Pollux Temple
A mythologically-named butte rising above the Tonto Trail
About
Pollux Temple is one of the canyon's mythologically-named buttes, rising to 6,251 feet in the remote country northwest of Grand Canyon Village. Geologist Clarence Dutton started the tradition of naming these formations after gods and heroes, and Pollux shares its stretch of the canyon with its namesake pair, Castor Temple, a mile to the northwest, and Diana Temple a mile to the southeast. The summit is capped in Toroweap Formation over cream-colored Coconino Sandstone, with the reddish Hermit Formation, Supai Group, and Redwall Limestone stacked below it on the drop to the Colorado River, nearly 4,000 feet down in under two miles of horizontal distance.
Where to see it
- Visible from Jicarilla Point, less than a mile to the southwest
- Visible along stretches of the Tonto Trail below the rim
- No maintained trail leads to the summit itself — it sits in backcountry terrain away from any rim road
This is a formation to spot and identify rather than a hiking destination in its own right, one more of the temples and buttes that give this section of the South Rim's backcountry its skyline.
Best Time to View It
Jicarilla Point is accessible year-round, so timing follows your broader South Rim visit rather than a season specific to this formation.
Good to Know
- Geologist Clarence Dutton started the tradition of naming these formations after gods and heroes.
- The drop to the Colorado River is nearly 4,000 feet down in under two miles of horizontal distance — a sense of the terrain's steepness here.
- This is a formation to spot and identify rather than a hiking destination in its own right.
Where to See Pollux Temple
Visible from Jicarilla Point, less than a mile to the southwest, and along stretches of the Tonto Trail below the rim. No maintained trail leads to the summit itself.
What You're Looking At: Pollux Temple
Pollux Temple is one of the canyon's mythologically-named buttes, rising to 6,251 feet in the remote country northwest of Grand Canyon Village. Pollux shares its stretch of the canyon with its namesake pair, Castor Temple, a mile to the northwest, and Diana Temple a mile to the southeast. The summit is capped in Toroweap Formation over cream-colored Coconino Sandstone.
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