First rule — don’t fall in
GRA ND CANYON VILLAGE, Ariz. — We are talking with Merry, a giftshop cashier, about the subject seemingly on everyone’s mind: the perils of the Grand Canyon — more specifically, the threat of falling into it. Suddenly, Merry’s smile turns to alarm as she interrupts our chat and rushes to the walkway on the edge of the canyon’s south rim.
Two young Japanese tourists have clambered over a half-metre-high rock wall to pose for a selfie on a small gravel-covered shelf, a mere three short steps from an unimpeded drop of up to one thousand metres to the canyon floor below.
“You shouldn’t be standing there — please climb back over,” Merry pleads as the couple sheepishly step back to safety behind the barrier.
Back in the shop she shakes her head. “I have to do that a few times a day.”
Their seemingly innocent mistake is one that hundreds have made since tourists began visiting the Grand Canyon in the early 1900s.
Some don’t get away with it. About 12 people die annually, notes a popular paperback that has assembled the canyon’s grim statistics.
Some tourists have fallen accidentally while taking a few steps back to get a better photo of sites like the stunning El Tovar Hotel, according to a book called Over the Edge — Death in Grand Canyon.
They note that being male and young is a big risk factor. Of the 55 people who have accidentally fallen from the rim of the canyon, 39 were male. Eight of those men were hopping from one rock to another or posing for pictures, including a 38-year-old father from Texas pretending to fall to scare his daughter, and who then really did fall more than 120 metres to his death.
Yet the vast majority of the estimated five million annual visitors safely demonstrate you can photograph one of America’s most popular tourist attractions without coming to harm.
Located in Northern Arizona, the Grand Canyon stretches for 445 kilometres with panoramic views best shot at dawn and sunset.
The South Rim, about a four-hour drive from Phoenix, is more popular than the North Rim, which many access from Las Vegas.
Being railway buffs, we chose the connecting three-hour drive from Phoenix to the tiny town of Williams, the southern terminus of the Grand Canyon Railway. The railway ride attracts about 105,000 passengers annually and is particularly popular with young families and seniors.
During the leisurely 2 ½ -hour trip, passengers are serenaded by singing cowboys, with their personal collections of corny but warm jokes. Outside, the train is accosted by gun-toting robbers who come through the cars with hands outstretched, hitting up the passengers for donations to support local sports teams.
Given the flat and uniform sagebrush-dotted scenery, the best value is in the air-conditioned day coaches where fares are half of what they cost for the scenic dome cars or the premium-class rolling parlour stock, decked out in authentic furnishings from an era when train travel was de rigueur.
Many make it a day trip to Grand Canyon Village, disembarking to hike the paths and visit the sights, and then return to Williams by 6 p.m. We elected to stay overnight at Maswick Lodge, one of several comfortable and economical accommodations in the park.
The more well-heeled, from presidents Teddy Roosevelt and Bill Clinton, to an assortment of movie stars and business magnates, stay at the remarkable 78-room El Tovar, a rustic but elegant hotel perched just nine metres from the canyon’s edge.
Built by the Santa Fe Railway and the Fred Harvey Company as a destination resort, El Tovar opened in 1905. Its limestone and pine log construction and cedar shingle roof launched a new genre of architecture called National Park Service rustic. Inside is an eclectic blend of Mission style, Arts and Crafts furnishings and native American art accents. Left over from the old days are authentic mounted moose heads above the doorways.
Visitors have many ways to enjoy the canyon itself. The mainly paved South Rim walk is the gateway to stunning canyon vistas, a geological museum, historic artists’ retreats, a bookstore built out over the edge, an interpretative 100-step walk through geological time or an escorted mule ride down the Bright Angel Trail to the Colorado River 1,335 metres below.
Be sure to reserve a rim-side seat at the Arizona Room and enjoy a leisurely dinner at sunset.