Are you planning a trip to the Grand Canyon but don’t know what kind of activities there are to see and do once you reach the Grand Canyon?
If you are planning to visit the Grand Canyon either as a 1-Day-Activity or if you wish to make a week of it, there are plenty of options.
Here are 10 ways to explore the Grand Canyon. Many people could easily spend all day just looking at this magical wonder, but there are other ways you can enjoy the mighty Grand Canyon.
If you do not have a lot of time, it’s still possible to enjoy the Grand Canyon; you may just feel a little rushed. If you leave early and prepare yourself for a long day, it can be done.
If you are a traveler who has a little extra time, you would likely appreciate taking that extra day or two and view the other sightseeing attractions as you make your way to the Grand Canyon.
Many visitors spend the night in another town, such as Sedona, Arizona, where the beauty of the red-rock will astound you. If you choose to drive from the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan area, plan on about 4.5 hours of travel time to get to the Grand Canyon.
If you decide to stay in Flagstaff before traveling to Grand Canyon National Park, it is approximately 80 miles away, which should take about an hour and a half to drive there. If you stay in Sedona, the Canyon is about a two-hour drive.
The Grand Canyon National Park offers a free shuttle at the South Rim in Grand Canyon Village, along Hermit Road. Note that these shuttles provide transportation only and are not considered tour buses. (Bus Tours are available, however.)
You are required to exit the bus to view the Canyon. Also note that if you have physical challenges, most shuttles are inaccessible to wheelchairs.
Here are 10 excellent ways to explore the Grand Canyon.
1. Go boating or rafting. There are plenty of companies who are willing to take you on a very specialized tour-guided river experience inside the Grand Canyon. If you choose to go rafting, though, keep in mind that the water can get a little rough at times, but you will certainly be in good hands with your tour guide and required life jacket.
If you are timid about water, consider the fact that the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon is said to be one of the wildest stretches of white water in the United States.
2. Go hiking. Many hiking trails exist throughout the area. The South Rim is where the most popular hike is. The name of this trail on the South Rim is named Bright Angel Trail, located near Grand Canyon Village.
On the North Rim, the most popular hiking trail is North Kaibab. (No permit is required here.)
No permit is needed for day hiking, but you will need a permit if you choose to camp inside the Grand Canyon, as dictated by the National Park Service.
The most popular backpacking site is the Bright Angel Campground. Bright Angel Campground is located at the end of Bright Angel Trail.
3. If you are not afraid of heights, you can always try out the new Grand Canyon Skywalk which recently opened this past spring! The Skywalk is officially open from dawn to dusk, seven days a week. It first opened March 28, 2007, and from all accounts, is something very special and exciting.
4. Take a helicopter or a mule ride inside the Canyon. You will find several companies who will give you a bird’s eye view down inside the Canyon.
The Grand Canyon Skywalk is the first walkway to suspend more than 4,000 feet above the Canyon floor. It extends 70 feet from the rim and is located at Grand Canyon West’s Eagle Point.
5. Take a helicopter ride. Tours originate at either the Grand Canyon Airport, five miles south of the park entrance or in Sedona.
6. Drive to the South Rim and park your car and walk to the edge of the Grand Canyon. If you don’t like large groups, or if you just prefer doing things on your own time, you certainly have this option.
7. You can access the Grand Canyon Railway train for some fun, too. Sit back and relax! Jump the train in Williams, Arizona, where it will escort you precisely to Grand Canyon Village.
8. Take a bus tour. Many tour companies are available for your tour to the Grand Canyon.
9. Take a Jeep Tour. If you like the wilderness, you will find that these Jeep tours are a great way to take in limitless nature along with Native American Indian history, culture and more.
10. Settle for an Audio Tour. You can also opt for your own personal guide on a CD. These are also available to visitors and provide a learning experience at every listeners own pace.
Watch the video related to Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park Waypoint Tours Intro
Help answer the question aboutGrand Canyon National Park
What types of wildlife are imprtant to Grand Canyon National Park?Give two examples to describe. What adaptations do they have to help them survive their environment?
The easist section of the park to visit for handicapped visitors is the South Rim area north of Flagstaff (which is the most developed). Even here though, there will be some challenges because of the rough and uneven terrain and because many of the historic buildings were not designed for wheelchair access.
Handicap facilities and services are outlined in a document on the Grand Canyon National Park website (see link below). The most important thing to note is that most of the shuttles in the park are not wheelchair accessible, but special shuttle arrangements can be made if you call in advance (this is covered in the link below).
Generally speaking, the area around the lodges has fairly level paved trails running along the rim which would be fairly easy to navigate in a wheelchair and still provide good views. The drive-up overlooks at Yavapai and Mather points also have decent viewing areas that could be reached by wheelchair (although both involve going up some slopes). A particularly nice view could be had from the Yavapai Observation Station – a little geology exhibit and viewing room built right on the edge of the rim with large bay windows.
For lodging, Maswik and Yavapai Lodges are probably the most wheelchair accessible and have the best parking. All of the major eating places are also wheelchair accessible.
