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Grand Canyon Adventure
The new millennium finds Grand Canyon National Park considering an ambitious plan for altering the park. This plan, known as the General Management Plan, dates to the mid-'90s, the tail-end of a 2-decade period during which park visitation more than doubled to 4.6 million. By the mid-'90s, the park's resources were badly strained. On a typical summer day, some 6,500 vehicles drove to the South Rim, only to find 2,400 parking places. Faced with gridlock, noise, and pollution from emissions during high season, the park planned major changes, designed to accommodate the 6.8 million annual visitors that the park, at that time, expected to receive in 2010. However, a 10% decline in the number of tourists to the park since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks has left implementation of the General Management Plan uncertain.
Under the plan, private vehicles would eventually be barred from most areas along the South Rim, including the historic district in Grand Canyon Village, Hermits Rest Route, and all but one overlook (Desert View) on the Desert View Drive. Instead of driving, visitors would travel by light rail from a new transportation staging area in Tusayan (just south of the park's south entrance) to a larger orientation center -- the Canyon View Information Plaza -- inside the park near Mather Point. A second light rail line would link the Canyon View Information Plaza with the Village Transit Center in Grand Canyon Village. At both the Canyon View Plaza and the Village Transit Center, visitors would be able to board shuttles that would transport them to other developed areas on the South Rim.
Private cars would not be banned altogether from this part of the park. Visitors camping or staying in lodges and campgrounds away from the rim would be allowed to drive directly to those areas. Those staying nearer the rim would be driven by van from parking areas farther out. Visitors would also be able to drive through the park on Highway 64, a through-road connecting the towns of Williams and Cameron, Arizona. However, they would not be allowed to park at the overlooks west of Desert View.
The plan also calls for an extensive "greenway" trail for cyclists (rental bicycles will eventually be available), walkers, and equestrians. Paved in places, it would cover 38 miles on the South Rim between Hermits Rest and Desert View. Another 8-mile branch of the greenway would link Tusayan with the Canyon View Information Plaza. An additional 28 miles may eventually be constructed on the North Rim.
In time, the new transit and trails system should help the National Park Service achieve its goal of restoring the rim areas to a quieter, less polluted state. Other parts of the General Management Plan move commercial activity and housing away from the rim and, in some cases, out of the park. For starters, the rim-side Kachina and Thunderbird lodges would be razed; the area they occupy would become open space. Their guest rooms may be replaced by new ones away from the rim at Maswik Lodge and in historic buildings that now serve as employee dormitories. Visitors hoping to learn in depth about the park would be able to do so in a cluster of historic buildings in Grand Canyon Village known as the Heritage Education Campus.
Implementing the General Management Plan has proved even more challenging than expected. The park has been able to pay for some of the changes itself, using a percentage of the fees charged for admission and other park usage. But the most ambitious elements, including light rail service, require appropriations from Congress. The light rail plan alone would cost nearly as much as the entire construction budget for the Park Service.
Congress may have lost an impetus for funding major improvements when visitation to Grand Canyon leveled off in the late 1990s and declined after September 11, 2001. In Fall 2001, the National Park Service gave Congress a report on bus alternatives that might serve as a less-expensive substitute for light rail, but two years later no decision to move forward had been made.
In the meantime, the park has slowly moved forward with other elements of the General Management Plan. One major piece, the visually stunning Canyon View Information Plaza, opened in October 2000. A 2.1-mile stretch of greenway between Yavapai and Mather points has been completed.
At present, visitors can ride the park's existing shuttle bus system around Grand Canyon Village, to all overlooks on Hermits Rest Route, and to Mather, Yaki, and Yavapai overlooks. Yet automobiles still strongly affect the visitor experience in most of the park's developed areas, at least in peak season. As long as most people still drive into the park, the Canyon View Information Plaza, which was designed as a mass transit center and lacks automobile parking, will look strangely out of place.
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Choosing the best things at Grand Canyon is like naming the best thing about your true love. Especially when your true love -- all 277 miles of it -- is divine. But, since every vacation consists of smaller parts, I've done my best to isolate a few of the best places and ways to appreciate the larger beauty of Grand Canyon.
The Most Dramatic Rim View: Lipan Point (on the Desert View Drive, South Rim). Located above a sweeping curve in the river and with views far downstream to the west, Lipan Point is the nicest, most easily accessible place to view the canyon and a great place to watch the sunset. The Unkar Delta, one of the most archaeologically rich areas in the park, is visible directly below the overlook. That said, all of the points overlooking the Colorado River along the rim offer dramatic views. These include Pima, Mohave, Hopi, Moran, Lipan, and Desert View.
