Elevation: 5,270 ft
Prominence: 55
This butte is not in the book. Published October 2025
Pigtail Butte is located west of Cedar Creek and southwest of Emery Butte in a remote area of the Snake River Plain. It is most easily reached via well-maintained 17-Mile Road to its west. USGS Roseworth
Pigtail Butte and its southwest face as viewed from the road (start of climb). Livingston Douglas Photo
Access
From Buhl, Idaho, follow US-30 south as it weaves its way to become 3700N. Head west on 3700N/Balanced Rock Road to a signed junction with 700E. Turn left/south onto well-maintained county road 700E and follow it for 4.0 miles to a signed junction with paved 2500N. Go right/west onto 2500N and drive 0.7 miles to a signed “T” junction with 600E. Reset your odometer here. Drive 5.7 miles south then southwest on 600E (which quickly becomes unsigned 17-Mile Road) and park on a shoulder crossing along the wide gravel road. This spot is at 5,143 feet and 42°16’55”N and 114°57’34.4”W]. Old Junction 5145 (shown on maps) is nearby.
Map Errors
Numerous roads that are shown on the USGS topo map no longer exist (e.g., Pigtail Butte Road). House Creek Road is actually 17-Mile Road (a paved, then smooth gravel, county road). Roseworth Road does not connect to 17-Mile Road as the USGS topo map indicates.
Southwest Face, Class 2
The Climb
From 17-Mile Road, cross a cattle fence near the road then follow a cattle trail north along it to quickly reach the old 2-track road (shown on maps, but not visible from 17-Mile Road anymore). Hike southeast on this overgrown, weak 2-track for 1.6 miles to a 3rd road junction—a merger with a good 2-track coming in from the right/west and now heading southeast. Leave the road at this junction and bushwhack northeast through thick-ish sagebrush (with gaps but still requiring weaving) to reach the bare summit area of Pigtail Butte. There is no summit cairn nor any rocks with which to build one. The high point seems to be in a fairly flattish summit area that has some open areas and some sagebrush areas.
The open summit of Pigtail Butte. Livingston Douglas Photo
Additional Resources