There were more than 200 entries submitted for the 2025 Sutter Buttes Calendar photo contest, according to Babs Cotter, who is on the board for the Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust. The photos capture the essence of the small mountain range. Michael Hubbart, president of the Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust Board, said he lives on the north side of the Sutter Buttes – a place he has called home for about 45 years.
Describing what it’s like to live there, he said it is a secluded hideaway and overall, just a great place to be. “All of the magic and mystery of the Buttes is all around,” Hubbart said. “(It) can be ominous, because it isn’t usually welcoming and it’s very remote.
” The sunrises and sunsets are beautiful. And Hubbart even wrote a book that details the history of the landmark called “Images of America, The Sutter Buttes.” There are copies of the book available for purchase at the Sutter County Museum in Yuba City, where a temporary exhibit that celebrates and shares the work of photographers chosen for inclusion in the 2025 Sutter Buttes Calendar exists.
According to the Sutter County Museum, the annual Sutter Buttes Calendar is a fundraiser for the Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust. The Sutter Buttes Regional Land Trust works to protect and maintain the natural and agricultural resources of the Sutter Buttes and the surrounding region. On Friday, there was a reception for the exhibit where photographers mingled.
One photographer whose work won inclusion in the calendar, Samantha Cox, is only in seventh grade. According to her mom, Leanne Cox, she likes to take photos of their animals. They live in Loma Rica and have sheep, goats, chickens and cats.
They also have a dog and a snake. “I like her talent for it, but I don’t have the same talent as her,” Leanne Cox said. Leanne Cox explained that Samantha Cox is really good at landscape photos.
For the competition, though, it sounds like her capturing was an adventurous process. “We had procrastinated until like the day before we had to submit them,” Samantha Cox admitted. “So we were frantically driving around Sutter trying to find a photo of the Buttes.
Then I saw that tractor, and I’m like, let’s take a picture.” The photo pulls you forward. The tractor points toward the Buttes, and scattered clouds in the image seem to be zooming inward as well.
The tractor, Samantha Cox explained, is not the main focal point, but its presence is there. Outside of photography, Samantha Cox has other strengths. “(She) has a lot of talents and she’s very artistic.
And I’m very proud of her for all of her hard work,” Leanne Cox said. Samantha Cox recently performed in “Newsies” with Center Stage Productions, a youth musical theater company in the Yuba-Sutter area. According to her mom, she also loves painting and doing artwork and is super good at math.
Samantha Cox even plays the drums and wants to be an archeologist when she grows up. Another photographer whose work is represented in the calendar is Meghan Worrell, a Marysville resident who works for Caltrans. “Photography and being in nature are probably a lot of the reasons why I’m an actual functioning person,” Worrell said.
“I’m an avid backpacker and hiker, and I really enjoy being out in nature. I like to be able to disconnect.” Getting out in nature gives Worrell a chance to unplug.
Her included photo, “Spring Emerges,” was captured on an iPhone SE – the picture shows Brockman Canyon at the Sutter Buttes. Worrell said that she took the photo on her phone because she is a backup guide with Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes, and the phone is a bit easier than taking an actual camera. Middle Mountain Interpretive Hikes offers guided hikes through the Sutter Buttes.
There is compelling contrast in her photo; the sky is overcast and the image features a lush green. “I really like how the green shone underneath with the hues,” Worrell said. “It kind of gave me just a gloomy but mystical kind of vibe.
” The cover of the 2025 Sutter Buttes Calendar features a drone shot photo by Jeremy Vesely; it was shot right before sunset. Vesely lives in Paradise, and he said that his photo features almond trees. “It kind of weaves in, and it’s got the grass fields and the hills,” he said.
“So it just kind of reminded me of like an almond blossom river.” Calendars are available for purchase at the Sutter County Museum. “ The 2025 Sutter Buttes Calendar Exhibit” is on display until Sept.
5. The Sutter County Museum is open Wednesdays through Fridays from 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 12 to 4 p.
m. Admission is free, and the museum is located at 1333 Butte House Rd. in Yuba City.
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