[2] Shunesburg Mountain is situated 3.4 mi (5.5 km) southeast of Springdale, towering 2,000 feet (610 meters) above the floor of Parunuweap Canyon.

It is wedged between Shunes Creek and the East Fork Virgin River which drain precipitation runoff from this mountain.

[3][4] In turn, the town was named after Paiute Chief Shunes who sold the land in 1861 to the Mormon settlers who attempted to live there.

Flooding from the Virgin River eventually forced the abandonment of the settlement, and drove the inhabitants to nearby Rockville.

This desert climate receives less than 10 inches (250 millimeters) of annual rainfall, and snowfall is generally light during the winter.