Mount Jerusalem, Bitterroot

Matt signing the summit register on Mount Jerusalem.

At work a week or so back, Matt Roscoe, who works in the Math Department with me, asked if I wanted to get out for a big day in the Bitterroot. Needless to say, the answer was, "Yes!" A couple of peaks that are on my list, and that I suggested we climb, are Mount Jerusalem and Peak 9169, or Mount Jerusalem North. The trail head is Watchtower Creek, which is quite a ways up the West Fork of the Bitterroot. We walked up the creek, first on trail, and then off-trail, to just below the saddle between Jerusalem and North Jerusalem. Then we hiked straight up to the saddle, bagged North Jerusalem, and then walked the beautiful ridge south to Jerusalem and continued on, following the ridge south to near the Wilderness boundary before dropping back into Watchtower Creek. The stats were 17 miles and 5300 feet of gain, but this was an especially physically demanding trip, with lots of off-trail walking through talus and boulder fields.

Heading up.

 

Looking south toward Jerusalem from the southern flank of North Jerusalem.

Jerusalem and Matt from the summit of North Jerusalem.

Ridge walking over to Jerusalem.

Navigating the crux along the ridge.

The summit of Jerusalem.