Saddleback Butte State Park: Little Butte Loop (Blog Hike #992)

Trails: Little Butte, Saddleback Butte Peak, and Dowen Nature Trails
Hike Location: Saddleback Butte State Park
Geographic Location: east of Lancaster, CA (34.68894, -117.82352)
Length: 4 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: February 2024
Overview: A loop hike to the summit of Little Butte.
Park Information: https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=618
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=955965
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming March 21, 2025)

Directions to the trailhead: From downtown Lancaster, take Avenue J east 18 miles to the entrance for Saddleback Butte State Park's day-use area on the right.  Turn right to enter the park, pay the entrance fee, and park near the signed trailhead for the Dowen Nature Trail on the south side of the Saddleback Butte Picnic Area.

The hike: Anchoring the southwest corner of western North America's vast Great Basin, the Antelope Valley comprises 2200 square miles bounded by the San Gabriel Mountains to the south, the Sierra Paloma Mountains to the west, the Tehachapi Mountains to the northwest, and the Mojave Desert to the east.  The high valley gets its name from the large number of pronghorns that used to roam this area.  Unfortunately, few pronghorn live in Antelope Valley today: most of them got killed by hunters, died of starvation, or moved to the Central Valley in the 1880's.

            Rising to an elevation of 3651 feet, Saddleback Butte stands prominently over the east end of the Antelope Valley.  Interestingly, the 2955 acre Saddleback Butte State Park was established in 1960 not to protect its namesake butte but to protect the Joshua Tree desert habitat around the butte's base.  The lightly developed park offers only a primitive campground, some picnic areas, and several hiking trails.

            The park's most famous trail leads to the Saddleback Butte's summit, which offers commanding views of the surrounding desert and of the San Gabriel Mountains to the south.  I came here on a chilly morning in mid-February with a long afternoon drive ahead of me, so I did not have time to make the steep, difficult climb to the butte's summit.  Thus, as a consolation prize I chose to do a loop hike that features Little Butte, a prominent sub-peak of Saddleback Butte that features excellent desert scenery.

Trailhead at picnic area

            From the signed trailhead in the picnic area, head south on the concrete ADA-accessible Dowen Nature Trail.  In only a couple hundred feet, you reach a trail intersection.  Turn left to leave the concrete and begin the Little Butte Trail.  Lined with small boulders on either side, the Little Butte Trail heads east with Saddleback Butte visible in the distance.

Starting the Little Butte Trail, Saddleback Butte in distance

            At 0.1 miles, you reach the gravel park road that connects the park's day-use area and campground.  We will eventually return on the road going right, but for now continue straight to remain on the Little Butte Trail, thus going clockwise around this loop.  The trail dips to cross a small wash before beginning a gradual climb.  The desert scenery here includes some impressive Joshua Trees, and I saw some coyote tracks in the soft dirt under my feet.

Joshua Trees

            1 mile into the hike, a short moderate climb brings you to the summit of Little Butte.  Little Butte is a rocky point that stands several feet above its immediate surroundings, so even though Saddleback Butte towers over you to the east, the views from Little Butte are quite good.  The seemingly flat desert floor extends for many miles to the mountains, which were snow-dusted on my visit.  I enjoyed the views from Little Butte, and it makes a nice consolation prize for hikers unable to climb the larger Saddleback Butte.

View west from Little Butte

View south from Little Butte

            Past Little Butte, the Little Butte Trail curves south and continues its gradual climb.  At 1.5 miles, you reach the upper end of the Little Butte Trail at its intersection with the Saddleback Butte Peak Trail.  The trail going left is the one that leads to the summit of Saddleback Butte, but this hike turns right to continue our loop and head for the park's campground.

Hiking toward the campground

            Going this direction the Saddleback Butte Peak Trail is a wide, easy, downhill glide with all of Antelope Valley extending before you.  At 2.5 miles, you reach the park's campground.  Angle right to walk through the campground.  Only 1 campsite was occupied when I came here, and the numerous picnic tables make nice places to sit and rest before beginning the final leg of the hike.

Resting at the campground, Saddleback Butte in the background

            Exit the campground to the north on the gated gravel road that connects the campground and day-use area.  The gravel road is a gradual climb that is as easy as it is uneventful.  At 3.3 miles, you return to the Little Butte Trail and close the loop.  Turn left to return to the Dowen Nature Trail, or continue straight to follow the road back to the picnic area.

Antelope Valley Indian Museum State Historic Park

            To add a little more distance, you can hike the rest of the Dowen Nature Trail, which is a fairly flat loop past nice Joshua Trees and good interpretive signs.  Also, while you are in the area, be sure to stop at the nearby Antelope Valley Indian Museum State Historic Park, which offers free admission if you produce an entrance permit from this park dated the same day.  The museum occupies an interesting building with many exhibits from ancient local cultures, and it also has a 0.3 mile nature trail with good interpretive signs.