Dana Butte

Best Time to View It

West Rim Drive's shuttle route runs seasonally, so check current shuttle status before planning a Hopi Point or Powell Point visit built around this formation.

Good to Know

• It's a dull-gray spire of weathered Supai Group rock sitting on a broad Redwall Limestone platform — named for James Dwight Dana, a 19th-century geologist.
• It won't be the tallest or most colorful formation you see from the rim, but once it's pointed out, it helps orient the rest of the inner canyon view.
• Pair a Hopi Point stop with Powell Point nearby for two angles on the same formation.

Where to See Dana Butte

Look for it from Hopi Point and Powell Point along West Rim Drive, roughly two miles north of Pima Point and about 2.5 miles northwest of Grand Canyon Village.

What You're Looking At: Dana Butte

Dana Butte isn't a place you hike to — it's a formation you look at, a gray spire rising from the Redwall Limestone platform on the south side of Granite Gorge, close to the Colorado River far below the South Rim. At 4,964 feet in elevation with about 300 feet of prominence, it's a modest butte by canyon standards, but its position right along the inner gorge makes it easy to pick out from several South Rim overlooks.