McClellan Butte — Monday, Jul. 7, 2025

I started from the parking lot near I-90 so I had to do the extra mileage. If you do start at Garcia and road though, you can skip almost 4 miles but not very much elevation gain. The main reason I parked at the lower area is because Garcia road has a lot of potholes and is unpaved. There are bathrooms at the trailhead too.

I started the ascent at 8:00 am. If you choose to hike from the bottom, you will come a cross a small dirt road. Turn right at the dirt road and don’t go straight like I did. After almost a mile of hiking on the dirt road, the road becomes a trail and heads left. You will cross Garcia Road and go straight.

The hike gets a little steeper from here and you will start to find avalanche shoots than have a tiny amount of snow (not on the trail but beside it). The trail also gets very overgrown with flowers near the end. You will eventually reach a flat section right before the top.

The views before the scramble are amazing but the views from the true summit are even better. Please only attempt the scramble if you have done a class 3 before and are comfortable with deadly exposure. Stay to the left of the scramble for the best holds. The views at the summit are breathtaking but bugs will quickly swarm you if you stand still.

In the end, bring bug spray, poles, and a downloaded map. Don’t bring a dog unless you don’t do the scramble because the scramble is too technical for our furry friends. Good luck!

Final stats:
11.5 miles (bc I missed the turn at the start) and 4,300 vertical feet.