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I first heard about White Bird Hill from a gal that traveled up the Old Hwy 95 (bottom photo) back in the early 70s when enroute to the national O-Mok-See in Lewiston, ID. Needless to say, she would have appreciated this new grade that was established a few years later.
White Bird Hill Summit is a mountain pass in the northwest United States, located in north central Idaho on U.S. Highway 95. In Idaho County, it is midway between White Bird and Grangeville. The summit elevation of the highway is 4,245 feet above sea level, through a substantial cut.
Nearing the summit of the climb from the south, about to enter the road cut at the top.
The modern multi-lane highway was completed 47 years ago, following ten years of construction which concluded with the opening of the bridge at the base over White Bird Creek in June 1975. The treeless northbound grade climbs 2,700 vertical feet in seven miles, an average gradient of over 7%.
The contract for the original road, 22 miles from the mouth of White Bird Creek at the Salmon River to Grangeville, was awarded in late 1918. Completed in 1921 and first paved in 1938, it rose slightly higher to 4,429 feet, due to the absence of a summit cut. Located to the east, the old road was twice the length and had a multitude of switchbacks ascending a treeless slope. On the present highway, the descent north of the summit is less dramatic as the grade drops less than 850 feet in the forest with few curves onto the Camas Prairie towards Grangeville at 3,400 feet
White Bird Hill Summit is a mountain pass in the northwest United States, located in north central Idaho on U.S. Highway 95. In Idaho County, it is midway between White Bird and Grangeville. The summit elevation of the highway is 4,245 feet above sea level, through a substantial cut.
Nearing the summit of the climb from the south, about to enter the road cut at the top.
The modern multi-lane highway was completed 47 years ago, following ten years of construction which concluded with the opening of the bridge at the base over White Bird Creek in June 1975. The treeless northbound grade climbs 2,700 vertical feet in seven miles, an average gradient of over 7%.
The contract for the original road, 22 miles from the mouth of White Bird Creek at the Salmon River to Grangeville, was awarded in late 1918. Completed in 1921 and first paved in 1938, it rose slightly higher to 4,429 feet, due to the absence of a summit cut. Located to the east, the old road was twice the length and had a multitude of switchbacks ascending a treeless slope. On the present highway, the descent north of the summit is less dramatic as the grade drops less than 850 feet in the forest with few curves onto the Camas Prairie towards Grangeville at 3,400 feet
Jun 06 2022