Grand Canyon information

[LSP972]

Looking for some scoop on this place. My wife and plan to visit the first week of March 2016. That's a lock, due to another engagement we are planning in conjunction with this visit. We are a "seasoned" (i.e., old) couple, so any strenuous hikes are a no-go. But we do want to get the most we can out of the experience.

What I'm looking for here is first-hand knowledge on several questions:

1. Lodging within the park; are those places worth staying at (clean, good amenities, decent chow, etc.), or would it better to get a room at one of the motels in the small town (Tusyana?) just outside the park? I'm talking the South Rim here.

2. What, if any, guided tours are worth looking in to? I really wanted to walk the thing, but that is out of the question; too many miles on our odometers. Not interested in the burro tours; my old butt would be miserable in short order, riding on the back of a plodding critter.

3. Any general insight, etc. We winged it when we went to Carlsbad Caverns, but we were younger and that place is pretty much self-contained.

I have downloaded the trip planner and looked at the official site, but there is a lot of stuff there and its all very general in nature.

Any information will be greatly appreciated.

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[RJ]

We spent three days in a Class B (van) RV this summer, at the easternmost campground of the south rim.

It was a wonderful experience; our first time there.

I'll gather some thoughts to your questions when I get to a real keyboard.

[Cecil Burch]

If it is your first time there, and you don't plan on doing a lot of hard dedicated hiking, I would really encourage you to stay at the El Tovar. Historic hotel (I think it was built in 1905 if I remember correctly) and it is in the perfect spot for sightseeing without a ton of exertion.

One really fun thing to do is to take the Grand Canyon Railway from Williams to the Canyon. Old style train and cars that takes a leisurely ride through pretty country. The hotel in Williams right at the Railway station is very nice with a decent restaurant.

There are some guided bike tours available that hits some good spots while still being easier than hiking.

The mule rides are not that bad on the posterior, The basic non-overnight stay at the bottom tour is only about two hours in the saddle (approximately anyway - I have heard sometimes it may go some past that). And that is really the only way to get a good look inside the Canyon without hiking. I would at least take a look as the details there before you write it off.

The main thing I would say is to not try to cram too much in in one day. Spend some time at the lodge relaxing as well as active sight seeing. The weather in March will be pretty nice, especially at the top of the rim.

[RJ]

So, a few random thoughts.

We toured the Canyon in June.

We camped near the easternmost entrance at the Desert View Campground. Far away from the central complex of the South Rim, it offers a good low cost camping option ($12 per night). We arrived at 8:30AM after driving from Tuba City, and several spots were empty.

Desert View is worth the drive (30-45 minutes from the central area). The tower is very interesting; the Rangers hold interpretive talks nightly. There is a gas station with diesel/gas, a large Trading Post, and a General Store.

The campground is dry, with only a potty in the central check-in point. (We had water, electric (genny) and food on board.)

Two days we drove over to the central area, to get a sense of what it was like. Boy was it crowded!! Coming off the view point I felt like a salmon swimming up stream. People were everywhere, all straining for "a look".

We only did drive-bys on the hotel options, for potential reference. But as we are RV folks, we did not go in side any of the hotels to check them out. There is a large RV campground in the central area for larger Class Cs, TTs and Class As with water/electric.

The central area also has the normal National Park Service welcoming movie, pavilion, and information on the tours available. As said, it was kind of a drive-through for us; as we being in our 50s, were not interested in hiking down to the river.

(My hiking days culminated with my 68 mile 10 day trek at Philmont with the Boy Scouts when I was 50; my goal was to not end up in the health lodge. I succeeded. :cool:)

I did think they did a good job of notifying folks about the need to hydrate; I am sure they pull people out of the canyon daily for heat exhaustion and worse.

Definitely worth the trip, it had been on our bucket list for years. We really enjoyed it. Just a couple pictures below; to give context. One is our RV spot at Desert View, and the other is a near-sunset picture near the rim.

Have a great time!


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[45dotACP]

And for God's sake don't visit without going to Antelope Canyon. Horseshoe bend is also worth the trip to see. If you do plan on hiking the grand canyon, I'd suggest the Bright Angel trail, just don't try to do the whole thing....it's the one that requires a permit to do the whole journey simply because it's such an advanced hike. My family and I (a huge family...probably 16 people in our party and all adults with full time jobs) rented a house in Flagstaff and made the drive across the country as a road trip. It was a beautiful drive and we stopped off at the Petrified Forest and went to Sedona, AZ as well.

Lake Powell is also worth the time to go see.

But get to Antelope Canyon and try to get there around noon, as the sun will be directly above the canyon and it really plays off the walls. It's the most beautiful thing I've seen extant, and that includes when I helped deliver a baby during clinical. I'm not sure about whether it will be open, but you'll need to book a tour pretty well in advance.

[MichaelD]

I'll second the recommendations for Antelope Canyon (Lower Antelope is far less busy than Upper and just as awesome), Horseshoe Bend and Lake Powell. In fact, you may just want to spend 3 or 4 weeks in northern AZ and southern Utah. Both are absolutely gorgeous.

[Malamute]

Good stuff so far, Cecils post in particular.

Depending on how much time you have in the area, theres quite a lot of interesting things to see. In the park, the park bus rides along the rim are nice, they run every few minutes and you can get off and back on any of them.

I havent stayed at the El Tovar, but recall its a pretty classy looking place. Way back, we had to check our guns there when visiting the park. You can carry now, but not supposed to inside .gov owned buildings.

If you can manage it, going up to the park or returning you can take Hwy 89 I believe, (east of the park a bit) going back to Flag. Theres two National Monuments, Sunset Crater, and Wupatki that are on the way with a loop paralleling 89. If pretty well preserved Indian ruins are interesting, Wupatki has some. They are all easily accessible and short walks from parking.

I also recommend a drive through Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona, very stunning country. Its about 30 miles south of Flag.

March should be fair weather, if cool, and far less crowds. Dont worry too much if it snows unless its some major event, that time of year it generally doesnt last long, and makes the canyon even more impressive to see, especially the clouds that can hang down in the canyon. Be prepared for very cool nights, the South Rim and Flag area are around 7000 ft elevation. Days can feel great with the sun, but once it goes down it can cool off very fast. After even pretty large snows, the roads are usually clear pretty quickly. We rode motorcycles about all year off and on, at least to ride down to the Sedona area where it would be 20-30 deg warmer.

Sedona area, if you havent seen it,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X66x99zE1K8

[LSP552]

Don't get too close to the edge. But if you do, can I have one of your P30s? :D

[LSP972]

Many thanks for all the info. I looked into the train thing, and they offer package deals that are exactly the sort of thing I was looking for.

Pay one price, you get a nice room, two hots a day, the train ride, a tour at the park, time in the park, a return train ride, and a few other amenities.

While we could handle some of the hikes, we're going to GunSite afterward. Five days on the range will be a bit taxing for us, so I'm not gonna wear us out schlepping around the hills.

Finally; a vacation I can look forward to... and it won't be anywhere near Florida.

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[LSP972]

Don't get too close to the edge. But if you do, can I have one of your P30s? :D

Say what??? Last time I put a P30 in your hands, you turned up your nose!

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