Grand Canyon News

…Boy, that’d take an awfully big pool cover!  Just playin.’  

Sorry, guys, but when folks ask “do you close up the Canyon at night?” one’s mind just tends to form these funny little pictures of two guys in gray overalls turning this huge crank….“OK, Bernie, let’s cover it up!”  Or…maybe it’s just MY mind that forms the funny pictures. 

Anyway, today’s question – which, by the way, is a perfectly legitimate question – is about the hours of operation of Grand Canyon National Park.  Grand Canyon South Rim is open year-round.  The entrance gates are staffed during the day by the rangers of the National Park Service, who collect your entrance fees, distribute park maps and guides, and answer your questions about the park.  They’re there during the daylight hours, which of course, vary with the season.  The actual park gates, though, are open 24/7, which means you can enter and exit the park any time of day or night.  Grand Canyon North Rim is only open for about 5–6 months a year (mid-May through mid-October, weather permitting), but during its season, same rules apply (rangers at the gate during daytime, gates open 24/7). 

So, for those of you not expecting to arrive at the park until late at night, you won’t be shut out… but you might get shot down IF you don’t have reservations for those Grand Canyon hotels.  Have you made yours yet? 

Wayne Gustaveson didn’t ask me personally to write this entry.  But in his most recent fishing column, he asked those who love Lake Powell, the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River to “do everything within their power” to get this message out, thus I am doing my own small part to help.   

Wayne Gustaveson is a fisheries biologist with the Utah Division of Wildlife and the author of a column called “Wayne’s Words.”  Usually devoted to helping anglers catch more fish at Lake Powell (which is just 2.5 hours away from the Grand Canyon), Gustaveson’s most recent column had a more urgent tone as it warned boaters across the nation to beware of a tiny little shellfish with the power to take a lot of the fun out of Lake Powell: the Quagga Mussel. 

Recently discovered in Lakes Mead, Mojave and Havasu, the Quagga Mussel makes the once-feared Zebra Mussel look, as Salt Lake Tribune columnist Brett Prettyman put it, “wimpy.”  Native to the Ukraine, Quaggas multiply rapidly, devour plankton and produce a waste that depletes the water of oxygen as it decomposes.  Not only can these awful things permanently alter a waterway’s ecological balance in short order, they can do heavy damage to boat engines, water intake pipes and beaches (when they die, they leave behind thousands of their empty shells for you to cut your feet on). 

If Quagga Mussels find their way to Lake Powell, the quality (and quantity) of the Lake’s fisheries could decline sharply.  All the fun we’ve had frolicking on Lake Powell’s sandy beaches and catching stripers and catfish in her beautiful bays could become a distant memory.  We can’t let this happen. 

Here are some things you can do to help before launching your boat in Lake Powell:

1. Drain the water from your motor, live well, and bilge on land before leaving the immediate area of the mussel infested lake. 

2. Flush the motor and bilges with hot, soapy water or a 5% solution of household bleach. 

3. Completely inspect your vessel and trailer, removing any visible mussels, but also feel for any rough or gritty spots on the hull. These may be young mussels that can be hard to see. 

4. Wash the hull, equipment, bilge and any other exposed surface with hot, soapy water or use a 5% solution of household bleach.  

5. Clean and wash your trailer, truck or any other equipment that comes in contact with lake water. Mussels can live in small pockets anywhere water collects. 

6. Air-dry the boat and other equipment for at least five days before launching in any other waterway.

With everyone’s help and vigilance, may Lake Powell continue its tradition of world-class fishing and unmatched water fun, just a couple of hours from the Grand Canyon.  For more information, visit www.nps.gov/glca or www.protectyourwaters.net

A rare thing happened at GrandCanyon.com yesterday.  A “Would-Bee” Grand Canyon visitor asked a question that had never been asked before!  :)

No offense, folks, but after all the years we’ve spent in the area (some of our employees were born and raised here), we’ve pretty much heard all the questions that can possibly “bee” asked about the Grand Canyon.  This particular lady had a good one.  The East Coast resident reported that some friends of theirs had visited the Grand Canyon last year and encountered what she called “big black bugs flying around.”  She was wondering two things: 1. what were these bugs? and 2. should she fear them? 

