Elephant Butte Hike

Ready for another hump day adventure?  This time we are going further afield to explore an Owyhee Front rhyolite butte.  The hike is short, about a mile round-trip, but there is no trail. The terrain is mostly flat, but climbs steeply on the final push up to the top of the butte. We recommend trekking poles.

Elephant Butte has two summits. One involves a reasonably easy scramble to the top, suitable for the whole group. The other, the true summit, requires about 15' of rock climbing. We will assist the more adventurous among us to the true summit, if they bring a climbing harness.

We will meet at the IOA Hall and caravan to our location. The drive will take about an hour (depending on traffic flow).  Another option is to just meet us at Elephant Butte, where the rest of us should arrive at about 6:45-7:00.

To reach the butte, take Hwy 55 (exit #33A on I-84) to Marsing. Proceed through Marsing to a left turn onto Hwy 95. Travel 5.5 miles on Hwy 95 to a left turn onto Sommercamp Road (probably unsigned). Follow Sommercamp for roughly a mile to an unmarked pullout at the road's highpoint. The pullout is on the right side of the road, just before the road descends to Squaw Creek. Elephant Butte is the prominent feature to the right of the road.

See you there.