boise, ID
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Aug 13, 2015 - 04:22am PT
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Aww, it ain't like that at all. Armpit....not even close. I think Boise is a sweet place. You will bake in Summer, but Winter is surprisingly mild. LocAl climbing is small basalt cliffs with granite & limestone a couple hours away.
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Greg Barnes
climber
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Aug 13, 2015 - 08:11am PT
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Really depends on where you're comparing it to, and what you like to do for training.
Table mountain (dinky little sandstone quarry type stuff) and Black Cliffs both offer lots of highball bouldering/short topropes close to town (the left end of Black Cliffs is super short and heavily traveled, good for soloing - the right end is taller and many of the routes are dusty/dirty from lack of traffic). I really liked Black Cliffs, fun basalt, fair number of cracks but also steep face/aretes.
For training there are loads of trails out of town on the north side, but they tend to get muddy (often it's not cold enough in winter for the trails to stay frozen - end up on trails at night or very early morning even mid-winter to avoid mud). The greenbelt along the river is nice, long continuous paved bike paths, great for summer tubing, etc.
Fun mountain biking, in summer you can head up 4,000' plus to the ridgetop on a variety of trails & roads (almost 5,000' from town to the top of Bogus) and explore tons of trails (some of which are open to motorcycles, but there's not much motorized traffic even on those). You will definitely want fluorescent orange biking jerseys for fall, the hills are active hunting areas, but even after exploring all sorts of random trails in the middle of nowhere we never encountered any of the yahoo target shooters (who don't even find a dirt backstop!) that plague many places like Colorado.
You have to learn where the goathead thorns are or do what most do and get super heavy thorn-resistant tires/liners/tubes (often too many thorns for slime to work well). Boise isn't that big so you can easily ride all the way across town to get to the hills if you live near the freeway instead of the more expensive neighborhoods, my brother's near the freeway and it only takes an extra 15 minutes biking across town (10 on the way back - this is on mountain bikes).
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Clarke Brogger
Mountain climber
Laguna Beach, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 13, 2015 - 09:13am PT
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Thanks DMT and Greg.
Skully... how close are those local climbing spots?
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Captain...or Skully
climber
Boise, ID
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Aug 13, 2015 - 09:47am PT
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Less than 5 miles out of town...Table Rock is on the edge, The Black Cliffs are up hwy21.
Hit me up and I'll climb with ya....
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Aug 13, 2015 - 09:47am PT
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A sandstone mesa overlooking the city of Boise. Table Rock sports a large electric cross and is easy to find. The rock quality ranges from loose grit to bulletproof slabs depending on what area you are climbing in. In the summer get here early in the day as there is little cover from the sun. This is the most easily accessible bouldering area to Boise and sees a good deal of traffic in the peak climbing season, but there are enough areas that crowds seldom form. For more complete information on Table Rock climbs and other Boise area climbs check out "Boise Climbs" by Sandy Epeldi.
Feel free to comment if corrections are needed.
Getting There
To get to Table Rock follow Broadway Ave. north until you pass the hospital and the road curves left. If you are on State St. follow the road east until the road curves to the right. Reserve St. is the road jutting off of the curve here. Follow Reserve straight and it will curve up the hill and become Shaw Mountain Rd. Follow Shaw Mountain Rd to the top of the mesa where you will park.
http://www.mountainproject.com/v/table-rock/107207153
The Black Cliffs provide year round climbing if you don't mind being cold in the winter. Summer days are really hot so spring and fall tend to be the best times a the Black Cliffs. The rock is all basalt. Access is easy and the cliffs usually aren't crowded. The guidebook Boise Climbs by Sandy Epeldi is a great thing to have if you are going to be climbing the Black Cliffs. You can pick it up at REI or Benchmark.
Getting There
Take Highway 84 to the Gowen Rd/Highway 21 exit. Take Highway 21 towards Lucky Peak. The cliffs will be on both sides of the river. Park in the parking lots and choose a trail up.
http://www.mountainproject.com/v/black-cliffs/106060666
Took me five minutes to figure this out.
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Fat Dad
Trad climber
Los Angeles, CA
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Aug 13, 2015 - 09:57am PT
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In other words, it hasn't been ruined by the Cali masses.
Never really sure what this is supposed to mean...
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Gerg
Trad climber
Calgary
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Aug 13, 2015 - 10:18am PT
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Love Idaho!
Whats not to love about the climbing at Dierkes?
Was in City of the Rocks in July mid-week- there was hardly anyone there and minimal campers?! Thought it would be rockin.
Pocatello is fun to climb at too.
Like the spanish culture in the south part of the state, love the food.
Table mountain in Boise is where my love ends, not interested in climbing above buckets of busted glass everywhere.
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Captain...or Skully
climber
Boise, ID
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Aug 13, 2015 - 10:35am PT
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That mountain proj entry is kinda bullshit in that Winter is excellent at the Black cliffs....shirtsleeves in February.