The Best Scenic Drive: Desert View Drive (South Rim). You'll see more of the canyon on this route than on the canyon's other two main drives (The Cape Royal Rd. and Hermits Rest Route). The westernmost overlooks open onto the monuments of the central canyon; the eastern ones have far-ranging views of the Marble Platform and the northeast end of the canyon. Along the way, you can stop at the 825-year-old Tusayan Pueblo, which was once occupied by the Ancestral Puebloans. The Watchtower, a historic building artfully fashioned after towers built by the Ancestral Puebloans, is a perfect place to finish the drive.
The Best Historic Building: Hermits Rest (at the western terminus of Hermits Rest Route). On the outside, this 1913 building resembles a crude rock shelter like one built by a hermit. Inside, it has an enormous, cavelike fireplace, original furniture, and candelabra on the walls. Built as a rest stop for travelers en route to a camp inside the canyon, Hermits Rest is still a great place to collect oneself before returning to Grand Canyon Village.
Best Place to Picnic: Vista Encantadora (on the North Rim's Cape Royal Rd.). The picnic tables here afford canyon views and provide a convenient stopping point when you're visiting the overlooks on the Cape Royal Road. On the South Rim, there are few tables along the rim, so you'll need to be more creative. If the weather is calm, pack a light lunch and walk along one of the rim trails until you find a smooth rim-rock or bench on which to picnic.
The Best Bike Ride: Hermits Rest Route in summer (South Rim). During high season, when this road is closed to most private vehicles, motorized traffic consists mostly of the occasional shuttle bus. Between shuttles, you'll often have the gently rolling road and some of the overlooks to yourself.
The Best Rim Walk: Greenway between Yavapai and Mather Points. This stretch of the park's ambitious greenway project travels right along the rim, affording views straight down into the canyon. Paved and smooth, it lets walkers enjoy the scenery without worrying too much about their footing. Its 10-foot width allows groups of friends to stroll side by side. And, given its location between two of the park's busiest overlooks, it can be surprisingly quiet. On the North Rim, try the Widforss Trail.
The Best Day Hike Below the Rim: Plateau Point Trail (accessible via the Bright Angel Trail). With views 1,300 feet down to the Colorado River, Plateau Point is a prime destination for fit, well-prepared day hikers. The hardest part of this 6.1-mile (each way) trip is on the Bright Angel Trail, which descends 4.6 miles and 3,060 vertical feet from Grand Canyon Village to Indian Garden. The trailhead for the Plateau Point Trail is a half-mile west of Indian Garden on the Tonto Trail. From there, it's a smooth and relatively level stroll to the overlook.
The Best Corridor Trail: North Kaibab (North Rim). For people backpacking into the canyon for the first time, this is a scenic, less-crowded alternative to the South Rim corridor trails. During its 14-mile-long, 5,850-vertical-foot descent from rim to river, the trail passes through vegetation ranging from spruce-fir forest to Sonoran desert. It ends near Phantom Ranch, the only lodging inside the canyon within the park boundaries.
The Best Active Vacation: Oar-powered raft trips through Grand Canyon. Expensive and worth it, these trips negotiate thrilling rapids on the Colorado River. Between the rapids, they move slowly and quietly enough to reveal the subtle magic of the canyon. During stops hikers have access to some of the prettiest spots anywhere.
The Best RV Park: Kaibab Camper Village (Jacob Lake, tel. 928/643-7804). For once, an RV park that doesn't look like the lot at a drive-in movie. Old growth ponderosa pines and views of Jacob Lake (the tiny pond) make this RV park, located about 45 miles from the North Rim entrance, the best by far in the Grand Canyon area. Campers can pick up a few supplies at nearby Jacob Lake (the motel, store, gas station, and restaurant). Now it even has showers.
The Best Car Campground in the Park: North Rim Campground (tel. 800/365-2267 or 928/638-9389). The campsites along the rim of Transept Canyon have pleasing views and are well worth the extra $5. Ponderosa pines shade all the sites, which are far enough apart to afford privacy. For hikers, the Transept Trail begins just a few yards away. If you're on the South Rim, try Desert View Campground.
The Best Historic Hotel: El Tovar Hotel (Grand Canyon Village, tel. 928/638-2631). Made of Oregon pine, this grand 1905 hotel rises darkly above Grand Canyon Village on the canyon's South Rim. Inside, moose and elk heads, copper chandeliers, and rooms with classic American furnishings add to its almost-spooky character. By far the most luxurious in the park, this hotel is the only one with room service.
