Aztec Butte Trail

On the way out of Canyonlands National Park, after my hike to Grand View Point, I browsed the park brochure for a shorter hike that I could take and noticed a short, half-mile out-and-back to Aztec Butte. From what I could see on the map, I figured it was simply a hike to a viewpoint, but I was sorely mistaken. The hike was mostly down hill and easy. Then, at about the half-mile mark, I reached the base of Aztec Butte and saw people were climbing it. The side of the butte is essentially a smooth, flat slope up to the top, so I didn’t see how it was possible, but figured it must be okay given how many people were giving it a shot. For the most part, it wasn’t that bad… until I got lost. The “trail” is marked by stone cairns and I became confused, spending some frightening moments scrambling along an exceptionally steep stretch along the side of the butte (see the video below for that moment). It actually forced me to give-up and turn around, but that’s when I saw people heading-up the actual trail. After my adventure, the rest of the hike was simple.