Grand Canyon

[poky5mom]

We are thinking of planning a trip to the grand Canyon next summer - anyone here been there & can give us some pointers on hikes & where to stay?!
Kim

[llholmes1948]

Kim,

Your question has given me the nudge I needed to finally post my report of our 2017 trip to the Grand Canyon. I will post it in the next day or two in the "Other National Park" section of the Chat (which is in the Non-Park Related Topics section at the bottom of the Chat page).

Lyman

[tibber]

We are thinking of planning a trip to the grand Canyon next summer - anyone here been there & can give us some pointers on hikes & where to stay?!
Kim

I wouldn't go in the summer. You have to remember when you're DOWN in the canyon, it's the same temperature as Phx... for example this weekend it will be around 105. Now on top of the canyon, it will be in the mid 80s.

Otherwise a trip to Ribbon Falls is pretty cool if you're talking the corridor. I'm on my way to workout but here is a list you can consult:
https://hikearizona.com/traildex.php?SH ... ID=7&STx=3

[poky5mom]

Sounds good Lyman!!

[daschmit]

Since you’re going in the summer, you may also want to give serious consideration to visiting the North Rim (see https://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/ ... _n_rim.htm). It is, if memory serves me correctly, about a thousand feet higher than the South Rim and, thus, a bit cooler. I couldn’t recommend specific trails in that area, but the North Rim most definitely receives far less visitation than the South Rim.

[thorn726]

im going back for another trip aug 1-4, south rim. any hike down is a good one.. but camping .. well you may get lucky at desert view if you get there early for a walk up but you can for mather, the main campground// you make reservations 6 months in advance to the day if you want a site, there is maybe 2 or 3 days leeway before they are all gone. do not lag on making reservations. You dont want to be stuck outside the park needing to get in a long line ot get in in the morning.. Now if you are going to backpack only, that's a whole other world and you can disregard all of this...
first WHY i make the SUGGESTION Below... The Grand Canyon from any angle is one of the most impressive things you can ever see, but if you start at the Biggest View and work your way out you might be less impressed with the other scenes. By starting at the shallower East and and working your way in,.all day long your view gets better and better.... Depending on how much time you want to spend at the viewpoints, you could easy make the whole traverse in one day but we like to take one day east to center, then a day hiking down into the Canyon then a day west out to Hermits Rest and back...
SUGGESTION - go to the East or West end first and make your way in. You might come in from the East and then you are already set... What we did was actually arrive after dark, then morning we drove East to Desert View and made our way slowly West... you wont see much from the road while driving, just enough to make you excited/ then you get to Desert View and it is gReat, and you stop at the viewpoints along the way going back West until you hit the Big Views at Mather or Yaki in the center... to go the Hermit's REst west end you have to use the shuttle system which is fantastic.. you can hop on and off and walk between some of the stops using the Rim trail which is Super nice. Because Herit's Rest is a bit deeper and more like the middle, i highly suggest starting at the east end go west to center one day then use the shuttle to go west to Hermit's REst in any order you like and end the day at Mather or Yaki point... Mather is far more popular, Yaki is very close by and equally impressive, less crowded...
As far as hikes down either Bright Angel or Kaibab is very nice but how far and what you do is very dependent on your ability, we only go a couple miles maybe 5 total and 2000ft up down in the hot weather. Some get up super early and hike fast , if you can pull off a 15 miles hike i could make other suggestions.

[llholmes1948]

I have posted a trip report of our 2017 trip in the "Other National Parks" Section in the Non Park topic section at the bottom of the Chat page. I don't have much advice on hikes because we pretty much didn't do any but I hope the trip report is helpful in other respects.

viewtopic.php?f=30&p=105377#p105377

Lyman

[indiana hiker]

Just returned from Grand Canyon. We go almost every year and try to spend three nights on each rim. We usually go in May but have also been in October. The October trip was really rainy last time. Weather at the north rim was 70 during the day and 30 at night. A little warmer on the south rim, but very pleasant. Depending on how fit and how far you want to hike, Bright Angel and South Kaibab are both good choices. Just go as far as you want and turn back. Just remember going back up is harder and will take probably twice as long as the hike down. We have also taken the shuttle to Hermit's Rest and hiked back. Even though Hermits Rest is a popular spot and busy, not too many people seem to hike, most ride the shuttle and just get off at various stops. On the north rim, I really enjoy Cape Final and Uncle Jim's trail for two trails that don't go into the canyon. Uncle Jim's offers great views of the switchbacks on the North Kaibab trail. North Kaibab has three suggested spots to turn around depending on your ability. If you are camping, Cape Final has two or three campsites and they offer great views and isolation.

[Pizza Bob]

Hiking down the Bright Angel trail to the Plateau Point, about halfway down the canyon, with an incredible view
of the Colorado River 1500 feet below would by itself be one of the best hikes I ever experienced. But as we
were at the viewpoint looking down, two California Condors landed 20 yards from us. If you are unfamiliar with them,
to say they are rare is an understatement — In 1987 the remaining 27 birds were captured in what was a remarkable
successful breeding program before they were reintroduced into the wild. They are giant birds, with a wingspan
of almost 10 feet; they are butt ugly and look like dinosaurs; they are easy to spot because each one is numbered
on their wing.

I also found Indian Gardens to be remarkable. From the rim all you see is a very dry desert canyon. Indian
Gardens is lush green vegetation in the middle of the canyon, fed from the Bright Angel creek. Quite and
unexpected surprise the first time I saw it.

[tibber]

Plateau Point is a great destination and it's a little more than 1/2 way down from the South Rim. Indian Gardens is a beauty about 3000 feet from the top in 4 1/3rd miles or so. It will be low 80s in summer. If you do that, be sure to check out the two sets of glyphs along the way. Also not too far from Indian Gardens is a nice set of Indian Ruins but is off trail.

Yes, the North Rim is a great option as well. There are some cool hikes from there and as someone suggested Cape Final would be a fun backpacking option and of course visits to Imperial Point, Cape Royal. Other hikes would include Uncle Jim Trail and Widforss which mostly keep you above the rim. Those are also on that link I gave you. Here are all my videos from my various hikes in the Grand Canyon and my river trip. You just have to scroll down to see what might be of interest for your hiking options: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... b9xpBw_cF9

The North Rim has a great camping site. In fact, when I was there a few years ago, one of the girls working in the store was a great granddaughter of Grinnell so that was a very cool encounter. Another encounter I had was at Glacier Park Lodge as one of the waiters had worked at Phantom Ranch down in the Canyon.

On this link I gave you https://hikearizona.com/traildex.php?SH ... ID=7&STx=3, you can click the hike and you can get all the info you might need along with the historical weather, elevation, the route, trip reports and photos. I think you will find it quite valuable. And of course, they have a forum like here and you can go on there to ask questions and like here, you will find the participants most helpful.