Horsethief Butte
Horsethief Butte is a bouldering crag in Washington with 1 route.
Photo: Daniel Parks from Berkeley, United States, CC BY 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)- 1 route
- V3
- Bouldering
Is Horsethief Butte open right now?
Alert in the area
The Forest Service lists an alert for Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.
Eagle Creek Fire Area Closure - CRGNSA and Mt. Hood
Agency alert covering Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area · Order 06-22-01-26-04 · USFS · Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
As of · Source: USFS · Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Best time to visit Horsethief Butte
Best months: March–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.
Jan
42° / 31°
14 wet
Feb
48° / 32°
11 wet
Mar
57° / 36°
11 wet
Apr
64° / 42°
8 wet
May
73° / 49°
6 wet
Jun
79° / 55°
4 wet
Jul
88° / 61°
2 wet
Aug
88° / 60°
2 wet
Sep
80° / 52°
3 wet
Oct
65° / 43°
8 wet
Nov
50° / 35°
13 wet
Dec
41° / 31°
14 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at The Dalles Muni Ap, WA, 3.9 mi away at 235 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Horsethief Butte is a bouldering area in Washington's Columbia Hills State Park, within the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. The land is managed by State Park and Recreation, and the butte sits among several other climbing and hiking destinations, including the Main Corridor and The Amphitheater, both about 0.1 mile away, and the Horsethief Butte Trail, also about 0.1 mile off. The climbing here is bouldering, and the one listed route is Thin Face, a V3 boulder problem. That makes the area a compact stop for climbers looking for a single boulder objective close to the trail. For timing, late spring and early fall are the most comfortable seasons. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in The Dalles show May highs around 73°F and September highs around 80°F, with only a few wet days in each month. Summer runs hotter, with July and August highs near 88°F, and winter brings highs in the low 40s and about 14 wet days a month. The Horsethief Butte Trail and the Eightmile Alternate Trail are the closest hikes, and the Vista Loop Trail and Klickitat Trail lie within a few miles.
Routes (1)
Poison Oak Corridor(1)
Keep exploring — more climbs worth the drive
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