May 30, 2017
As a North Rim Ranger I usually tell visitors to drive the 23 miles to the end of the Cape Royal Road first then work their way back, stopping at the multiple overlooks on the right side of the road for safety. Good advice, but I planned for sunset at Cape Royal so stopped at several of the viewpoints on the way instead.
Drove past the North Kaibab trail head where because the parking lot would have been full many vehicles park along the road. Lots of rim to rim hikers in the spring and some day hikers go down maybe a mile or two. Actually, only 1% of visitors get over the rim. Yet parking lots are small at the North Rim where only 10% of the six million visit Grand Canyon National Park.
At the turn off onto the Cape Royal Road the 2000 Outlet Fire is visible where hillsides of young aspen glow.
Quite the contrast between the 16 year old Outlet burn and last year’s Fuller burn seen on the left.
A hazy view greeted me at Point Imperial caused by wind blown smoke from prescribed burns on the south side of the canyon near the town of Tusayan just south of the park.
More evidence of the Fuller Fire could also be seen.
Yet after a fire the wildflowers are often bountiful like these Larkspur.
Second stop, Greenland Lake which was surprisingly full of water.
The view at Walhalla overlook was still a bit hazy. But could still see the Colorado River at Unkar rapid and delta. Everybody’s favorite tree to pose by makes me nervous when I see people lean on it or sit on one of the very dead branches.
Stopped at the Cliff Spring trail parking for a view of Angels Window. There is a short spur off the Cape Royal trail to walk on top of the fin with the window.
But I chose to go to the wedding site for my picnic dinner and to watch the light and shadow play plus sunset.
