I just got back from leading couple of day hikes at the Grand Canyon and while I was catching up on things around the office, I spotted this neat article in Saturday’s Arizona Republic that’s perfectly timed. It’s titled ” A Grand Winter; Have the Canyon all to yourself more or less, in the off-season” . I have to agree with author Ron Dungan, the Grand Canyon is an amazing place in Winter and with the exception of the week between Christmas and New Year, the place isn’t crowded and you get a chance to see the canyon as few others do.
- Snow on the South Kaibab Trail - Grand Canyon
Once the snow falls in Northern Arizona, it sticks around for quite awhile on the higher elevations of the canyon’s north facing slopes. For people who decide to backpack the Grand Canyon, it makes for a surreal experience. You are essentially starting your trip in winter conditions but the snow stops as you head towards the bottom of the canyon and temperatures warm up considerably which makes for comfortable day time temps at the bottom. For example the average temperatures for the canyon bottom in February are 62 F - High and 42 F - Low which are great hiking temps although the nights can get to be chilly for some folks. If sleeping in a tent in 40 degree temps isn’t your cup of tea, I suggest day hiking a couple of days down a different trail each day. The three main trails I like to hike in winter are the South Kaibab, Bright Angel or Hermit Trails. This way you can experience the canyon and still sleep in a cozy bed at night.
Either way you will need to be prepared for conditions. Besides preparing as you normally would for your hike, make sure you use trekking poles, and instep crampons for hiking the upper parts of the trails. Typically, there can be packed snow on the Bright Angel trail as far as 3 miles down the trail so these items are must for traction. For updates on trail conditions, check with the Grand Canyon Backcountry Office and check weather conditions before starting as well. Have enough layers of clothing and extra snacks for hikes. Your body consumes more calories in cold weather to keep warm so don’t worry about sticking to any diet for hikes; have fun indulging.
I know that it may sound like a plug for tourism at the Grand Canyon to encourage people to go during the off season but the guests on yesterday’s hike we’re thrilled that we had the resthouse at Santa Maria Springs all to ourselves and we spotted some coyote tracks in snow that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Even if you go to the canyon and spend the entire time on the rim, you will spend less time finding parking spots at the viewpoints and have more time to enjoy the views.
Tags: Grand Canyon Backpacking, Grand Canyon hiking, Grand Canyon Winter hiking
