North Rim Grand Canyon
We left Tuba City to head to the North Rim. On the way, we stopped at Horseshoe Bend, a place near Page AZ with an iconic photo. Unfortunately, we were there at 10:30am. The light was terrible. I took a couple of shots hoping to be able to do something with one of them later in Photoshop. They were unredeemable. Hence, there is no Horseshoe Bend photograph here.
We had been unable to get a campsite at the National Park. Instead, we had reservations at a Forest Service campground at Jacob Lake, about an hour’s drive north of the Visitor’s Center. We were really happy with the campground. It’s in a ponderosa forest at about 8,000 feet. The toilets were vault toilets, but they were the cleanest vault toilets we’ve ever seen. That’s important.
We had a great time spending that afternoon, evening, and the following day at the rim.
North Rim Grand Canyon
The North Rim is very different than the South Rim. It’s remote. It’s far less Crowded. It doesn’t have a single drive along the rim. Instead it has roads, sometimes long roads, to viewpoints. We explored the viewpoints with paved roads leading to them. Some of them had a little walk, but nothing most people couldn’t do.
The North Rim is easier to photograph in the summer, because the sun is at a better angle throughout the day.
North Rim Grand Canyon
The village area has a great looking hotel. It looks like an attractive option for those who prefer more comfort than a cheap van in a cheap campground can offer. However, a cheap van in a cheap campground has it’s own pleasures. We like it.
There is a deli and a saloon at the village. When we are on the road, we eat one meal a day at restaurant or deli. Here, we got some great brisket sandwiches at the deli and ate them in the saloon with some pretty good craft beers.
We had seen patches of snow along the roads from our campground to the viewpoints. On our last night a storm blew through bringing rain, hail, and even snow. It was cold enough that it was difficult to get up in the morning to drive to our next destination, Chinle in the Navajo Reservation.