Note that one possible challenge is that there are a lot of little ups and downs in the lay of the land around the overlooks and lodges. Most of them are not very steep and all (that I can think of) can be reached by going up a slope, ramp or other incline without requiring steps, but the lodge area is definitely not a perfectly flat plain.
One other little note… the South Rim is at 7000 feet elevation and can have snow and icy patches on the ground well into April which can make it hard for everybody to negoiate the paths and walkways.
The South Rim and North Rim of the canyon are two very different places and because there are no bridges across the Grand Canyon it is a long 5-hour drive around to get from one to the other.
The South Rim of the canyon is more developed (more lodges, stores and overlooks) and is easier to reach because it is nearer to Phoenix and I-40. The North Rim has only one lodge and there are no major cities nearby (even the small towns of Fredonia and Kanab are a good 1.5 hours away). Because the North Rim is a 1000 feet higher in elevation, it is cooler in summer and has more pine trees. However, for the same reasons (colder and less developed), it is closed from mid-October to mid-May. So unless you are planning on going during summer, the South Rim is your only option.
As far as RVs and camping goes. Both the North Rim and the South Rim have large nice car-camping campgrounds with designated spots, picnic tables and bathrooms. If your RV is small enough to fit in a regular spot, than you could go there. However, if it is a large RV that needs a true full-size RV spot and hookups than your only option is going to be the South Rim where they do have a full size trailer park where visitors can rent a space (see links below).
As for which rim is better to visit (aside from RV options), that sort of depends on your interests and when you are visiting. I personally greatly prefer the North Rim during the summer because it is cooler and much more peaceful, while the South Rim can be a zoo between Memorial Day and Labor Day with difficult parking and crowded attractions. However, if you are going outside of summer, need to a full RV hook-up or want more shops and attractions than the South Rim is your best bet.
Note that you can make reservations for both the campground and trailer village and it is a good idea to do so well in advance as getting last minute spots (especially as summer gets closer) is difficult.
Tusayan, AZ is just south of the park enterance. There are a few hotels there. Check out Williams, AZ and Flagstaff, AZ as well. There is lodging for almost every budget in eithe of those 2 towns.
I know it is cold there right now! But, the temperatures can vary quite a bit from the rim to the bottom of the canyon.
From the National Park Service website http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/weather-condition.htm:
With an elevation spanning from around 2000 feet to over 8000 feet (760-2440m), the Grand Canyon area experiences a variety of weather conditions. This weather variety includes cold winters and mild pleasant summers, moderate humidity, and considerable diurnal temperature changes at the higher elevations, with hot and drier summers at the bottom of the Grand Canyon along with cool damp winters. Summer thunderstorms and winter snowfall adds to the weather variety in this region.
Spring
By mid-April, winter weather usually begins to break, and although snow is not uncommon in May, warm spells become more frequent. The winter cold gives way to a warming and pleasant spring period with average high temperatures gradually rising from the 50s and 60s (10-21°C) in April through the 70s to 80s (21-32°C) by June along the Rim, and from the 80s (27-32°C) in April to near 105 (41°C) by June along the river. Low temperatures will typically fall below freezing on the Rim in April and May and warm into the 40s (4-9°C) by June, with low temperatures from the 50s (10-15°C) in April to the 70s (21-26°C) by June along the river. Spring is typically breezy to windy with winds occasionally gusting over 40 mph (18 m/s) and dry with little precipitation occurring in May and early June. Due to the very dry airmass typical of the late spring months, late season frosts and freezes are still a possibility, with sub freezing temperatures being recorded as late as July at the North Rim. Snowfall has been reported as late as the middle of June.
I am unsure of what you mean by sources so I will answer in two different ways.
The natural source of the Grand Canyon is the Colorado River. In the prehistoric past, the Colorado River had become a wide, slow river similar to the Mississippi. It flowed across a flat plain down to the Gulf of California. A geologic uplift occurred and the Colorado's windy course began to cut down into the new plateau creating the deep, winding Grand Canyon.
The historic source of the Grand Canyon National Park dates back to 1848 when the Grand Canyon became a U.S. territory at the end of the Mexican American War. In 1857, the U.S Military traveled up the Colorado from the Gulf of California to the western reaches of the Grand Canyon. In 1869, the Powell Expedition mapped the depths of the Canyon.
Between 1869 and 1906, the Canyon was exploited as a commercial enterprise by the railroads. In 1906, portions were set aside as a game reserve followed by the creation of the Grand Canyon National Monument in 1908. On Feb. 26, 1919, Woodrow Wilson signed the law that created the Grand Canyon National Park.
Phoenix is the best price wise. Flagstaff is the closest but it might be more expensive. Phoenix is about 4 hrs away. Flagstaff is about 1-1/2 hrs away.
Big horn Sheep, condors, and reptiles…go to the link for more info…then you can research their adaptations by googling them
ex: "big horn sheep adaptations" etc.
Good luck!
Great answers so far, I might add-
http://www.bobspixels.com/kaibab.org/
Yes, there are roads all over both of those parks. I have driven them.