Nature Wildlife Photography

On Saturday, May 19, 2012 – Armed Forces Day – the National Park Service will begin issuing an annual pass offering free entrance to all 397 national parks for active duty military members and their dependents.

On the afternoon of June 5, 2012, there will be public telescope viewing of a rare Transit of Venus at the South Rim’s Grand Canyon Visitor Center. Then, from Saturday, June 16 through Saturday, June 23, the twenty-second annual Grand Canyon Star Party will be held on both the South and North Rims of the park.

NORTH RIM

The Point Sublime road is currently open and accessible from Highway 67 within the park. The W4 Road and the W1 Road to the W4 intersection have been cleared of debris. The road from Highway 67 to Point Sublime is in very rough shape, worse than last year. High clearance four-wheel-drive strongly recommended.

Point Sublime is NOT accessible from the Forest Service boundary north of Kanabownits. The road north of Kanabownits has NOT been cleared of debris, and thus the Swamp Ridge road remains inaccessible at this time.

The Saddle Mountain Trailhead (access to Nankoweap from the Kaibab Plateau) has several logs laying halfway across the road. Vehicles can get around the logs, but passage is narrow. Wide vehicles may have some difficulty reaching the trailhead.

Hikers considering traveling dirt roads to remote trailheads should contact the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest at 928-643-7395, the Tusayan Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest on the South Rim at 928-635-4061 or the Backcountry Information Center for current conditions.

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It is not uncommon for trees to fall and block access to remote trailheads. When you encounter a road blocked by fallen trees, what should you do?

• Report the location and diameter of the tree to Grand Canyon park dispatch (928-638-7805) as soon as possible. The park will assign staff to clear the road.
• If an appropriate (not blocking the road and not damaging vegetation) place to park is available, park your vehicle and continue to the trailhead on foot.
• Do not drive off-road attempting to bypass the obstacle, doing so can cause resource damage.

The North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park opened for the summer season on May 15, 2012.

Purified drinking water is available year-round at Bright Angel and Indian Garden Campgrounds and at Bright Angel and South Kaibab trailheads.

The list below reflects seasonal changes and will be updated when water is turned on or off.

• North Kaibab Trailhead: water turned ON
• Supai Tunnel: water turned ON
• Roaring Springs Day Use Area: water turned ON
• Cottonwood Campground: water turned ON
• Bright Angel Campground: ON year-round (except when being repaired)
• Indian Garden: ON year-round (except when being repaired)
• Bright Angel Trail, Three-Mile Resthouse: water turned ON
• Bright Angel Trail, Mile-and-a-Half Resthouse: water turned ON
• Bright Angel Trailhead: ON year-round
• South Kaibab Trailhead: ON year-round

Seasonal water stations are usually turned off for the winter sometime between Oct 10th and 30th dependent on location and associated temperatures.

Water available (year-round) on the South Rim at the Backcountry Information Center in the lobby. Water available (year-round) on the North Rim outside the Backcountry Information Center. Additional water bottle filling stations can be found on the Go "Green" and Refill Your Water Bottles web page.

Plan Ahead and Prepare: A backup method to treat water, should the pipeline break, must always be included as part of your first aid kit. Backcountry hikers should always carry extra water.