It’s probably the most famous national park, but did you know that the Grand Canyon is also accessible by public transport year-round, even in winter?
1 . Fly/Amtrak to Flagstaff, AZ.
Amtrak also goes to Williams, AZ, where you can transfer to the Grand Canyon Railway at the station, and take that into the park. However, I chose to take a shuttle from the airport because the GCR was more expensive and would also have required me to drag my suitcase through the park to my lodging.
2. Shuttle from Flagstaff Airport/Amtrak to Grand Canyon.
Arizona Shuttle runs 2-3 shuttles daily from Flagstaff to the Maswick Lodge in the park. It picks up at the airport and the train station, and costs $28 each way. It will also drop you off in the gateway community of Tusayan, which is connected to the park by a shuttle that only runs during the summer months.
3. Stay at the Maswick Lodge.
This is the cheapest of the in-park lodging options, and has a park shuttle stop and a cafeteria located right next door to it. This is also the park drop-off point for Arizona Shuttle. Warning: some of the rooms in the Maswick have no AC, which I believe is the main reason they are cheaper than the other lodging options since the rooms are otherwise perfectly decent. Since I went in January, this wasn’t an issue for me, and their heat is fully functional.
4. Park Shuttle System
This is the only national park I’ve found that has a year-round shuttle within the park (though some of the island ones have year-round ferries). In winter, only two routes were running- the Blue Route that connects the park lodging facilities, parking, and visitor center, and the Orange Route to the South Rim overlooks and trailheads. From spring to fall, the park adds an additional route to scenic overlooks in the opposite direction of the Orange Route, and in summer only there is a shuttle bus to the gateway town of Tusayan, which opens up more lodging options for car-less travelers.
5. Day 1: South Kaibab Trail and Rim Trail to Hermit’s Rest
In the morning I took the shuttle bus to the South Kaibab Trail and hiked down into the canyon, about a half mile past Cedar Ridge. Since it was January, there was a little bit of snow and ice on top of the trail, but not enough to pose a substantial slipping hazard if you go carefully. As many signs will warn you, the hike back up is very strenuous, so the comparatively short mileage is highly misleading. I’m VERY glad I was not hiking this in summer.
View near the top
Looking down into the canyon
First turnaround point
Burro rides are also available if you don’t feel up for the steep hike
The South Kaibab trail headed down the canyon- I love the contrasting rock colors!
After taking the shuttle back to Maswick Lodge, I followed the Rim Trail on the edge of the canyon away from the lodging area and shuttle bus routes for sunset. This is the path that the Red Route of the shuttle bus follows when it is running, but it is an easy hike to do without the aid of a bus. Depending on the time of day you look at the canyon, the rocks always appear different colors. The sunset made the colors morph to shades of pink, purple, and green.
Colors as the sun was setting
About ten minutes after the sun went down behind the canyon
6. Day 2: Rim Trail and Yaki Point
The second day I ditched the shuttle bus and walked the Rim Trail from Bright Angel Lodge to the South Kaibab trailhead. I also did a tour of Kolb Studio along the way that is only available in winter due to the summer crowds. The studio hangs off the edge of the canyon and was one of the earliest tourist businesses there. It was fascinating seeing how the two owners managed to film a movie of themselves going down the Colorado River in 1911!
Kolb Studio
Walking along the Rim Trail, there were some breathtaking viewpoints that you would miss out on if you just took the shuttle from stop to stop, and was a very easy, mostly paved, path. After I reached the end of the trail, I took the shuttle to Yaki Point and did a little hiking on the trails before watching sunset.
Rim Trail
Rim Trail
Cloud shadows in the late afternoon
More cloud shadows across the canyon
The next morning, I woke up to catch the sunrise colors on the canyon and then took the shuttle back for my return flight to the airport. Overall, I would highly recommend going in winter like I did. The temperatures were perfect for hiking, in the low 60s and high 50s, as opposed to the summer, when it can reach 100 near the canyon floor, with monsoon rains in July and August. Additionally, even on a holiday weekend, the crowds were light in January, and the lodging costs and flights were cheaper than during other times of the year. The only downside is that one of the shuttle lines doesn’t start running until March, but the route is easily walkable if you absolutely have to see it.
Sunrise red colors on the rim
Peramblings 