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Owners Of Sutter Buttes Offering Public Tours

SUTTER COUNTY (CBS13) - The beauty of the Sutter Buttes is often seen from afar, but few get to see them up close because it's private property. But over the next few weeks, the public has the chance to tour what's often referred to as the world's smallest mountain range.

Bird watching is one of the many reasons Spencer Morrison likes being a hiking guide for the Sutter Buttes.

"While we are out here all day, we are going to stop every few hundred feet and point out something meaningful," said Spencer Morrison, Sutter Buttes hiking guide.

They call it an interpretive hike -- showing the beauty of the buttes while also giving a little bit of a history lesson.

"We even have evidence of the earliest visitors, even going back maybe 10,000 years," said Morrison.

And none of this would be possible without several property owners allowing people on their family land. Margit Sands' is one of the owners. Her property has been passed down in her family for decades. Since the 1970s her parents let people hike on the buttes "to share the beauty that's up here," she said.

Schools frequently visit here to hike the buttes.

"It's geared to the standards they are teaching in the classroom so that makes it worth it to come out," said Sands.

It's usually third and fourth grade classes who visit. It's a learning experience Sands says they'll never forget.

"You had your hands on something doing it you remembered it, which the kids do," she said.

Kids aren't the only ones who remember. A lot of people come year after year to hike the buttes. And even though they look high, the buttes have something to offer hikers of every skill level.

"We have a rating system to help people from one boot to five boots, one boot being the easiest," said Morrison.

Whether it's hiking all the way to the top of a peak or down with the flowers, the beauty is still breathtaking.

A cost of the hikes average about $35 per person. May 10 is the last day the public can take part in the hikes.

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