Tag: Grand Canyon

Farewell to a Happy Place: The North Rim Lodge Is Gone

By Bobbie Surber

I was packed and ready to hit the road, heading out for a camping trip at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, a place that’s held a special spot in my heart for years. The plan was simple: drive out, escape the heat of Sedona in July, camp under the stars, and soak in the quiet beauty of the pines and canyon. No cell signal, no crowds. Just me, my gear, and that stillness unique to the North Rim.

But not long into the day, I received the kind of message no traveler wants to hear: Jacob Lake and the North Rim had been evacuated due to wildfire. My heart sank.

With my plans upended and smoke looming in the distance, I rerouted to Kanab and checked into a hotel. By sheer coincidence, I arrived just as a crew of wildland firefighters was pulling in, finally catching a break after 48 straight hours on the line. Despite the exhaustion etched into their faces, they took a moment to speak with kindness.  They discreetly confirmed what I was afraid to hear: structures had been lost. The Grand Canyon Lodge was among them.

A Lodge Full of Character

The lodge wasn’t just a place to stay, it was the soul of the North Rim. Perched at the edge of the canyon, it offers the kind of peace that settles deep in your bones. I’d ended more than a few riding and hiking days there, swapping dusty boots for a warm meal and finding calm under the towering pines.

I remember reaching the lodge after completing the rim-to-rim hike, a long, steady climb from the Colorado River to the quiet heights of the North Rim. My legs were leaden, my pack dusted with red earth, and each step through the final miles of the North Kaibab Trail carried the weight of the canyon behind me. The landscape narrowed into cool shadows and silent stands of fir and aspen. As I crested the rim and glimpsed the lodge through a break in the trees, a quiet stillness settled in. I walked into the stone-and-timber building, ordered a hot meal, and sat near the window overlooking the vast expanse I’d just crossed. It wasn’t dramatic or loud, just a deeply satisfying end to a long journey.

At this moment, I’m in Zion, watching the sun sink behind the massive sandstone cliffs, reminiscing about my last visit in 2023 with Tippi, my Triumph Tiger 900 and faithful road companion. We had wound our way through a light snow flurry that gave way to golden light along the rim. I took a few photos of her parked by the North Rim Monument sign, along with shots of the lodge view and our snow-dusted ride, images that, in hindsight, captured more than a moment; they captured something I’ll never see again.

A Bit of History

According to the National Park Service, the Grand Canyon Lodge was originally completed in 1928 and designed by Gilbert Stanley Underwood, the architect known for other iconic National Park lodges like Bryce and Zion. Built from native limestone and timber, the lodge was intended to blend seamlessly into the landscape, emphasizing the canyon, not the building.

Just four years after its opening, the original lodge was destroyed by fire in 1932. It was rebuilt by 1937 with a simpler but still rugged design, one that would last nearly 90 years. Unlike the South Rim’s sprawling facilities, this lodge had a quiet dignity, drawing fewer crowds but just as much reverence.

Why the North Rim Matters

The North Rim receives only about 10% of the park’s annual visitors. It’s higher in elevation, cooler in climate, and feels a world away from the more developed South Rim. Fewer people mean more silence, more stars, and more time to breathe. It’s the kind of place that speaks in stillness.
That’s what made the lodge so special. The rocking chairs on the stone veranda. The canyon view framed perfectly through the dining room’s massive windows. The cabins tucked into the trees. It all felt timeless.
But as this fire has reminded us, even the most timeless places can change in an instant.

Holding Space for Gratitude

In times like these, it’s important to honor those who protect our wild places. To the wildland firefighters, thank you. For pushing through fatigue, for protecting what you can, and for showing up when it matters most.
And to the North Rim, thank you. For every ride, every trail, every quiet moment. For being a refuge from the world and a place to simply be. Though the lodge is gone, the land remains. The canyon remains. The memories remain.

You’ll always be one of my happy places.

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ExhaustNotes Travel: The North Rim

Berk recently did a story on the Grand Canyon and I have visited the park many times. I’ve never made it to the North Rim however, and a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada was a wonderful opportunity to check out the other side of that great big hole in the ground as it was practically on the way. If you plan on going know that the North Rim closes around the end of November. When we arrived a few days before Thanksgiving the ranger station, restaurant, gift shop and lodge were all closed. The park was still open but the place was deserted. Only us and a few other cars were at the park that day.

