Bend is known not only for its stunning Cascade Mountains, but also for the beautiful buttes scattered across the Central Oregon landscape. This year, Cascade Relays encourages families and adventure enthusiasts to come to the fourth annual Big Butte Challenge. The event offers a unique opportunity to explore 10 scenic buttes and breweries at your own pace using custom maps along the way.
“This is our love letter to Bend from the Cascade Relays company,” said Kailey-Jean Clark, the director of operations and partnerships at Cascade Relays. “This challenge is an opportunity to encourage people to explore their own backyard and celebrate nature.”
The Big Butte Challenge started Memorial Day Weekend and runs through Oct. 1. Participants who are up for the challenge can summit these buttes for the best views of the summer, along with enjoying a delicious pint from a local brewery as their reward. To complete the challenge, attendees must submit a summit submission on the Cascade Relays website after conquering each butte to track their progress. Selfies while taking in the butte-iful views are encouraged for a chance to win prizes.
To build excitement, Cascade Relays is throwing a Big Butte Challenge launch party at Immersion Brewing on July 31, the Butte Debut kick-off celebration. Registered participants can collect a swag bag, enjoy live music, win prizes and toast to fellow adventures with a complimentary pint.
For those curious about the Big Butte Challenge, but unable to commit to summiting all 10 buttes, a two-butte challenge features a pair of buttes to explore and two pints of beer for completing the challenge.
Here’s a list of the 10 Buttes and brews included in this year’s challenge:
- Barnes Butte (1.36 Miles) – Wild Ride Brewing
- Bessie Butte (0.64 Miles) – Van Henion Brewing
- Black Butte (1.90 Miles) – Deschutes Brewery
- Smith Rock (3.32 Miles) – Kobold
- Overturf Butte (2.79 Miles) – GoodLife Brewing
- Paulina Peak (3.06 Miles) – Bend Brewing Company
- Pilot Butte (1.03 Miles) – Worthy Brewing
- Tumalo Mountain (4.04 Miles) – Cascade Lakes Brewing
- Vista Butte (2.15 Miles) – Immersion Brewing
- Tam-a-lau (3.3 Miles) – Initiative Brewing
Registration is open at the Cascade Relays website. The cost is $65 for all 10 buttes, $20 for youth, $20 for a single Butte and $40 for the Bonus Butte Challenge. Prizes will be awarded to the first to summit all buttes, best photos and more.
This article appears in Source Weekly August 1, 2024.
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