A great day for a hike to the butte. The temperature was in the 50's when I started up and only got to 64 degrees during the hike. The views along trail on the ridge were spectacular of ever present Mount Baker, Mount Shuksan and the Sisters. Once at the top of the butte you could look to the north and see Railroad Grade, Park Butte and Loomis Mountain. To the east you look down on Baker Lake and Lake Shannon.

The meadows on the ridge are loaded with blueberries. It will be a couple weeks before they are ready but I tried a few that were more advanced and they sweet.

One bad note was that on the west side of the butte behind some trees someone had started a fire and it has gone underground in the duff and dead tree roots. I poured a liter of water on it but it didn't do anything to stop it burning since it has gone deeper into the ground. I reported at the ranger station in Sedro Woolley. They are sending some people up there to take care of it. It could be a dangerous task as the burning is just a few feet from cliff side of the butte.

FR-13 is the worst part of the drive-potholes and some wash boarding. FR-12 is in very good condition with few potholes. The trail is its usual slippery self with a combination of muddy clay on the lower portion but over all it's in good condition.

The road up to the trailhead is in great condition, passable by all vehicles. If you have a low clearance vehicle, just be wary of some minor potholes at the very beginning of forest road 12 (the left hand turn off of baker lake road), otherwise the road becomes better as you progress to the trailhead.

Unfortunately, Sunday August 11 was a completely socked in day, so absolutely no views were to be had. I will be returning, possibly to camp since it was such an easy hike with apparently awesome payoff. I would consider this an easy trail, very gradual. It took my wife, small dog and myself a hair over an hour in each direction and that was with frequent picture stops and moving at a generally pleasurable/leisurely pace. However as the description suggests poles were helpful since there are some slippery spots due to wet tree roots, rocks, mud, and the trail being slightly roughed up in certain spots.

Also, someone left a smoking fire at the peak (no flame). I had some water to spare, so I poured it on to make sure there weren’t still embers remaining and waited to make sure there were no apparent embers but it was still giving off smoke. The US Forest Service makes it abundantly clear that they want you to make sure that fires in this area are put out completely and are cool to the touch before you leave. So whoever you were, do better next time because it’s really not all that difficult to follow the rules. Situations like this are the reasons we can’t have nice things.

Dock Butte is a more strenuous option that junctions off the Blue Lake trail. A good hot Summer day is had by getting your sweat out on Dock Butte, and then dropping down to Blue Lake for a afternoon dip. The Butte has fantastic views in all directions, including the Sisters range, Baker, and Shuksan, as well as distant peaks.

NOT easy. But the views are worth it. Bring poles.

The weather was perfect, not overly warm but perfect to get a good workout going!  I tried Dock Butte last year but turned back due to the amount of snow.

Other than a couple muddy spots and the annoying black flies the trail was in good shape.  There are a few spots to exercise caution on the loose rocks as you descend.  It’s a very fun, enjoyable hike and the views just keep getting better as you near the top where the 360 views are spectacular.