And who decided Table Rock was a mountain?
Edit: no worries, Gerg. Just funning.
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Gerg
Trad climber
Calgary
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Aug 13, 2015 - 10:41am PT
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Sincere apologies...Rock, not mtn.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Aug 13, 2015 - 10:52am PT
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If ya don't like Boise there's always Spokane. The Calis haven't invaded it, yet.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Aug 13, 2015 - 01:26pm PT
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I'll amend my post AP, the rock climbing in Canmore is average, not below average. Back of the Lake is an exception, great quartzite, but that's a bit of a drive.
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Struggles
Trad climber
Boise, ID
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Aug 13, 2015 - 07:08pm PT
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The Fins.
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TomCochrane
Trad climber
Santa Cruz Mountains and Monterey Bay
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Aug 13, 2015 - 09:27pm PT
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I grew up in Boise and taught myself to climb on the local black basalt cliffs in the 1950s before there were any other Idaho climbers that I know about...so mostly all solo. There are a number of local climbing areas within reach of a boy on a bicycle. I also climbed many routes in the Sawtooths Range.
When I eventually made it to the Tetons in 1960, Royal invited me to do climbs with him, and allowed I was climbing at the 5.9 level...top of the scale at the time. Several of my routes around Boise are at least that hard.
The climbing was fun, the river running was exciting, the skiing was great, and access to the Sawtooths wilderness was wonderful.
My youngest brother has spent his career teaching violin there and playing in the symphony orchestra and folk groups...but the addition of freeways and a Chinese enterprise zone hasn't improved anything ...
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Aug 13, 2015 - 09:33pm PT
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but the addition of freeways and a Chinese enterprise zone hasn't improved anything ...
Which really doesn't say anything negative about Boise, because there are only two types of cities in North America: Those, like Boise, where that has happened; and those where it is about to happen.
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Clarke Brogger
Mountain climber
Laguna Beach, Ca
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 14, 2015 - 01:04am PT
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Thanks all!
I'm gathering that its def not a core climber town by any means but that theres decent access to some stuff. Sound right?
Struggles... what are The Fins?
Thanks again everyone.
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Gerg
Trad climber
Calgary
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Aug 14, 2015 - 08:15am PT
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Clarke,
I have spend little time there as a tourist, but to me it seemed like a rather nice town Boise, some nice areas.
As for climbing, my only experience around there is Swan Falls(very cool want to go back) bouldering and Reynolds Creek bouldering.
City of the Rocks/Castle is not that far of a drive(to a Canadian) and has a loads of stuff.
Your also in distance of loads of "nearby" areas like Dierkes, Pocatello, Tetons and dont forget the endless rock in Montana.
have fun
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Captain...or Skully
climber
Boise, ID
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Aug 14, 2015 - 08:49am PT
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Fins is another place altogether...unrelated distraction.
Give me a call if you like and we'll climb.
Kirk. ..208-4zero7-61foureight
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Escopeta
Trad climber
Idaho
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Oct 24, 2016 - 12:17pm PT
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Winters are awful, summers are full of bugs and neo-nazis are running around like free range chicken. Its life or death for hipsters here.
Stay in Cali
braj
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Cragar
climber
MSLA - MT
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Oct 24, 2016 - 02:18pm PT
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Never really sure what this is supposed to mean...
You can rep[lace Cali with just about every other state in our union. The gist is outa staters moving in and doing any number of things...
*upscaling and needing to have what they left
*rude elitist LOUD 'tudes
*the Ich-moi syndrome
*etc
The above combined with not respecting a place for the place that it is and needing to change it to meet their needs ruins all.
This is usually b/c these folks need to speed stuff up and what is the worst IMHO opinion...put us on the map!! I live in a cool area code!! etc.
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chill
climber
The fat part of the bell-curve
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Oct 24, 2016 - 03:36pm PT
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I lived there for > 10 years, the Black Cliffs are actually a very nice climbing area, with a lot of quality routes in the 5.9 - 5.11 range, and a couple of 12's. The quality is less good below 5.9. I also knew Scully (from Cade's garage), although I'm sure he doesn't remember me.
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Fritz
Social climber
Choss Creek, ID
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Oct 24, 2016 - 08:04pm PT
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Cragar! Re your remark:
This is usually b/c these folks need to speed stuff up and what is the worst IMHO opinion...put us on the map!! I live in a cool area code!! etc.
Yes!
(I must confess, when Heidi & I were traveling as outdoor sales reps, we always considered Missoula the "most-hip" city in the Northern Rockies. It was always fun to visit.)
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Majid_S
Mountain climber
Karkoekstan
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Oct 24, 2016 - 10:10pm PT
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Lord Jesus, repeat after me, "LORD JESUS"
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