York Butte Trail #1140

This trail is in the Kalmiopsis Wilderness and provides spectacular views into the Wilderness. York Butte Botanical area lies between the Butte and and the Illinois River. York Butte was possibly named for Henry York who came to Josephine County in 1852-53. He prospected for nine years and was in the Indian Wars of 1856. In 1862 he settled on the Applegate.

Although Forest Service trail crews have been repairing and maintaining many of the affected trails following wildfires of 2002, 2017 and 2018, visitors should take into consideration (because of the substantially increased risk of fire-killed snags falling) that travel and camping may be more difficult and require greater concern for safety.

Current Conditions

Visitors to the Kalmiopsis Wilderness should be advised that trail conditions may vary, depending on the level of maintenance performed in the years after the Biscuit (2002), Chetco Bar (2017) and Klondike (2018) Fires. Due to the scales of these fires, and the rugged and remote conditions in the Kalmiopsis, trail work, while ongoing, has not been performed on all the trails within the fire perimeters. Visitors may find downed trees across the trails, dense vegetation where shrubs have grown in after the fire, and unmarked trail junctions in some places. Please check with the Gold Beach or Wild Rivers Ranger Districts before your visit for trail conditions. Additionally, you can visit the Siskiyou Mountain Club's page, a local group who performs much of the trail maintenance in wilderness areas.