starcraft69 wrote:
?..6 days in Zion will also cover Bryce. We do enjoy hiking and plan on it in Zion The hikes in GC all seemed to be steep and strenuous. Our total time for this trip 14-17 days. after Zion and Bryce we plan on 1-2 days in Great Basin NP.
2gypsies wrote:
3-4 days would be ideal for you. Here's the park's web site which gives 'Things To Do' and lots of other great information. Explore it.
Grand Canyon Nat'l Park
By the way, each national park has a site like this to give you lots of ideas.
Plan to stay IN the park for the best experience and take some ranger programs. May should be ideal in terms of weather and crowds.
One particular thing I'd advise is to hike down the Bright Angel Trail if only for 1/8 to 1/2 miles. You'll get the real feeling of the Canyon rather than just staying on the top.
Also, hiking different parts of the Rim Trail is great. It's a place where you might find some solitude away from the crowds to take it all in. Ride the free shuttle and get off and on at different parts of the trail.
Some folks will recommend staying in Williams and taking the train. You should know that you will only have a couple hours at the Canyon itself and the scenery from Williams to the Canyon is flat sagebrush.
Some folks don't seem to appreciate our awesome national parks and they just want a peek to say that they were there. Exploring the park fully will give you a whole new perspective and appreciation as to why these are national parks.
You stated you're planning 6 days at Zion. If you're not hikers then I'd cut this down to 3 or 4 days, also. Zion is a hiking park.
How much time do you have for this whole trip?
Remember, there are other great national parks in this area: Bryce, Capitol Reef. Arches, Canyonlands and a non-nat'l park, Monument Valley. All are worth visiting. Each one is completely different and because of distances, staying in or near each one is advised.
D.E.Bishop wrote:
I am pretty sure I am in the real minority here. Sharon and I have been members of the Association for several years and every time we visit we learn more. There are Ranger led talks and hikes on the South Rim and we have been on many of them. We go someplace new every visit and when we take the DGKs we're constantly on the go.
Did you know that on the Rim Trail there are examples of rocks from every layer and time span. The displays are every ten meters and there are books and guide maps explaining how every layer was formed.
There are several short hikes into the Canyon, from Bright Angel Trail Head down to Indian Garden and further East is the trail head for Ah Ha Point.
There are evening Ranger Talks at Mather Amphitheatre and nearby is a Shield that depicts the Indian Tribes and the Tribe Names are located in the directions where the Tribal Lands are located. The Southern Piutes are located Due North of the Canyon at Pipe Wells. A trip there is well worth the drive if you are on the North Rim. A fifteen or twenty minute video shows when you ask. Do not be surprised if you recognize Benn from the front desk in the video. A very interesting Piute Elder and a NP Ranger.
Kolb studio is under reconstruction but two of the five levels are open or partially open to the public. Parts of the first film made of rafting the Colorado through the Canyon is shown continuously. The film was made by the Kolb Brothers and has the record for the longest continuously shown movie ever made. The Brothers also took photos of the mule trains as they left the trail head on their trek to the bottom. A lot more to see is in the studio.
There are fossil beds just East of the Studio. Collecting is not allowed but sometimes there are Ranger led walks to the beds. Maps for the Beds and other POI's are available at the Visitors Center. California Condors are regularly seen from the rim along this area.
There are regularly scheduled Indian Cultural Dances and opportunities to chat with the dancers at the Hopi House.
The Watch Tower is not an actual Indian watch tower but a representation designed by Mary Coulter who designed many of the buildings in the Park including the GC Lodge.
In conjunction with The Grand Canyon Association and the Inter Tribal Council, the NPS is rebuilding the Watch Tower and eliminating some of the Cultural depictions that are considered Sacred to the local tribes. There will be a kiosk for each tribe in the Inter Tribal Council and special displays by local artists featured inside the Watch Tower.
There is a Grand Canyon Cemetery open to the public and many interesting stories surround the folks buried there.
Parking is limited but there is a free shuttle from the IMAX theatre in Tuysan to the South Rim Visitors Center. There are free shuttles throughout the South Rim area. Access to Hermits Point is by foot or shuttle. Those with Handicapped Placards can obtain a gate pass and drive to Hermit's Rest.
There is a great ice cream parlor by the hotel. They have hot dogs and other fair both at the ice cream Parlor and the café inside.
Both campgrounds are nice and May will probably be a low visitor time, except on the Memorial Weekend. Trailer Village was a real armpit until a few years ago but it was the only campground with hook up. The new campground is adjacent to the old and very nice. Mather is a typical old tyme NPS campground and originally for auto camping and not designed for 40' DP's. It is really a nice dry campground if your rig is under 34'.
I could spend awhile talking about Williams but others have already done that. I think that you can fill 4 days easily if you look past the displays in the visitors center and other buildings. We will be back in May next year and will hopefully stay at Mather CG for the Annual GC Association and money gathering week-end.
Whether you go to a National Park or a local Community Park, join the drive to find Your Park and support it.
PenMan wrote:
Just the rim, one day is more than enough.
Fizz wrote:
If you can't justify more than a few hours at the Grand Canyon you may as well stay home and rent the video.
