Borah Peak

Borah Peak, at 12,662 feet (3,859 m), is the highest point in Idaho and rises from the Lost River Range, one of the most remote mountain chains in the contiguous United States. The peak is named for William Borah, Idaho's long-serving U.S. senator and a staunch isolationist voice in early 20th-century foreign policy. Its geology sets it apart: a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the region on October 28, 1983, lifting the summit by more than two meters overnight — a measurable and permanent change that rendered earlier maps instantly obsolete. The standard ascent route crosses Chicken-Out-Ridge, an exposed scramble requiring sure footing and a head for heights. Summit views stretch across Idaho's austere high-desert plateaus in near-total wilderness silence.