After my major disappointment, two months ago, as I unsuccessfully attempted to reach Bar Harbor, Maine, for an idyllic four-day vacation, I held my breath last week as I plotted a four-day visit to the Grand Canyon.
The gods toyed with me, as they did with Odysseus's attempt to reach Ithaca -- throwing up a series of obstacles en route, obstacles that seem funny only in retrospect -- but they ultimately allowed me to succeed.
This was my fourth visit to the North Rim in the past decade -- prior visits having been noted in this blog in 2013, 2017, and 2018. The place obviously attracts me. As in those past years, I braved a six-hour drive, going and coming, between Las Vegas (the nearest major airport) and the Canyon. As in past trips, I unaccountably chose to make the trip in mid-summer. The temperatures as I drove through southern Nevada reached 114 degrees (45.4° C), but began moderating once I left I-15 at St. George, Utah, and began climbing toward the canyon.
During my stay at the North Rim, with an elevation over 8,200 feet, the temperature never exceeded the high 70s -- far below the temperature down at the level of the Colorado River. On past visits, I have braved hikes down into the canyon as far as Roaring Springs at 5,200 feet (2013), and the Supai tunnel (6,800 feet) (2017). I began those hikes, both years, at about 6 a.m., and I still had a long, hot hike back to the rim.
This year, I didn't feel like getting up at 5:30 a.m., or skipping a good breakfast in the lodge. Shamefacedly, I admit that I therefore confined my hiking to trails on the rim. But it was some pretty good hiking, in a nice climate.
Grand Canyon Lodge is situated on something of a promontory into the canyon. On its east is Kaibab Canyon, where the Kaibab Trail leads down to the river. On its west, is another canyon, called the Transept. A trail follows the rim of the Transept from the Lodge to the only North Rim campground, a distance of about 1½ miles. Although there is no appreciable change of elevation between the Lodge and the camp, the trail dips up and down in places, making it an easy, but not too easy, hike. I hiked the trail early on my first full day at the North Rim, and again as a send-off to the Canyon on the morning of my departure. Both times, I returned on a dedicated Bridle Path -- closer to the road, and a slightly shorter route back to the Lodge.
On Monday afternoon, the day after my arrival, I hiked the Uncle Jim Trail (4.7 miles), a loop originating at the Kaibab Trail trailhead. The trail was steep in places, the afternoon was hot, and I worried for a while that I should have brought more than my one liter of water. Eventually, the path reaches the rim of Kaibab Canyon, and follows the rim for some distance with excellent views of monuments arising out of the depths of the canyon, such as the Throne of Wotan and the Vishnu Temple. As the loop began moving away from the best view at the Observation Point, I heard distant thunder, and soon was drenched in heavy rainfall for about 45 minutes. Unexpected, but entirely welcome -- my concerns about being overheated vanished as I strode briskly down the trail in sodden shorts and t-shirt. A happy Seattleite, hiking in the rain!
Tuesday morning, I drove the narrow, winding, 23-mile side road to Cape Royal, east of the Lodge with views not only of the canyon, but beyond to the Painted Desert far below, and mountain ranges beyond. From the end of the road, there is a paved, flat, one-mile trail, lined with descriptive signs regarding local plant life, and with an excellent view of the Angel's Window, a square hole carved in the rock. The trail ends on top of Angel's Window.
A 2.6-mile side road from the Cape Royal road leads to Point Imperial, the highest point in Grand Canyon National Park, at about 8,800 feet elevation.
Tuesday afternoon, I set off on the Widforss Trail. The trail is 4.8 mile in length (one-way), circling the end of the Transept and following the opposite side back for some distance before turning inland toward the south. I started late, and had no intention of completing the entire trail; I planned to be back for dinner! I turned back after reaching the Transept's approximate end, maybe two miles. It was a very enjoyable hike, with ups and downs into side gullies, but not really strenuous. Next time I visit the North Rim, I'd like to start early and hike the entire trail. I met only one party while on the trail, and my car was the only one in the parking lot when I returned.
I got up early Wednesday, had my final Lodge breakfast, did a final hike on the Transept Trail to the campground, returned to the Lodge, spent some time hanging out on the Lodge patio, and finally checked out at the last allowable minute at 11 a.m., squaring my shoulders and facing my six-hour return drive to Vegas.
I hated to leave. I'll be back.
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PS -- At Grand Canyon National Park, the Park Service has recently reinstated masking mandates at all indoor spaces for everyone, and -- for the unvaccinated -- at outdoor spaces where social distancing can't be observed. Signs informing the public of these rules are posted everywhere. While I was there, I was surprised at how many visitors totally ignored the rules.
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