Kamiak Butte County Park is a very accessible park. The road to it is all paved. It is only about 12 miles north of Pullman, WA. The park has two parking areas, with hiking trails to the summit of the butte leading from each one. There is a large day use area at the first lot which has quite a few covered tables and uncovered ones as well as a covered group area just a few hundred yards up the trail. There is a lot of grassy area to play in as well as stations to get doggy bags for your dogs’ messes. There is a campground at the upper parking area, but unfortunately it was closed to camping when I went up there.

As mentioned above, there are quite a few trails available at Kamiak Butte. With the wide variety of trails, you can hike as little as .7 miles or as much as 4.3 miles. The signage is pretty good, and if you plan on visiting the summit, bring a snack and enjoy it at the picnic table up there before you begin your descent.
This weekend was the first time that I hiked out of the first parking area. The trail leads up to the ridge fairly quick and then continues uphill along the ridge. This trail seems to provide the most views of the palouse to both the north and south of the butte. At the summit, you have the option of traversing down the West End “Primitive” trail or continuing around the Pine Ridge Loop.
I would agree with their rating system, having finally summited the butte from all three uphill options. The caveat to the primitive trail is that it is quite flat at first and the difficulty comes from the fact that you do all the climbing in one short stretch rather than the whole trail being uphill the whole time. I think that the primitive trail offers the best views of Steptoe butte and the palouse to the north and east, tho, and it is my preferred trail.

The campgrounds are closed at the moment due to fire risk. There seemed to be 7 spots below the gate and one in the upper parking area. I could not find a ranger, so I could not ask if the one spot was available for use or not. There were maybe two spots that offered up some privacy, but the others seemed to be grouped in such a way that at least two spots at a time could be shared by groups of friends. All spots had at least one table and a nice fire pit with grill. There is running water for those dish washing and fire safety needs as well as a vault toilet.

I think that Kamiak Butte County Park is a great place for people of all ages and abilities. Small children can enjoy the playground at the day use area and the Sunset Trail, while adults of all ages can enjoy the rest of the area. For the trail joggers out there, I think that this trail is well maintained enough for running, and I have seen other people jogging the trail before. Occasionally I will even jog down the Backside trail to reach the upper parking area as it seems to be easier on my knees that way. As for wildlife, I have seen quite a few different birds and some chipmunks and squirrels, but nothing bigger than that. The area offers a fair bit of nature for everyone and I have not really ever seen the trails full, despite the number of cars that are normally in the lots. As a note, you need to leave the park before dusk as it is gated every evening. The days closing time is posted at the entrance to the park, just after the gate.

For more information, please go to: https://www.whitmancounty.org/facilities/facility/details/Kamiak-Butte-County-Park-1

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