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| | | Grand Canyon - North Rim, AZ | | | |
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Grand Canyon - North Rim, AZ
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| Hiking | 7.77 Miles |
1,266 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.77 Miles | 54 Mns | | 8.63 mph |
| 1,266 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | Because of a blown transformer and unplanned power outage on the North Rim — and an extra day spent in Zion — we ended up canceling a day’s worth of hikes on the North Rim. Making the drive in from Zion National Park, we took the picturesque Route 67 and headed straight to the end of Cape Royal Road for our first hike of the day. I had never been to this side of the park before, so it was all new to me. Temperatures stayed in the 60s and 70s all day, which was a treat.
Cape Royal Trail
This is an easy, mostly paved trail that leads you out to the end of Cape Royal, passing directly over Angels Window. You can’t help but be awestruck by the views.
Cliff Spring Trail
This one turned out to be better than expected. It’s a short trail that drops past an ancient granary and into a canyon that opens up with views into the Big Ditch. You walk beneath a nice, subway-like ledge, where more moisture seeps from the walls and ceiling than springs. I followed the trail to its published end, where a faint route could be seen continuing.
Walhalla Pueblo Ruins
We didn’t spend much time here.
Cape Final Trail
Much of this trail winds through the shade of tall ponderosa pines. Along the way, there are a few spots where you can take short side trips for views into the canyon. The payoff is at the end, where you can scramble up a slight mound of boulders, take a break, and soak it all in from the edge.
[ youtube video ]
There’s a sweet camping spot right at the end — we talked to a guy spending the night there who said he was surprised by how many open dates were available when he reserved it.
Point Imperial Overlook
Point Imperial is the highest point in all of Grand Canyon National Park, standing at 8,803 feet. Two hikes begin or end at Point Imperial: the Ken Patrick Trail, which eventually leads back to the lodge, and the Point Imperial Trail, which heads north to the Nankoweap Trail #57. We opted to just hang at the overlook, take in the views, and enjoy some lunch.
[ youtube video ]
North Rim Lodge
Deb had never been to the North Rim Lodge, so we had to stop by for a quick tour. To our surprise, they had just opened the lodge for business about 10 minutes before we arrived. At the time, they were running everything on generators — everything except the restaurants and bar. Full operations were expected to resume by the end of the day on Monday, 6/9/2025, after being down for a week.
We walked around the lodge and out along the Bright Angel Point Trail until we hit the closure. It’s expected to remain closed for the entire 2025 season. We also visited both lookouts below the lodge before heading to Jacob Lake for some dinner and cookies!
After dinner, we made our way to our new "rustic" accommodations at the Lees Canyon Lodge. While the restaurant there is no longer open, we came close to closing down the bar after a long day. Bar hours are 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. |
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Wildflowers Observation Light
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Cliff Spring |
Dripping |
Dripping |
| | | Not sure about the spring, but along the alcove in the hike, it was moist with seepage. | | _____________________
There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry  |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
This was my last hike for the day. Nice views and Angels Window is cool. Easy walking.
. At one point, I could look over at the other outcrop and see a few teenagers sitting on the edge of a sheer 500 foot drop, with the terrace behind them packed full of people. One of the said teenagers had his entire torso turned so that he could not see the Canyon, but was planted right on its edge, and was throwing pebbles at his friends. His torso would occasionally lean back toward the empty space while winding up for throws. I've seen plenty of stupid people at the Canyon rim before, but this kid was king of stupid. And if he would have fallen, from where I was sitting, I would've witnessed the full fall plus the impact on the Toroweap shelf below. As for sunset, there were no clouds, except for the smoke blowing in from San Bernardino. Had a nice time, but the negative human factors at this location were more than I care to deal with when viewing a Grand Canyon sunset.
