Castle Peak, at 11815 feet (3,601.2 m) high is the highest peak in the White Cloud Mountains

White Cloud Mountains

The White Cloud Mountains are part of the Rocky Mountainsof the western United States,located in central Idaho, southeast of Stanley in Custer County. The range is located within the Sawtooth National Recreation Area and the area that is the proposed "White Cloud - Boulder Wilderness Area." The...

 of Idaho

Idaho

Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

. Castle Peak is the 25th highest peak in Idaho, and the 9th most prominent peak in the state.
Castle Peak is located within the Sawtooth National Recreation Area

Sawtooth National Recreation Area

The Sawtooth National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area located in central Idaho, within the Boise, Challis, and Sawtooth National Forests. The recreation area is managed by the U.S. Forest Service and includes the Sawtooth Wilderness...

 in Custer County

Custer County, Idaho

Custer County is a rural mountain county located in the center of the U.S. state of Idaho. Established in 1881, it was named for the General Custer Mine, where gold was discovered five years earlier . The population was 4,342 at the 2000 census; it is estimated to have fallen to 4,166 by 2007...

. The towns of Stanley, Idaho

Stanley, Idaho

Stanley is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 100 at the 2000 census. The center of population of Idaho is located in Stanley.-Geography:...

 and Challis, Idaho

Challis, Idaho

Challis is a city in Custer County, Idaho, United States. The population was 909 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Custer County.-History:...

 are both about 21 miles (33.8 km) from Castle Peak, Ketchum, Idaho

Ketchum, Idaho

Ketchum is a city in Blaine County, Idaho, United States, in the central part of the state. The population was 3,003 at the 2000 census. It is in the Wood River Valley, adjacent to Sun Valley; the two communities share many resources and both sit in the same valley beneath Bald Mountain, with its...

 is about 27 miles (43.5 km) from the peak. Castle Peak is located in the largest roadless area in the lower 48 states that is not a designated Wilderness Area. There has been a proposal to create a White Clouds-Boulder Wilderness Area that would encompass Castle Peak.

Castle Peak is managed by the United States Forest Service

United States Forest Service

The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...

 and the area surrounding the peak can be easily accessed. Camping is permitted anywhere is Sawtooth National Forest

Sawtooth National Forest

Sawtooth National Forest is in Idaho and Utah was protected in 1905 by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt as the Sawtooth Forest Reserve. Today the forest administers over 2.1 million acres of some of the most remote forestland in the lower 48 states, and there are over 1,000 lakes and 3,000...

and the lakes surrounding Castle Peak provide excellent places to stay. There are trails from parking area to the vicinity of Castle Peak, although no trails go up the peak itself. The easiest route up Castle Peak is as class 3 scramble from the Camberlain Basin.