5 Tips to Avoid Grand Canyon Crowds

Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona is one of America's most visited National Parks. The breathtaking scenery draws people from all over the world. If you're not careful you can find yourself on a crowded bus looking out a dusty window at one of Mother Nature's greatest accomplishments. There are simple ways that you can find solitude in the Grand Canyon for you and your family.

Me and the view from the South Rim

1. GET OFF THE BUS. Many visitors to the Grand Canyon arrive at the Visitor's Center and immediately hop on a shuttle bus. The shuttle buses take you places your car cannot and are a an easy way to find your away around the park. The blue line does a loop through Grand Canyon village, the hub for hotels, restaurants and shops. The red and orange lines run along the rim in opposite directions and make frequent stops at various lookout points. The buses are great. They cut down on pollution, take you from point A to point B and the drivers are always full of interesting facts and information. For most people, this is how they see the Grand Canyon. If you are looking to avoid the crowds, hop off the bus. At most of the lookout points there are benches or rocks that are suitable for sitting. Take a few quite moments to listen to the sounds of the canyon...the birds or the wind. Ten minutes of staring out at the Canyon will give you a real sense of its' enormity. 

Fellow hiker coming up out of the canyon

2. TAKE A HIKE. Even if you are only visiting the Grand Canyon for the day, you still have enough time to take a short hike. The vast majority of visitors never leave the South Rim of the Canyon. Even walking a half of a mile down a trail into the canyon changes your perspective and just when you think it couldn't get anymore beautiful, it does. My favorite hike was on the South Kaibab trail. You can take the orange line bus right to the trailhead. There are three turnaround points for day hikers, in order, Ooh Ahh Point, Cedar Ridge and Skeleton Point. Remember, how far you go down, you have to come back up. It is very easy to keep going on your way down but be mindful of how far you've gone and your experience level. You will see signs EVERYWHERE that warn you about having enough water for your hike. Think about how much water you think you should bring and then double that. It is very easy to find yourself dehydrated on the trail. Take your time as you go down and enjoy the different views. The inside of the canyon walls tell an incredible geological history. Looking up from inside the canyon creates an automatic sense of wonder that I never got when I looked down from the rim. If you have more time to spend and are in good shape you can hike to the bottom of the canyon, spend the night and hike back up. An adventure like this requires proper planning and the Backcountry Information Center can help you with all of the details. 

Elk cruising through the campground

3. CAMP. Camping isn't for everyone. If you have the interest and the supplies, it is a great way to escape the crowds. Mather Campground, just outside of the Grand Canyon Village, is an easy home base for exploring the canyon through day hikes. The sites are spacious and often your only disturbance is the elk that come through the place like they own it. My first morning I unzipped my tent to find a large elk just standing around. If you haven't seen elk up close, they look like deer on steroids. Not as big as a moose typically, but still having a rather large animal feet away from your flimsy tent can be unnerving. If you are patient and wait for them to move along at their own pace, you have the opportunity to enjoy the wildlife without putting yourself at risk. 

Enjoying time in the hammock

4. EXPLORE.  But, don't be stupid. People need to be rescued every year at the Grand Canyon because they are lost, dehydrated, injured, etc. You can get away from the crowds and still be safe. Many of the trails into the canyon are too difficult for young children and the elderly, but there are portions of the rim trail that are paved bike paths and wheel chair accessible. Take a walk along one of these paths that brings you away from the main lookout points. Granted, the lookout points are often the best viewpoints to see the canyon but I found many smaller areas between lookout points also provided great views and I was able to enjoy those alone. One afternoon I took the orange line bus to the further stop and with my hammock walked along an unpaved trail for about 10 minutes. It was a safe little trail and there was no way to get lost because it followed right along the rim of the canyon. Once I found a spot with a nice view, I took out my portable hammock that cost me less than $20. I hung that up and for an hour, I relaxed and enjoyed the view. During that hour, one couple walked by me. For that time period, it felt like I had the canyon to myself. 

Moon setting in the morning

5. OFF-PEAK. During my first day in the Grand Canyon I noticed that mid-day and sunset were particularly crowded times of the day. In an attempt to avoid the crowds, I decided to do most of my exploring in the early mornings. Granted, I live on the east coast so my body clock was naturally set three hours earlier. I was waking up on my own around 5 am anyway. The benefit of the early morning hikes are threefold, you avoid the crowds, the weather is cooler and you can see the sunrise over the Grand Canyon. For all of you romantics, the sunset is equally as beautiful, but you'll have to share that with 1000 other couples. Sunrise on the other hand, can easily be enjoyed alone. There are few things more beautiful than watching the sun rise over one shoulder and the moon setting over the other. 

Bottom line is that there are a lot of visitors to the Grand Canyon. You will have to deal with crowds regardless. These five tips will help you minimize those dealings and hopefully you have your magical moment with Mother Nature. Without much work you can find a spot to sit alone and imagine what it was like for Native Americans or Early Settlers to feel like they were all alone with this big hole in the ground.