The Best Bar in the Park: Bright Angel Lounge (inside Bright Angel Lodge in Grand Canyon Village, tel. 928/638-2631). Every night, tourists from around the world perch atop the stools at this long bar, their backs to a mural by a renowned Hopi artist Fred Kabotie, their elbows resting atop a coated bar top displaying historic postcards, old horseshoes, and other canyon relics. During high season, you'll hear more languages here than at the United Nations.
Best Place to Watch the Sunset: Westernmost Deck of Grand Canyon Lodge. While the sun disappears behind the pines along the rim, you can soak up the colors on the horizon while sitting in a comfortable chair and sipping a beverage from the nearby saloon. After the sun sets, warm up by the immense outdoor fireplace on the lodge's eastern deck. For unobstructed views, go to Lipan Point on the South Rim or Cape Royal on the North Rim.
The Best Accessible Backcountry Destination: Waterfalls of Havasu Creek. Surrounded by the red-rock walls of Havasu Canyon, these turquoise-colored falls seem to pour forth from the heavens into the cauldron of Grand Canyon. Travertine dams the creek in places, forming many seductive swimming holes. The 10-mile hike or mule ride from Hualapai Hilltop helps ease you into this area, home to the Havasupai Indians.
The Best B&B: The Inn At 410 Bed & Breakfast (Flagstaff, tel. 800/774-2008 or 928/774-0088). Your journey doesn't end at the door of this inn. Inside, each of the elegantly decorated rooms recalls a different setting. One room celebrates the cowboy way of life, another recalls a 19th-century French garden, and a third is fashioned after a turn-of-the-20th-century Mexican courtyard. The intriguing decor, together with the kindness of innkeepers Sally and Howard Krueger, helps you travel the world -- while catching up on your rest.
The Best Expensive Hotel: Best Western Grand Canyon Squire Inn (Tusayan, tel. 800/622-6966 or 928/638-2681). Located just a mile outside the park, this hotel offers many of the amenities generally associated with resorts in big cities. Here, you'll find the town's best dining (in the elegant Coronado Room), its liveliest watering hole (downstairs, in the bar that locals call "The Squire"), and its only tennis courts for guests -- not to mention luxuries such as a beauty shop and concierge. Located in the main building, the deluxe rooms equal the area's best.
The Best Expensive Restaurant: Cottage Place (Flagstaff, tel. 928/774-8431). The quiet serenity of Flagstaff's most elegant restaurant is ideal for special occasions, a wonderful spot to peacefully celebrate your vacation to the Southwest. Original artwork decorates three rose-colored rooms, where soft conversations are heard from the candlelit tables. Chateaubriand (for two) is Executive Chef/Owner Frank Branham's signature dish.
The Best Moderately Priced Restaurant: Pine Country Restaurant (Williams, tel. 928/635-9718). The pie here is so good, many locals order dessert first. Others can't wait to dine on straightforward dinner entrees like baked chicken, pork chops, and fried shrimp, most of which go for under $8. Alas, certain misguided customers enjoy their dinners so much, they spoil their appetites for dessert.
The Best Inexpensive Restaurant: The Black Bean Burrito Bar and Salsa Company (Flagstaff, tel. 928/779-9905). Get a burrito as heavy as a hand weight, at a price that makes it feel like a handout. Wrapped in aluminum foil and served in plastic drive-in baskets, this may be the best food value in the whole Grand Canyon area. The food is ready within seconds after you order, making this a great place to get a quick fix after a long day.
The Best Steakhouse: Rod's Steak House (Williams, tel. 928/635-2671). Beef lovers won't want to miss this Route 66 landmark, identifiable by the cow-shaped sign out front. After 50 years, the tiny menus here are as laconic as cowboys -- seems the restaurant would rather serve its giant steaks than write about them. Don't miss the mud pie, the perfect finish to a simple, yet delicious, meal.
The Best Area Museum: Museum of Northern Arizona (Flagstaff, tel. 928/774-5213). One of the most extensive collections of Native American art makes this museum unique. Both functional and striking, the artifacts are compellingly displayed, in exhibits that illuminate the close relationship between the indigenous people and the land of the Colorado Plateau. There's no better place to begin learning about the area.
Best Place to Escape the Crowds: Anywhere More Than a Half-Mile From the Nearest Parking Lot or Shuttle Bus Stop. The vast majority of park visitors seldom venture farther than a half-mile from a parking area. If you're willing to walk a half-mile or more, whether it's on a corridor, rim, or wilderness trail, you'll begin to experience some quiet and solitude. This may be the single best way to enjoy the canyon.
