Viewpoint

Dunn Butte

A quiet inner-canyon butte in the shadow of Angels Gate and Wotans Throne

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Grand Canyon interior, AZ

About

Dunn Butte is a 5,714-foot summit deep in the canyon on the North Rim side, part of a line of three buttes that steps down the west drainage of Ninetyone Mile Canyon toward the Colorado River. Angels Gate rises highest above it, with Hawkins Butte lower still below, and the massif of Wotans Throne stands about a mile to the northeast. There's no trail to Dunn Butte and no rim overlook signed for it by name — this is a backcountry formation, not a destination hike, and it sits roughly 2 miles north of the river and about 2 miles southwest of the Cape Royal viewpoint area.

What it's built from

Like most of the buttes in this stretch of the canyon, Dunn Butte is capped by the Supai Group — Manakacha Formation forming its cliffs and platforms over the slope-forming Watahomigi Formation — sitting on a base of Redwall Limestone. It's roughly 1,000 feet lower than its taller neighbors Angels Gate and Thor Temple, which is part of why it registers as a minor feature in that skyline rather than a named landmark most visitors ask about.

Best Time to View It

Since this is a backcountry formation without a dedicated overlook, timing depends on whichever North Rim route or viewpoint you're already using rather than a season specific to the butte.

Good to Know

It's capped by the Supai Group — Manakacha Formation forming its cliffs and platforms over the slope-forming Watahomigi Formation — sitting on a base of Redwall Limestone.
It's roughly 1,000 feet lower than its taller neighbors Angels Gate and Thor Temple, part of why it registers as a minor feature in that skyline.
Experienced backcountry hikers exploring the Cape Royal area may spot it as part of the broader butte cluster.

Reaching Dunn Butte

There's no trail to Dunn Butte and no rim overlook signed for it by name — this is a backcountry formation, not a destination hike, and it sits roughly 2 miles north of the river and about 2 miles southwest of the Cape Royal viewpoint area.

What You're Looking At: Dunn Butte

Dunn Butte is a 5,714-foot summit deep in the canyon on the North Rim side, part of a line of three buttes that steps down the west drainage of Ninetyone Mile Canyon toward the Colorado River. Angels Gate rises highest above it, with Hawkins Butte lower still below, and the massif of Wotans Throne stands about a mile to the northeast.

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