It’s a Dry Cold, Too: Grand Canyon Weather

Nov 09

It’s a Dry Cold, Too: Grand Canyon Weather

I have a confession to make. Here at GrandCanyon.com we’re having a bit of a time concentrating, you know why? 56 degrees and sunshine, that’s why! It’s just too darn nice out there to be cooped up in an office. We’d much rather be out there with all of you, but at least we have nice big windows to look out of when we need inspiration.

This time of year is such an awesome time to hike the inner canyon trails, or just to take a brisk stroll on the canyon rim trail. It was round this time of year in 1987 that I first moved to Grand Canyon National Park from California. Relaying the news to an acquaintance who worked in another of my favorite places, Yosemite National Park, he said, “that’s some coooold country. And it’s that desert cold, too…”

“Desert cold?” I thought. Surely, that had to be a contradiction in terms. The desert is hot – right? WRONG! Imagine my surprise upon learning that it snowed at the Grand Canyon. Sometimes a little, sometimes a LOT. Surprise turned to utter delight as I’d never been around snow, though learning to drive on it was a challenge. Sadly, there hasn’t been as much of the white stuff over the past couple of years as there used to be. This winter weather obviously remains to be seen.

Eventually I would also discover that the Southwest’s famous dry heat did have a lesser-known counterpart: dry cold. I was reminded of that this morning as I took a nice deep breath and promptly needed a drink of water. Right now the humidity at the Grand Canyon is 29%. When it gets below freezing, or down to sub-zero, that lack of moisture is even more pronounced. Breathe too deep on a cold morning and you’ll REALLY feel it.

Which means that if you’re hiking to Phantom Ranch (or anywhere in the Grand Canyon) at this time of year, you STILL need to carry water, and more importantly, you need to drink it. Just because it’s not blazing hot doesn’t mean you still won’t get dehydrated. Same goes for you too even if you’re taking it easy. Out here, it’s probably a LOT drier than where you’re from, so carry at least a little bottle of water with you and take sips often. Drink before you get thirsty.

Don’t forget your skin either. Bring lots of your favorite moisturizer (preferably one with some SPF to it) and be prepared to use it often. Lip balm? Gotta have it. Contact lens wearers might also want to bring a spare pair of specs – the humidity (or lack thereof) can affect the eyes, too (at least that’s what my contact-wearing compadres tell me – I’m still 20/20 [knock onwood!]).

So are you visiting next week and wondering what the heck to expect? Join the club! The weather at this altitude is notoriously unpredictable. Luckily, you can get a 10-day forecast on our website.

Want to know what else is neat about this time of year at the Grand Canyon? Download a free copy of our brand new Grand Canyon Winter Travel Guide. If you don’t have Adobe on your PC, drop me a line at alleyk@grandcanyon.com, and I’ll happily send you a hard copy.

Grand Canyon News