The Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon
If you happen to take a flight from the northwest to Phoenix, Arizona you might fly at 14,000 ft. right over America’s enormous crack in the earth. Home to the Colorado River, The Grand Canyon is an explosion of rock color at all times of the year. However, desert heat in summer (July, August and early September) can be brutal for the visitor who desires to hike the bottom, and winter snow can prevent travel by vehicle to the northern rim.
A visit to this geological wonder must be planned well. There is but one bridge across and it is at the extreme east end. Running from east to west, the jagged canyon begins at Lake Powell on the border of Utah and Arizona and runs through the Navajo Indian Reservation to the Hoover Dam at Las Vegas, Nevada. It is 277 miles long with the best views found at the edge of the Kaibab National Forest also known as the Northern Rim.
If you suffer from a fear of heights, this canyon is not for you. At places it is one mile deep (1.6 km) and fifteen miles wide. By vehicle, it is 220 miles (354 km), yet driving along the southern rim with ample places to stop, takeing pictures and marveling at the magnificent view is well worth the trouble. At sunset the pink and yellow sandstone rocks turn to red and orange.
The northern rim is a full 1000 ft. higher than the southern rim and the canyon between the two rim visitor lookouts is ten miles (16 km). However, the northern rim is much more difficult to get to. Free shuttle buses take millions of visitors
to see the canyon from the southern rim.
Other visitor options include free bus tours, guided tours, bicycle trails, river trips, hiking and even mule rides.
Those with hardy constitutions might opt to see the canyon via backpack, mule ride or river trip. River rafting down the Colorado River is not for the faint of heart and there is no such thing as a one day trip. Once begun, it can take a few days to three weeks before rafters emerge down river at Hoover Dam.
On the south side, lodging, restaurants and shops are a few miles away, but shuttle bus connections are possible. Make reservations for lodging well in advance as millions visit the canyon each year.
by Marti Talbott
Suggested Reading:
Grand Canyon, The Complete Guide: Grand Canyon National Park
Lasting Light: 125 Years of Grand Canyon Photography
