Rocky Butte is part of the Rocky Butte Natural Area, encompassing of land on NE Rocky Butte Road. The summit of Rocky Butte is a Portland city park, Joseph Wood Hill Park, which covers . The park offers views of the Boring Lava Field, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Hood. It lies in the throat of Rocky Butte's former volcanic vent on a bluff above the Hill Military Academy campus; this land was donated by Joseph Hill's sons. The park has red, crushed stone pathways, a stone wall, and a stone pedestal adorned with a metal plague bearing Joseph Wood Hill's image looking to the west. Rocky Butte is a popular location for seeing mountains. In 2017, the Portland Parks & Recreation bureau proposed to clear trees and invasive species in the park to allow better views of downtown Portland, Mount Hood, and Mount St. Helens, planting 400 low-growth trees and 5,200 shrubs in their place. A man was killed after falling from the summit viewpoint in May 2015.