Piute Butte

Granite Boulders on the way up to the wonderful sounding Piute Butte.

20 APRIL 2025 W6/ND-340

Two Stars – a nice summit. I’d do it again. Recommended.

Elevation:	3,176′
Route:	Cross country
Hike Distance:	1.25 miles round trip
Elevation Gain:	450′
Navigation:	Easy
Steepness:	Moderate
Vehicle:	Passenger car
Road:	Paved road
Cell Coverage:	Good Verizon

Hike basics

Piute Butte. I love just saying that! What a surprise the Antelope Valley State Indian Museum turned out to be! Initially I thought we would approach this summit from the west. The obvious dirt road off 150th Street East had a mailbox and looked like a private drive. So we swung back around the south side and went into a location that I have been curious about for quite a while. We wandered around off to the west and found a route easily to the summit.

Here is our track up and down from Piute Butte

Piute Butte is a fine rocky summit with large granite boulders. Mark showed me one huge boulder that was ripe for trundling. We restrained ourselves.

Some nice contacts were made including the first ever of Weever’s Needle in Arizona. At very least this is a 4th class summit.

On the way down we visited the museum. The structure was built in 1929 by Howard Arden Edwards. It is a fantastical structure built into the granite. Edwards was a collector of indian artifacts typical of his era – indiscriminate in his technique. Many of the most interesting (to me) displays of artifacts are covered out of respect for their ceremonial nature to the Tongva and Chumash. I think the museum is doing the right thing, but is it sad. This shouldn’t overshadow the fact that this is a totally hidden spot that is well worth visiting.