National Park fees are getting kind of pricey.  35 dollars was the day pass fee except there was no one to collect the money. There was an electronic-pay box near the Ranger Station. Several of the other visitors were poking and prodding at the box but no one was having any success actually paying. Payees would stab their card in and look to the waiting customers as if to say, “What do I do now?” Someone else would try to help the lost soul but we were getting nowhere. I never got a chance at the box because we decided it must be out of service and besides we were just taking a drive through.

The North Rim is quite a bit different than the South Rim. For one, it’s about 1000 feet higher in elevation. The slope is different also: rain water on the North Rim flows into the canyon while rain water flows away from the canyon on the South Rim. What this means is that the South Rim is relatively straight along the edge with many places to pull over and gaze at the canyon, The North Rim has fjord-like canyons that intersect the Colorado River gorge at right angles so getting to view points means longer drives and some backtracking to get to the next one. There are fewer car-accessible spots on the North Rim and in fact most of it is hiking material. I don’t hike.

There are supposed to be bison running around but except for chipmunks we saw very little wildlife mostly due to the onset of winter. The critters were probably settling in snug somewhere we couldn’t see. The view points may be fewer but the views are still spectacular at the North Rim. My cell phone camera was dwarfed by the immensity of the scene and the photos you see in this story reflect that tiny little sensor.

The North Rim is kind of far from anywhere; the closest lodging we could find was at the Jacob Lake Lodge. The Jacob Lake Lodge is an all-in-one resort with rooms, a gift shop, a nice place to eat and a gas station. The staff was made up of bright young college students who work several-month shifts then go back to school. There are staff accommodations on site. CT and I were amazed at how smart, kind and genuinely good people these kids were. The entire place was run by 20 year-olds, not an adult in sight.

Jacob Lake Lodge is open year around and is worth a visit even if the North Rim is closed. There is a big fireplace and comfy seats to sit in as you pen manifestos or just check your email. The logs are 3 feet long and the fire is tended to by the 20-somethings. The drive up on 89A takes you from mostly desert to pine forests in a few miles. I’ll be going back again because I missed Jacob Lake’s famous pie due to eating so much food. You should go, too.

Here’s a link to our earlier Grand Canyon story, and here’s a link to our Reviews page (it has other National Parks).

Grand Canyon National Park

Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park is another bucket list destination.  As As was the case described in our recent blog on Devils Tower, a movie inspired my first visit.  A contemporay review of the 1991 Grand Canyon movie said it was about “random events affecting a diverse group of people exploring the race- and class-imposed chasms which separate members of the same community.”  That’s an artsy-fartsy tinsel-town mouthful.  Grand Canyon was pretty good and it had some big name actors in it.  But we’re not here to talk about the movie.

On to Grand Canyon National Park. The name sounds majestic, and the Grand Canyon surely is.  I’ve been to the Grand Canyon many times (it’s only a day’s ride from home) and I would not pass on an opportunity to see it again.  It’s a great ride in a car or on a motorcycle. I’ve done full-family car trips and I’ve done a number of motorcycle trips. Interestingly, some of the best rides were on the 250cc CSC RX3 motorcycles with guys from China, Colombia, and the US (you can read more about the RX3 trip in 5000 Miles At 8000 RPM).

A Grand Canyon photo from the 5000-mile Western America Adventure Ride.

There are two places to see the Grand Canyon National Park, the North Rim and the South Rim. The South Rim is by far the most heavily visited area and offers the best views, but the North Rim is a better ride, especially the last 50 miles or so along Arizona Route 67 (also known as the North Rim Parkway). Getting to the South Rim involves riding through a spectacular desert to get to Grand Canyon National Park, at which point you enter a beautiful pine forest. And when you visit the South Rim, you can continue on in the direction you were traveling when you leave — you don’t have to backtrack. The North Rim is different: There’s one way in, and one way out. It takes longer to get to the North Rim along heavily-forested Route 67 (and that road shuts down when it snows), but wow, what a ride!

