Planning a weekend trip to the Grand Canyon
 

Hi everyone,

I'll be going to Las Vegas the beginning of December and want to see the Grand Canyon. I'm planning for two nights there, so depending on the drive I should have an afternoon, a full day, and a morning there. I know it's not enough time to go all the way down and back up, but I hope to do some of the trails. Any suggestions?

It sounds like El Tovar is the nicest place to stay in the park. I reserved 2 nights there. Do I have to make restaurant reservations in advance too? Will I be able to drive right to the hotel and park there?

Thanks,
Carl

Good work on getting the El Tovar reservation.

It is a good idea to make dinner reservations, as then you can choose what time to eat rather than taking what is left. Sunset will be around 5:15 so you'll want to allow some time to enjoy that before dinner.

The drive from Las Vegas is about 5 hours. There is a parking lot very close to El Tovar, in front of the main entrance and about 20 yards away. People also park there for Hope House and other lodges, so sometimes it fills up. If need be you can pull up right in front and drop your bags, then go to the next parking lots, which is behind Thunderbird and Kachina Lodges. But in December is shouldn't be a problem.

You could hike partway down the Bright Angel trail your first afternoon, and hike the South Kaibab trail on your full day there. The Bright Angel trail starts right at the hotel area; just walk past Bright Angel Lodge and you will see it. The South Kaibab is reached by a shuttle bus (you cannot drive all the way to the trailhead in a private car). There are "hikers' express" busses at 7, 8 and 9 am from Bright Angel Lodge direct to the trailhead. Otherwise you need to take the "blue" shuttle route and transfer to the "green" shuttle route. A map they give you upon entry will explain all this.

The trails may be snowy or icy at the top, but should be well-traveled by the mules and foot traffic. Hiking poles and possibly traction devices (like Yaktrax) may help.

Listen to Enzian about hiking. Basically you have your choice of scenic drives,seeing historic sites, scenic overlooks, hiking along the rim, hiking below the rim. A helicopter tour is a great experience at the GC as well.

Thanks! Just a few other questions.

Does the shuttle run in December? The park website only has the schedule through November.

Can I walk to the Bright Angel trailhead from El Tovar? It's hard to judge the distance from the maps.

On the South Kaibab trail, will I have to carry water and lunch and everything? Sorry, I'm not an experienced hiker though I think I am in good shape.

Thanks again,
Carl

Re: shuttles in December: I'm actually not sure. The schedule does only show thru November. I thought they were pretty committed to the shuttle system and run them year 'round, but can't find confirmation on the website.

If the shuttle to the SK trailhead is not running, you will be allowed to drive there. But in the back of my mind, I believe I saw that they do run year 'round.

The Bright Angel trailhead is only a five-minute walk from El Tovar. Just follow the rim path past the Lookout studio and Kolb studio (which you will want to visit at some point) and it starts right there.

You might also want to walk out to Trail Overlook at some point---the views from there are great, and for some reason the condors like to soar just about there. To get there, stay on the rim path instead of turning right onto the Brigh tAngel trail. You will pass the mule corral and then follow the rim around to the right and out to a point witha fenced overlook.

The South Kaibab trailhead has NO water. You will need to carry water (at least a liter, better two) and lunch. Trail snacks (nuts, trail mix) is a good idea too. You'll also need a good weatherproof/windproof jacket, a fleece layer, and hat and gloves. (We needed all that at times even in April). There will be lots of other people and you won't be alone, but do exercies caution, and stay on the trail. If you are a novice hiker, you probably should limit your hike down to an hour or so. That should get you to Cedar Ridge (1.5 miles down), a good turnaround point. You'll be hiking back up to almost 7,000 feet at the rim, so even if you are in good shape, you may feel the altitude.

Another thing we enjoy is to rise early, dress warmly, grab a cup of coffee or tea (they put this out on the mezzanine at El Tovar in the morning, free for guests) and head outside to greet the sun and enjoy some solitude. Walk east along the rim path and you are likely to see deer.

That sounds great. I'll check on the shuttles later. They may update the schedule in a few weeks.

Thanks,
Carl

Yes, the shuttles do run in December. Also, the west rim drive to Hermits Rest will be open in December - you can either drive yourself or use the shuttle bus.

You can walk to the Bright Angel trailhead from El Tovar - paved walkway all the way, and it's not far.
The top portion of the trails will most likely be icy, although as the day warms up and there is more foot traffic, the ice turns to a sort of icy mush. I would definitely wear some sort of ice grippers.

Giddyup

Factor in the altitude: 7,000 ft. at the South Rim. From your post, we cannot tell where you live nor can we determine your age and physical condition. Temperatures will range from about 22 degrees at night to 45 degrees at midday in early December.

I'm in Las Vegas and will be headed over shortly. Just a few more questions.

Is Arizona in a different time zone than Las Vegas? I think it is at least part of the year, but when?

Is there a god place to see the sunset not far from El Tovar? how about the Trail Overlook?

Thanks,
Carl

Arizona is always in a different time zone (Mountain) than Las Vegas (Pacific). It's an hour later in Arizona than it is in Las Vegas.

Most of the state doesn't observe Daylight Savings Time, but that doesn't affect anything now as the whole country is on Standard Time.

<b>Arizona is always in a different time zone (Mountain) than Las Vegas (Pacific). It's an hour later in Arizona than it is in Las Vegas.</b>

Arizona (except for most of the Navajo Indian reservation) doesn't follow Daylight Savings, so in the winter we are on Mountain time (same time as Denver, an hour later than California) and in the summer we are in effect on Pacific time (same time as California).

Thanks Bill, that was just the explanation I was looking for.

Carl

&quot;Is there a good place to see the sunset not far from El Tovar?&quot;

El Tovar has a viewing area right in front of the hotel but you are at the back of a basin and the viewing is better on the outcrops of the basin (imagine a shallow letter &quot;U&quot; with the bottom of the &quot;U&quot; the location of the lodge, the tops of U the outcrops and the river and canyon just above the tops of the U).

The two best overlooks for sunset closest to El Tovar are Mather Point (which you can drive to, a couple of miles east of El Tovar) or Hopi Point to the west, which is only available via shuttle in December. You can also take the shuttle to Mather.

<b>Will I be able to drive right to the hotel (El Tovar) and park there?</b>

I haven't stayed at ET in a couple of years but it probably hasn't changed ... you can drive to the entrance and unload your bags. There was parking available on a first-come, first-served basis across the entrance behind a gift shop (this is the closest and the most level walking), and also parallel parking on the main road just beyond ET, and a huge parking lot at the train station depot across the road from ET. Parking lots fill up during the day with day-trippers but at night it's easy to find a spot.

If the paved lot by the El Tovar is full, we always found parking behind Verkamps, a little shop by the El Tovar parking lot. When you drive down the first row of parking spaces, go straight and follow the gravel drive around Verkamps--several spots there.

Click on my name for some easy and enjoyable hikes we took when we visited in March 2007. Several of our friends hiked down to Phantom Ranch while another group of us enjoyed hiking at the rim.

Thanks everyone! It was a great weekend. We left Vegas late so we didn't arrive until after sunset. We got up early to see the sunrise at Yapavi point which was great. After breakfast we hiked partway down the Bright Angel Trail which was also spectacular. We later drove out to Hopi Point later to see the sunset. The next day, we just did the Rim trail back to Yapavi, then headed back to Vegas.

Thanks again,
Carl