Worthy OF ITS name
October is the month to see the Grand Canyon at its best
With artifacts dating back nearly 12,000 years, it’s pretty safe to say that the great gash across the high desert of northern Arizona has been a major wonder for quite some time. And with the weather reaching temperate levels, there is no better time to visit Grand Canyon National Park (nps.gov/grca/index. htm), whether for a major hiking excursion or simply enjoying the views from the rim.
“I think the fall, October, is the best time to go by far,” said local fitness trainer Chris Brewington, who has visited the canyon 23 times in all seasons. “It’s my favorite time. It wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t too cold.”
“Even if you’ve been there, it never looks the same,” Brewington said. “The sun and the clouds and shadows, the weather. It’s always dif- ferent.”
The Grand Canyon attracts about five million visitors annually from all corners of the world –– about 90 percent of those seeing it for the first time from the readily accessible south rim.
“If someone just wanted to check it out, I always recommend the north rim,” he said. “There’s nowhere near the amount of people. It’s harder to get to. It’s spectacular. The rim sits way up high in the forest, and you feel like you’re in the mountains and all of sudden there’s canyon.”
As for hiking, “North Kaibab is probably my favorite trail there,” said Brewington, who owns and operates Brewington Fitness & Performance. “It’s a beautiful trip up and down. It’s a little farther drive but, coming off the north rim, it’s quite a bit higher. The views coming through there are just spectacular.”
About halfway down, Ribbon Falls “is a wonderful little oasis to be able to stop off the trail,” he said. “You go through all the different geologic zones on the north rim. It’s just kind of magical when you’re going down through. And you don’t realize how steep the drop is. You’re right there on the edge and you can fall a long way.”
Although dipping over the canyon rim onto the trails that head down is an incredible experience, Brewington said there’s plenty to see for those who prefer something a little less adventurous.
“The little drive out to Hermits Rest from the visitors center on the south rim is great,” he said. “You can bus out. Or there’s a hiking trail that can take you out there. And there’s shuttles that you can take if you get tired.”
Buster Mabrey, director of the New Mexico High School Coaches Association, has done the 20-plus mile, rim-to-rim excursion on the Kaibab Trail, which not only is an endurance test, but also a way to see the canyon up close and personal.
“I really enjoyed that one,” he said. “What’s really unique is it’s an allday affair and you have to expect that. When you finally get to the bottom, it’s always fun down there. You eat your peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and check out all the other people down there. There’s a lot of mutual respect.”
There are , of course, other ways to see the canyon, in particular the famous mule rides. Canyon Trail Rides (canyonrides.com) serves the North Rim and Grand Canyon Lodges (grandcanyonlodges.com) serves the South Rim. The latter is extremely popular and needs to be booked up to a year in advance.
Seeing the canyon from the bottom up while rolling along the roiling Colorado River is an experience unto itself and Colorado River Discovery (raftthecanyon.com) is one of several vendors that offers half-day and allday trips.
In addition to hiking, riding a mule or running the river, there are lessstrenuous ways to visit the canyon, like taking a helicopter tour offered by a number of different companies.