The Dragon Bravo wildfire on the North Rim of Grand Canyon Nationwide Park pressured the evacuation and closure of a portion of the park this previous weekend. Solely the North Rim — to not be confused with the extra frequented South Rim of the park — will stay closed for the rest of the 2025 season.
There are additionally mountain climbing path closures in impact for the North Kaibab Path, the South Kaibab Path and Phantom Ranch resulting from a launch of chlorine fuel associated to the hearth that destroyed the North Rim Water Therapy Facility.
Fortunately, there have been no reported accidents or fatalities because of the hearth, however many buildings on the North Rim — together with the customer middle, the historic Grand Canyon Lodge and cabins — had been misplaced to the hearth. This closure can even have an effect on hikers who might have a allow for the favored rim-to-rim hike whereas the North Rim closure is in impact.
This is a information on what to do when you’ve got a visit deliberate to the Grand Canyon within the close to future.
The North Rim vs. the South Rim
Grand Canyon Nationwide Park is within the northwest nook of Arizona and has three entrances.
The South Rim entrance
The most well-liked and most visited entrance is on the South Rim entrance by way of the city of Tusayan, Arizona, about one hour north of Flagstaff. This location has nearly all of the lodging and providers in and close to the park. It’s going to get you to Grand Canyon Village, which has a customer middle, leisure automobile campgrounds and a submit workplace; it additionally has historic lodges, resembling El Tovar Resort, Shiny Angel Lodge & Cabins and Yavapai Lodge.
The East entrance
The east entrance on state Route 64 is accessible from the city of Cameron, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation. This connects the overlook highway (state Route 64) previous Desert View Watchtower and again towards Grand Canyon Village and all South Rim areas.
The North Rim entrance
If you’re on the South Rim, the North Rim is a five-hour journey by automotive — over 220 miles. The closest meals and gasoline providers outdoors the North Rim entrance of the park are on the Jacob Lake Inn in Fredonia, Arizona. The North Rim is extra distant, and it has historically been open from Could 15 to Oct. 15 annually (climate allowing) and closed throughout the winter months resulting from highway situations.
Is it secure to journey to Grand Canyon Nationwide Park?
Sure, it’s secure to journey to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon close to Tusayan and Grand Canyon Village, however the North Rim and state Route 67 at Jacob Lake into the North Park entrance are closed. The present advisory on the park web site states that “smoke is predicted to stay seen from the South Rim, and air high quality situations might range relying on hearth habits and wind patterns.”
The park’s web site lists closures for the North Kaibab Path, the South Kaibab Path and Phantom Ranch. When you have a hike deliberate (together with a rim-to-rim hike), we propose contacting the Backcountry Allow workplace for alternate options and studying the principles and restrictions on its web site. Summer season situations are at all times harsh within the canyon, and water availability might be affected because of the lack of the North Rim amenities.
The Nationwide Park Service is updating a number of emergency messages on its web site. We advise bookmarking the operations web page, which particulars any updates, together with mountain climbing restrictions.
The NPS and Grand Canyon Conservancy have a number of webcams at key factors alongside the South Rim. These cameras permit guests to verify visitors situations on the South Rim entrance station, admire the view of the canyon from numerous viewpoints and observe air high quality and visibility.
In the event you plan to journey north of the Grand Canyon by way of Fredonia and onward to Kanab, Utah (towards Zion Nationwide Park), you possibly can verify highway situations on Arizona 511. At the moment, components of state Route 89A in northern Arizona are closed resulting from a second hearth, the White Sage Hearth.
When will the Grand Canyon’s North Rim reopen after the Dragon Bravo Hearth?
Because of the harm to the NPS amenities on the North Rim, the NPS introduced that the North Rim location is closed by way of the top of the yr. As a consequence of climate situations, it will usually shut on or round Oct. 15 yearly. Presently, it stays unknown if any campgrounds on the North Rim had been spared or will reopen within the 2026 season.
The NPS has a wildfire standing hyperlink and advisories posted on its web site.
What to do when you’ve got lodging or a campsite booked in Grand Canyon Nationwide Park?
The South Rim areas of the park at the moment stay unaffected by wildfires; nevertheless, the North Rim areas, together with the Grand Canyon Lodge and historic cabins operated by Aramark, have all been misplaced to the hearth. A assertion on the lodge web site introduced that each one personnel are secure and friends with future reservations will hear from them quickly. There may be additionally a hyperlink to the official NPS press launch.
Campsite reservations on the North Rim are additionally canceled, and an announcement on the Recreation.gov web site directed friends to take a look at Mather and Desert View campgrounds (on the South Rim) as alternate options.
Will your bank card or journey insurance coverage cowl adjustments?
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Backside line
When you have a visit deliberate to Grand Canyon Nationwide Park, double-check the placement of your reservation to see in case your journey is affected so you possibly can take acceptable steps to reroute or rebook. The latest updates and advisories can be posted on the official web site for the park. TPG will proceed to observe the story and report on any updates.
