Saddleback Butte is a prominent landmark in the desert east of Lancaster, its twin summits and namesake saddle recognizable from viewpoints throughout the Antelope Valley. We had first talked about hiking to the 3,651′ summit last spring when the area’s wildflowers were on full display, but other things took precedence and, before we knew it, summer weather was upon us and desert hiking became genuinely unappealing. With a long weekend at hand and desert forecasts in the 60s, we decided to make the 35-minute drive down from Wrightwood and check the place out. Saddleback Butte itself is the centerpiece of the state park that shares its name, and the park boasts a campground on its western edge as well as a small visitor center and picnic area in its northwest corner. Trails to the summit start from both locations, but we weren’t sure that day use parking was allowed at the campground and chose to hike from the picnic area, making the round trip about two miles longer. We paid the $6 day use fee and started out about 10:30am, first southward on a paved nature trail, then east on a sandy path lined at first with rocks. We had met with some rain on the road the previous evening, but if the park saw any of that, it did nothing to firm up the trail surface – the entire walk up to the saddle would be a continuous battle with the sand, at times so loose that it felt like walking on the beach. For the first mile-and-a-half, the trail gently gains elevation, heading due east to a low rocky hill called Little Butte before bending south to join the trail running eastward from the campground. Little Butte was unimpressive as a destination, although it did offer improved views over the desert to the south and west. Upon meeting the campground trail, we turned east again and began climbing more steeply as we neared the butte – the grade became steeper yet as we turned southeast up a broad gully leading to the saddle, use-trail shortcuts visible above us that are now fenced off. The grade eased considerably as we neared the saddle, but the moderate breeze that had followed us up the hill became  a very stiff wind, the likes of which we had not experienced since our time on Maui last year. The views from the saddle were awesome, as expected – the hazy sky had cleared somewhat, revealing the rugged silhouette of the San Gabriels to the south and the more obscure outline of the San Bernardinos to the southeast. Passing another fence indicating the south summit as off-limits, we turned north, happy to leave the sand behind as we picked our way up the rocky slope. The grade steepened again but was not nearly as troublesome, the footing firm as we made our way up past a false summit to the top. We quickly found the benchmark placed in 1929 but could not locate the expected register – that seems to be a pattern these days. Despite a little remaining haziness, the views were beautiful in all directions, and after a few minutes admiring them, we scrambled a short distance down the lee side of the summit and ate some snacks before beginning the hike back. Our return was uneventful – other than a handful of birds, a large stinkbug crossing the trail was the only wildlife we encountered. It’s possible that our $6 was the only revenue the park collected this day, as ours was still the only car at the picnic area and we saw no one on the trail. At exactly 5 miles with nearly 1,000′ of elevation gain, this was a nice hike with very rewarding views, ones that most certainly will be spectacular in the spring with snowy mountains and colorful flora to offer in addition – we’ll be back.