I remembered these critters well from my 7 years at Grand Canyon South Rim.  Say hello to the Carpenter Bee.  Like honeybees, Carpenter Bees collect pollen and nectar.  But, as revealed in an article by Michael Waldvogel of the Entomogolgy Department at the University of North Carolina published in 2003, Carpenter Bees are - literally - ”boring.”  Read on:

“Carpenter bees use their strong jaws to drill circular tunnels into exposed wooden surfaces. Unlike termites, they’re not interested in your porch or shed as food, but as a protected refuge for their offspring.  Distinguished from bumblebees by their glossy black tails, carpenter bees excavate round, half-inch-diameter entrance holes for these nests, then drill horizontally into the wood, along the grain, for six or seven inches. The female deposits her eggs in this tunnel.”

When I first saw one of these little guys, to quote Gloria Gaynor, “first I was afraid, I was petrified.”  These bees are big – much bigger than your average honeybee.  They don’t buzz, but I remember they had a low frequency “hum.” They also fly slower than their smaller sleeker cousins.  A bee that maybe senses a threat to its nest will sometimes hover in front of a  perceived invader, but I’ve never seen them chase people.  Indeed, Waldvogel says that:

“Carpenter bees are far more interested in foraging and other bee-tasks than pestering you. Males don’t have stingers, but will let you know if you’re intruding on their territory. Females, which do have stingers, use them only if highly agitated.”

So, “Do Bee” aware that you’ll probably encounter Carpenter Bees on your Grand Canyon vacation; but “Don’t Bee” afraid – like other Grand Canyon insects, chances are virtually nil that they’ll hurt you as long as you “let them Bee.”  Remember, this is a National Park, so we don’t use chemicals like bug sprays.  We try our best to let the wildlife stay wild.  

P.S.  For more information on desert wildlife, plants, history, etc., DesertUSA.com publishes a delightful newsletter called “Digital Desert.”  It’s LLLLOOOOOOOAAAAADDDDDEEEEEDDD (I’m doing my best Ron White impression here) with  information to help you get the most out of your Grand Canyon vacation and beyond – I subscribe to it myself!  Interested?  Click here.

Wow.  2007 is barely 3 weeks old and already it promises to be a year full of change!  It truly is the only constant in this world, and it’s certainly a constant here at GrandCanyon.com.  We’ve been busy helping lots of you get your Grand Canyon hotels and tours reserved – clearly, you’ve taken our advice to heart about getting your ducks in a row ASAP for your Grand Canyon vacation and you’ll definitely be glad you did.  We’ve also been posting a lot of new Grand Canyon tour videos.  We’re particularly proud of our Grand Canyon Railway video – take a gander if you get a minute!

Getting back on the subject at hand … well, I have a few subjects on the agenda…  One thing I wanted to discuss today was Grand Canyon camping.  You may think that if you’re camping, you don’t need to plan ahead like you would if you were staying at hotels.  Let me tell you – from 20 years’ experience – that that assumption is just flat out W-R-O-N-G!  During the summer months, campgrounds can be every bit as busy as hotels, and reservations are every bit as necessary (with a few exceptions – keep reading), and next month, the place to go to make those reservations will change. 

Effective February 7th, the National Recreation Reservations Service will take care of National Park camping reservations: online, visit www.Recreation.gov  If you prefer to make reservations by phone, call toll free 877–444–6777.  Apparently this service will take care of all the National Park campgrounds in the country, which is good – one stop shopping!  So if you’ll be visiting our campgrounds, make your reservations soon, but don’t try to make ‘em today – the systems are in transition mode until the 7th and will not “go live” until then.  RV spaces are still managed by Xanterra South Rim LLC, who can be reached at 888–297–2757, 303–297–2757 or www.grandcanyonlodges.com  To every rule, there is of course an exception, sometimes a few.  In this case, there are a few car campgrounds that operate on a first-come first-served basis.  To learn more about these campgrounds, take a look at my post-script to this entry.  

This change WILL NOT apply to camping in the inner canyon, such as Cottonwood, Indian Gardens or the Bright Angel Campground near Phantom Ranch.  These reservations are still taken care of by the Backcountry Office of the National Park Service.  Backcountry permits for Bright Angel Campground and elsewhere open four months ahead of time for the proposed month of your trip (i.e., if you want to camp in September, you can make reservations as of May 1), and they typically get booked up as soon as they become available.  For more information on how to obtain a backcountry camping permit at the Canyon, click here.  Dorms, cabins and meals at Phantom Ranch are still manged by Xanterra (see contact info above). 

