Washington · Rock climbing · Oroville

Big Butte

Big Butte in Washington has 4 climbing routes with sport and trad options.

4 routes
5.8 – 5.9
Sport · Trad

Is Big Butte open right now?

Closure in the area

There's a closure order in Tonasket Ranger District. It doesn't name Big Butte, so check the source for the area it covers.

  • Sinlahekin Fire Closure Terminated on Tonasket Ranger District

    Agency closure covering Tonasket Ranger District · Order 06-21-09-26-15 · USFS · Tonasket Ranger District

  • Colville National Forest Terminates Fire Public Use Restrictions

    Agency alert covering Colville National Forest · Order 06-21-00-26-14 · USFS · Colville National Forest

As of · Source: USFS · Tonasket Ranger District. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Big Butte

Best months: April–June and September–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

  1. Jan

    34° / 23°

  2. Feb

    42° / 26°

  3. Mar

    54° / 31°

  4. Apr

    64° / 37°

  5. May

    74° / 44°

  6. Jun

    79° / 50°

  7. Jul

    88° / 55°

  8. Aug

    87° / 54°

  9. Sep

    77° / 46°

  10. Oct

    61° / 37°

  11. Nov

    44° / 29°

  12. Dec

    34° / 24°

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Tonasket 4 Nne, WA, 6.7 mi away at 960 ft. The station sits about 600 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

Big Butte is a climbing area in the Tonasket Ranger District of Colville National Forest in north-central Washington, managed by the Forest Service. It sits within a cluster of climbing faces, with the South Face and West Face each about 0.1 mile away and the West Wall about 0.2 mile off. The area is best approached as a group of interconnected crags rather than a single route. The climbing here is a mix of sport and trad, with four routes in total. Two are sport routes, ECHO at 5.8 and What... at 5.9, and two are trad, East of Echo and Say What?, both at 5.9. The grades are all within a narrow range, so climbers can expect a similar level of challenge across the faces. For timing, late spring and early fall are the most comfortable. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Tonasket show May highs around 74°F and September highs around 77°F, while July and August average in the upper 80s. That station sits about 600 feet lower than the crags, so temperatures on the rock run cooler. Nearby, the Whistler Canyon Trail is about 2 miles away. Tonasket Creek, the Similkameen River and Spectacle Lake are all within about 7.5 miles.

Routes (4)

Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive

West FacePhoto: Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region, Public Domain Mark (via Flickr)

West Face

~3 min drive

West Face in Washington has 4 sport climbing routes at 4 difficulty grades.

South SidePhoto: Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region, Public Domain Mark (via Flickr)

South Side

~4 min drive

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West SidePhoto: Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region, Public Domain Mark (via Flickr)

West Side

~4 min drive

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East SidePhoto: BLM Oregon & Washington, Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)

East Side

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Little West CanyonPhoto: BLM Oregon & Washington, Public domain (via Wikimedia Commons)

Little West Canyon

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Upper East Canyon

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