The North Rim

"There's a trail that starts here," said the park ranger, circling a spot on the map he handed me. "It goes along the rim from the campground to the lodge."

I headed over and sure enough, then campground was right on the edge of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. What great real estate. 

I walked along in my inappropriate footwear, grateful for the National Park Service's well-kept trail and resistance to commercialization. I sat down on a log halfway through the 1.2 mile trek. 

What a view. 

I could look at this for hours, I thought. 

But my mind started to wander, and anyway, I had to get to Grand Canyon Lodge to make a reservation for dinner. 

The lodge has giant picture windows and multiple terraces. In the summer, you can admire the view. In colder months, you can sit inside the lodge and stay warm while looking at the orange and golden hues of the canyon. But the lodge only holds so many people for dinner, so if you want to be one of them, you have to book ahead.

The other options are pizza or junk food at the general store, so I didn't want to screw around.

I got my dinner booking, then walked back to camp for a while. I drove back to the lodge at night, since I'd be attending a lecture on Toroweap—an obscure part of the canyon—afterwards and didn't want to walk home in the dark.

Dinner was decent, but the views from the dining room were amazing. I started to fall asleep during the lecture, and slowly drove back to my tent under the ponderosa pines.

What a perfect spot in the world.

Here are some more photos of the last few days. I'm totally sold on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Almost no one was there and the access to the canyon is just amazing.

Add it to your short list.