Grand Canyon
National Park
The Grand Canyon is an inspiring and powerful landscape. The Grand Canyon South Rim is located 90 miles northwest of Flagstaff, Arizona and marks the northern edge of a high plateau whose gray-green forests stand out in vivid contrast to the arid lands below the rim. From here the cliffs of Grand Canyon drop 5,000 feet/1,500 meters to the Colorado River, crossing several biotic zones. Nowhere on this planet are the scope of geologic time and the power of geologic processes as superbly and beautifully exposed as in these canyon walls.
The Grand Canyon North Rim is only 10 miles across the Grand Canyon from the Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim but it is 215 miles by car from the South Rim. The Grand Canyon North Rim places you on the edge of a vastness of scenery, time, and opportunity. The view confirms the tremendous uplift that has occurred, leaving the canyon’s North Rim 1,000 feet/300 meters higher than the South Rim. A great walk from the Grand Canyon Lodge is to Bright Angel Point and is 8,148 feet/2,484 meters above sea level (5,780 feet/1,762 meters above the Colorado River).
The Grand Canyon South Rim is open year round and receives 90% of the parks visitors. The Grand Canyon North rim is about 1,000 feet higher in elevation than the South Rim and is only open from May until November when the snows close the main road.