Speaking of Bright Angel – the Lodge this time – renovations are underway at this historic property designed by famed female architect Mary Jane Colter.  Dating back to 1935, Bright Angel Lodge  (a Xanterra property as well) consists of European-style rooms with shared baths and others with private bath.  My favorites are the charming cabins, some of which are located right on the canyon rim!  From now through April 30th, the lodge rooms will be closed as furniture is  refinished, fixtures are replaced, and walls and ceilings are repainted.  The boardwalk that connects some of the rooms to the main lobby is also scheduled for replacement.  The main lobby of the lodge, including the Transportation Desk, Coffee Shop, Lounge and Gift Shop will remain open.  The Arizona Room is closed through February (which is their usual seasonal closure). 

What does this mean to you?  Well…. it means that 80 or so of the area’s most economically priced rooms will be out of commission over Spring Break, making it even more important that you get hotel reservations made if you’re visiting us then.  In March, you can still take advantage of off-season rates at several Grand Canyon hotels, including our preferred hotel, the Best Western Grand Canyon Squire Inn.  Standard rooms, for example, are $89/night, deluxe rooms are $109/night through March 31st, which is a $50 per night savings over peak season.  The Squire is actually a really nice hotel (I’ve stayed there myself several times) and an excellent choice for families with young children since it has an on-site play center with a bowling alley, video games and pool tables.  They even have spa-type services by prior arrangement (can we say massage after a mule ride?  Yeeeeeeeeah BOY!).  Sound good?  Book a room right now! 

Up the road a ways in beautiful Lake Powell, we’re making ready to bid “adieu” to a local institution: the Canyon King.  A genuine paddle-wheel boat that made its first splash in 1979, the Canyon King ferried thousands of people around the lake as they savored juicy prime rib or munched on bacon and eggs.  I’ve been on this boat several times myself (my first rock band played its first gig on this boat) and have made many a cherished memory with friends and family as we glided past Lake Powell’s trademark towering rock formations (that tower even higher now with water levels lower than in years past).  Now, the old vessel simply can’t be brought up to modern safety codes without it costing an arm and a leg, so Lake Powell Resorts decided it was time to retire her (or is it a him since it’s a “king”?).  According to the Lake Powell Chronicle, speculation has already been made about turning the Canyon King into a roadside attraction at the new visitor center scheduled to go in on US 89 near Page, Arizona.  If our friends in the UK will pardon us just this once for stealing one of their phrases: “Long Live the King.”

As we say “good-bye” to a King, we’ll say “hello” to a Princess: the Canyon Princess, a modern luxury yacht-style vessel featuring richly appointed cherry wood salons, a curved grand staircase and an open air deck.  She’s gorgeous and due to arrive here in a few weeks.  She’ll be available for breakfast cruises, sunset dinner cruises, and maybe even nighttime star gazing parties, not to mention private events like weddings and such.  I can’t wait to meet her. 

Lake Powell is just 2.5 hours away from Grand Canyon South or North Rim.  In addition to our line of Grand Canyon tours, we can also book you on a Lake Powell Scenic Cruise Adventure.  Just give us a call or drop us a line at info@grandcanyon.com 

Til next time, Happy Travels! 

Alley Kaye

P.S.  Oh hey!  We just posted our seasonal Grand Canyon Travel Guides for 2007 – yaaaay!  We decided to put ‘em all up at once because so many of you have already decided when you’re going (good call).  For those of you who have yet to decide when/where to go, we’ve put up our very first Grand Canyon Annual Travel Guide.  All are available as Adobe pdf downloads (about 2 mgs) and they’re even better than last year’s.  They feature an extended camping section (which discusses first come-first serve campgrounds), more information about Grand Canyon West, and our Annual Guide has a special “You Asked We Answered” section that discusses things like fireworks (forget it), weddings (possible with a permit), ski areas (don’t laugh), even where to watch “March Madness.”  You’ll find the links underneath the videos section just “under the fold” on the homepage, GrandCanyon.com.  Thanks in advance for reading!