"The Fabulous North Rim" North Rim by Segolily

North Rim Travel Guide: 42 reviews and 88 photos

We get to this rim more often

Coming as we do from SLC we can reach the North Rim more often than the South. I love it. It is probably the second place I every came for a vacation. My Mom had become tired of going to Yellowstone every year, so when I was five or six we came south to the Grand Canyon for my first time. We camped on the rim in the wonderful Kaibab forest and this became the forest to which all others are compared. In my mind it is "The prototype" for a forest. Big open spaces in between the tall tall Ponderosa Pine. Deer and Buffalo, turkey and Kaibab Squirrels are often seen here. I've always camped when we come. To be among the trees, sitting around the campfire, watching the stars at night is to me the epitome of a National Park experience.

Yes, there is a rim here

Along the Transept Trail

Though in my mind the forest is half the draw, there is indeed a rim here. The Lodge is located right on the rim of Transept Canyon, a side canyon to Bright Angel which itself is a side canyon to the main Colorado Canyon. There are many places to see the canyon and a drive along the Walhalla Peninsula to Point Imperial and Cape Royal is a must. A hike along the rim to Widforss Point can also provide alternate views. If you are properly equipped you can also take some of the 4x4 drives out to Point Sublime....and further west to Toroweap. It is in visiting some of these lesser known spots, definitely off the beaten South Rim path that the Grand Canyon's grandeur and size are revealed. Too many people think they have seen this marvel of geology with a visit to the South Rim,,,but there is much more to the Grand Canyon than that.

Kaibab squirrel

Last time we were there I read that the park service has purposely left the North Rim less developed. This allows visitors a more authentic experience, one that might not be so different from what the first visitors enjoyed.

In 1903 Theodore Roosevelt made a speech at the Grand Canyon, a place he had come to visit and explore and I believe hunt. This is what he said:

"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which, so far as I know, is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. I want to ask you to do one thing in connection with it in your own interest and in the interest of the country - to keep this great wonder of nature as it now is.

I was delighted to learn of the wisdom of the Santa Fe railroad people in deciding not to build their hotel on the brink of the canyon. I hope you will not have a building of any kind, not a summer cottage, a hotel, or anything else, to mar the wonderful grandeur, the sublimity, the great loneliness and beauty of the canyon.

Leave it as it is. You can not improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is to keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you, as one of the great sights which every American if he can travel at all should see.

We have gotten past the stage, my fellow-citizens, when we are to be pardoned if we treat any part of our country as something to be skinned for two or three years for the use of the present generation, whether it is the forest, the water, the scenery. Whatever it is, handle it so that your children's children will get the benefit of it."

Pros and Cons

Pros:Everything that is right about a National Park
Cons:It might be out of the way for most
In a nutshell:People have come to visit and stayed. Some day it might be me.

Last visit to North Rim: Jul 2008
Intro Updated Dec 9, 2011
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Reviews (18)

Lava Falls in the middle of the picture - North Rim

Toroweap Point Off The Beaten Path (2)

I have been to Toroweap Point twice, many years apart. The first time we were quite alone, the campground was right... more travel advice

Walhalla Glades Pueblo Things to Do (12)

Near the end of the Cape Royal road are the remains of a small pueblo. It was occupied by the Basketmaker people who... more travel advice

Sunrise and Sunset Local Customs (1)

It is customary to find a spot on the patio, along Bright Angel or Transept Trail and watch the sun rise or set. It is a... more travel advice

The only one on the rim Hotels (2)

The Lodge was built in the grand old park style. The main lodge itself does not have rooms. The rooms are in detached... more travel advice

Warnings and Dangers (1)
Take them seriously

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Comments (3)

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christine.j Nov 11, 2012 at 4:49 AM

Thank you for this great page. I'm planning a trip to the North Rim next summer and just realized we won't have enough time there - as usual.
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  christine.j Nov 12, 2012 at 2:01 PM
  
  No, I'm afraid not. We're planning to drive to the North Rim from Zion, spend the night and leave the next day.
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  Segolily Nov 12, 2012 at 6:14 PM
  
  If you have a couple hours in the morning of the day you head out you could take the drive either to Cape Royal,,, which I would recommend (but would take slightly longer since there is more to see) or Point Imperial. These north rim views are fabulous.
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BruceDunning Sep 15, 2010 at 12:57 PM

I was most impressed with the north rim more than the south side. You live in an area with so much color and beauty of nature. Nice job of describing the spot.
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Paisleypaul Feb 13, 2010 at 5:07 AM

Thanks for dropping by my hoime page way back (when I was on holiday). Did SouthRim 2008 and thinking West Rim / Sky walk in August, pages overdue, would lik eot get back to Utah (Bryce) too...happy travels 2010 and beyond!