McClellan Butte — Saturday, Jul. 5, 2025

Parked at the upper crossing on Garcia Rd— lots of potholes but navigable, not a problem at all in my Crosstrek (~8” ground clearance). If you’re in a lower car, use the pullout before the trail crossing, as there’s a rugged washout just beyond; otherwise, park at the generous pullout past the crossing.

Wonderfully well-built trail— relentlessly UP but strikes a good balance between steady gain vs. steep gain. I forgot my poles at home, which slowed me tremendously since I was pack training; I couldn’t carry a full weight and it took me a full six hours of hiking and climbing to get up and down. Don’t be like me, make sure your poles come with you! Could have been 4-5hrs with full weight…

Snow has receded to the point where it’s no longer really ON the trail at all, just adjacent to the trail. I took a total of six steps on snow/mud mix (yes, I counted) and I could have easily avoided it if I weren’t lazy.

Tons of wildflowers on the back leg of the butte… I mean TONS. Don’t worry, the bees don’t care about you, they’re all drunk on nectar.

Mountain blueberry/huckleberry starting to ripen, especially lower on the trail. Ripe salmonberries starting out; thimbleberries will be ripe in the next few weeks.

The scramble near the top was great for a first Class 3 experience. Wear good shoes for scrambling— close fitting trail runners, barefoot runners, approach shoes are solid. It was not physically challenging at all for someone who can make the hike to the scramble, almost no upper body work required at all except for stability. But doing it alone will get your adrenaline pumping even if you aren’t fretted about heights!

Downhill on the scramble was fine… just sit, walk forward, sit again, walk forward again, repeat until you reach the bottom. Easy peasy.

The summit register is FULLLLL. I crammed my name in at a corner. It’s been going since 2023, might be time for a new one. You can find the canister between two rocks near the triple anchors.

Overall a great hike and a fun scramble… I’ll probably do it again in the fall!