Grand Canyon Things to Do Tips by kymbanm

You've just arrived at the Grand Canyon so what do you want to do? You want to SEE the canyon. You want to see it in all it's glory and from every view you can.

During the off season, some of the route usually closed to car traffic are open and you can drive yourself ... this means stopping when you feel like it, taking all the time you want. During peak season these areas can only be reached by walking or by taking one of the buses. It's a teensy bit confusing as some buses are considered shuttles that take you around the park itself (and free) while other buses that look the same are used for tour access to these little gems of the park.

Tour rates are per adult. Kids 16 and under, with a paid adult, are free:
Hermits Rest (Bus/walking access only during peak season)- $17.25
Desert View (mostly driveable year round with heavy traffic patterns during peak season, some parts tour bus access only year round)- $30.00
Sunset / Sunrise - $13.75
Combo Tour: Choose any two of the above - $38.00

Railway Express (To/From Grand Canyon Park) - $59.00

You can sign up for these tours at the transportation desk of your in park lodge, or at the visitor's center. Schedules vary according to season and weather, so you'll find out at the desk what your options are.

Leave a Comment

Address: Grand Canyon South
Website: http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/gettingaround.htm

This is another personal reference tip ... I REALLY want to do the overnight Mule Ride down to Phantom ranch, but haven't had the chance YET. So this tip is to save the website info on South Rim rides, costs, needs, and booking directions.

One interesting thing is that they offer porter/duffle service for hikers too! So you can walk down on your own and your stuff will be waiting for you at Phantom Ranch when you arrive! How cool is THAT? Of course, you can also have your stuff brought back up using this service ... a more important consideration when you remember gravity and all :)

Leave a Comment

Website: http://www.grandcanyonlodges.com/mule-trips-716.html

I'm not a hiker ... a bit of a walker and wanderer actually. So I can't DO the walks far into the canyon. And I was with my Dad who is disabled so didn't want to leave him for more than an hour at a time .... the rim trail was perfect for my needs. You can take this trail all along South Rim, or you can take bits a pieces of it as you desire. Since it hugs the edge of the canyon, the views are awe inspiring. I walked from Bright Angel lodge up to Maricopa point, which the books say is about a mile and a half. It was tough for me in spots as the trail was a bit steep, but the views were wonderful! It took me much less time to come back down :) I met a few people along the way and all had joyful faces, despite some huffing an puffing. There is something about the vistas that just brings out the child in us all ..... there are flatter portions of the rim trail between Bright Angel and Mather Point ... there are steeper sections heading up to Hermit's rest. The section I walked was perfect: challenging without being overwhelming. So take a piece of the rim trail yourself and see what you can see :)

There is a webpage that has more detail about the rim trail that I've linked here so you can learn about the parts I didn't take :)

Leave a Comment

Directions: Head to the edge of the canyon, AKA: the rim, and start walking!
Website: http://www.moon.com/planner/grand_canyon/mustsee/rimtrail.html

Hermit's rest stop was built in the days of the railroad ... the Bright Angel trail was privately owned back then, and there needed to be a free way to the base of the canyon ... hence Hermit's rest :)

The drive up is usually reserved for the tour buses, but being the off season we were able to drive up ourselves. You COULD walk up along the rim trail if you are fit, but I"m not and can't :) So we drove and took every turnout the drive offered. We crossed paths with a few others, but not many. Some of the best canyon views of our trip came from this drive. Dad stayed in the car d/t the weather and his difficulty in walking so views from the car were VERY important! And this drive gave us multiple opportunities for car views :) Though some were noted as being 'accessible', they were bumpy and didn't have ramps over the curbs - and there was a chilly wind so Dad didn't want to attempt walking or rolling out that day.

I on the other hand, left the car and wandered to the little paths form the parking areas to the rim itself and the views were amazing there too!

Hermit's rest itself has a concession stand and a gift shop (of course) and is the trail head for the path down on that end of the canyon. I basically looked around, used the bathroom (which was a sweet smelling compost toilet) and headed back to Dad in the car. This diversion took us just over an hour and was perfect ... simply perfect.

Leave a Comment

Address: Grand Canyon South
Directions: Hermit's rest is on the west end of the south rim.
Website: http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/day-hiking.htm

There is a bus tour within the park for this drive, but MOST of it is accessible by private vehicle. This drive takes you between the Village and the East Entrance so we drove it on our way out of the park. I can imagine the traffic issues during peak season, but for us in February, it was easy as pie.. well mostly :) Since we were driving eastbound, all the turnouts were on the opposite side of the road from us and getting back out at times was a challenge ... for some reason folks wanted to SPEED from point to point instead of meander at the speed limit. So caution is indicated :)

Desert View Drive takes you from the Village along 26 miles to the East Entrance. Desert view tower is at the end and is near the only gas station in the park. We didn't stop there, we kept going out of the park and on towards the Navajo Nation.

Anyways, the views from the turnouts were WONDERFUL! Great car views, smaller paths to the edge when present, and one of the viewpoint (whose name I never knew) actually had a curb ramp! So Dad finally agreed to leave the car! He walked to the edge! For a man whose stroke has left him with a limited vocabulary, I had tears in my eyes as he said 'spectacular' over and over again....... THIS is the highlight of my overnight to Grand Canyon ... this drive and my father's response to it.

So GO! DRIVE! WALK! Whatever! Just GO!!!!

Leave a Comment

Address: Grand Canyon South
Website: http://www.moon.com/planner/grand_canyon/mustsee/desertview.html