Idaho · Rock climbing · Bonners Ferry

Ball Creek Wall

Ball Creek Wall in Idaho has 11 climbing routes with 7 difficulty grades, offering mixed, sport, and trad styles.

11 routes
5.6 – 5.12
Sport · Trad · Mixed

Is Ball Creek Wall open right now?

Closure in the area

There's a closure order in Idaho Panhandle National Forests. It doesn't name Ball Creek Wall, so check the source for the area it covers (3 listed).

As of · Source: USFS · Idaho Panhandle National Forests. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Ball Creek Wall

Best months: May–September. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

  1. Jan

    29° / 14°

    14 wet

  2. Feb

    36° / 14°

    11 wet

  3. Mar

    44° / 22°

    13 wet

  4. Apr

    54° / 27°

    11 wet

  5. May

    65° / 35°

    11 wet

  6. Jun

    71° / 41°

    11 wet

  7. Jul

    81° / 43°

    7 wet

  8. Aug

    81° / 42°

    6 wet

  9. Sep

    70° / 35°

    7 wet

  10. Oct

    53° / 28°

    11 wet

  11. Nov

    36° / 21°

    13 wet

  12. Dec

    27° / 15°

    14 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Yaak 9nne, MT, 40.7 mi away at 3,085 ft. The station sits about 700 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Ball Creek Wall is a climbing area in the Bonners Ferry Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forests, managed by the Forest Service in northern Idaho. It sits among the trails and peaks around the Russell Peak area, with the Bonners Ferry Ranger District's own boundaries putting it firmly in the Forest Service's care. The climbing at Ball Creek Wall offers a mix of styles, with 11 routes recorded. Seven are sport climbs and three are trad, and the YDS grades run from 5.6 to 5.12. A few of the named routes are worth highlighting: "Play Ball," a mixed climb graded 5.6, "Fall Ball," a sport route at 5.10, and "Un-ball-ievable," a trad route of the same grade. "Monkey Balls" is the hardest at 5.12. Summer is the most comfortable time to climb. A nearby weather station records typical July and August highs around 81°F with lows in the low 40s, while winter highs stay in the 20s. Russell Peak and Russell Peak Lookout are both within about 2.3 miles, and the Lower Kootenai River Area offers river fishing about 5 miles away. For more climbing, Myrtle 2, also known as "Turtle Arches," is roughly 9 miles off.

Routes (11)