Boating: How to Boat: Advanced: Paddle Sports
Paddling Our National Parks: Grand Canyon
National Park
Paddling the Land of Wow: Rivers of our National Parks
by Ben Long
Courtesy of Article Resource Association www.aracopy.com
Some five million visitors gaze into this chasm every year. But only a tiny fraction of them-perhaps 100,000 souls-actually visit the Colorado River itself. The Colorado flows through 227 miles of Grand Canyon National Park. Most visitors peer off the south rim, see the tiny trickle a mile below, and then rush to the Imax Theater in Tusayan to see the river on the big screen.
For those who prefer reality, there are three ways to visit the "inner gorge": by foot, mule, or raft.
Walking is arguably the best way to appreciate the depth and timelessness of the Grand. It's also the most physically demanding. There are people who have hiked down and back in a single day, but rangers strongly discourage it. The hike demands a 5,000-foot elevation change each way, often in blazing heat with no water. Good sense dictates hikers take at least two days. Look at it this way: It took a few hundred million years to build this canyon, so why rush?
Riding a mule is demanding in a different way, but still an adventure. The mule trains are a canyon tradition, dating to the days Teddy Roosevelt rode a particularly stout mule to the bottom. Phantom Ranch, on the river's edge, is a main destination for an overnight stay, via Bright Angel Trail from South Rim.
Each year, 20,000 people raft the Grand Canyon. About two-thirds of those are clients in commercial groups and one third are private boaters. For many, the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River is the ultimate rafting experience.
The trip can take weeks and includes mighty white water. However, demand for permits far exceeds supply, particularly if you don't hire an outfitter. If you start applying for a permit right now, count on waiting 10 years or more before you're rewarded. With the Grand Canyon's global reputation, don't expect the wait to get any shorter. A commercial trip eliminates the wait, but can cost $300 per person per day.
Wow factor? Watching a meteor shower zip from rim to rim on a moonless night while listening to the roar of a downstream rapid.
Contact: Superintendent, Grand Canyon National Park, Box 129, Grand Canyon, AZ, 86023. Phone (520) 638-7888.
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