Black Butte has a lot going for it. At 10,542, it is the highest peak of the Gravelly Mountains, a lofty if not too intimidating range sitting west of the Madison Valley, and across from the mighty Madison Range, Montana’s second highest. Further west is the Ruby River Valley and the Snowcrest Range, a group of mountains and summits as compact as the Gravellys are spread out. And while most of the Gravelly Range is composed of gentle broad, prairied ridges and wooded canyons, Black Butte juts out abruptly, rudely even, from this landscape to proudly assert itself as the monarch of the range. To put it plainly, Black Butte is just a ridiculously good looking peak.