My first Grand Canyon visit brought me and a riding buddy to the North Rim on a couple of Harleys nearly 30 years ago. It rained all the way in, we were thoroughly soaked and chilled, and I still remember how much fun I had. The Grand Canyon Lodge is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It’s a magnificent place to stay or you can just have lunch there.  The view is awesome, but I think the views from the South Rim are even better (and there are more vantage points).

Ah, the South Rim. That’s where I took the big photo at the top of this blog and it shows none other than world-famous concrete consultant and moto-journalist Joe Gresh.  It almost looks fake, like I had a cutout of Gresh and pasted it into the photo, but it’s not.  He’s just a very photogenic guy.

You can approach the South Rim from either the east or the west via state Route 64 running along the canyon’s southern edge. On my last trip, we came in from the eastern end, paid our fees to enter the park, and a helpful Ranger explained that there were a series of viewpoints along the way. We hit every one and each was beyond stunning. It’s hard to believe what you see when viewing this magnificent region, and it’s easy to understand why the early Spanish explorers concluded it was impossible to reach the Colorado River a mile below. You can see all the way to the North Rim (10 miles away as the hawk flies, but a full day on a motorcycle).  On a clear day you can see 100 miles.

The Tower at the eastern edge of the South Rim.

There’s an ancient tower of sorts on the easternmost viewing spot along the South Rim and we had an interesting experience there on the CSC Destinations Deal tour.  Our good buddy Orlando left his gloves on this new RX3 while we were taking in the view, and when we returned, we caught a thief red-handed trying to steal them.   Or rather, I should say red-beaked.  It was a big old crow (a bird, not the whiskey) and he was trying to make off with one of Orlando’s gloves.  We all started screaming at that big old blackbird, and it dropped the glove and flew away.  That was a good thing.  It was super cold that morning and Orlando would have had a tough time continuing the ride without both gloves.

Good buddy Rob giving a Grand Canyon elk a drink on the CSC Destinations Deal ride.  Don’t try this at home, kids.

The earliest known Grand Canyon habitation occurred during the Paleo-Indian period nearly 12,000 years ago, but the emphasis here is on “known.” Archeologists are still discovering ancient stuff down there. Geologically, the Grand Canyon started about 20 million years ago.  The Colorado River, flooding, ice, wind and seismic shifts worked their magic to create the 277-mile-long, 15-mile-wide, and mile-deep Grand Canyon.

Fine dining in Williams’ Red Raven restaurant, right on Old Route 66.  That’s me and good buddy Paul after a wild boar hunt.

Hey, here’s one more thought:  If you’re doing the South Rim, it’s something that you can take in in a day.  Most folks stay in Grand Canyon Junction just outside the entrance to the South Rim, but that’s a real touristy area and if you don’t like McDonald’s or pizza, your dining choices are limited.  My advice is to stay in Williams, about one hour south.  It’s just off I-40.  Williams is a bit touristy, too, but the hotels and restaurants are a cut above what’s in Grand Canyon Junction.  It’s a nice ride north to the South Rim early the next morning.   Trust me on this; you can thank me later.

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The Destinations Deal Ride: One of the best ever!

When I wrote the blog for CSC Motorcycles, we organized several multi-day rides (trips through Baja, the western US, China, Colombia, and more).   One of my favorite rides was the Destinations Deal tour.  It started out as an idea by the real marketing whiz in the CSC organization (who likes her anonymity, so I won’t mention her name), with directions to include some of the best destinations in the southwestern US.  As I organized the ride, I realized all the spots I selected were featured in stories I wrote for Motorcycle Classics magazine.  CSC wanted to offer a discount on any new bike purchased for the event, the Motorcycle Classics columns were all titled Destinations, and the ride quickly became known as the Destinations Deal Tour. 

The ride was awesome:  Topock, Laughlin, Oatman, the Grand Canyon, Route 66, Zion, the Extraterrestrial Highway, Tonopah, Death Valley, Shoshone, Baker, and then home.  Just over 1500 miles in 6 days on 250cc motorcycles…it would be exactly what the doctor ordered.

The Destinations Deal was one of the best rides I ever did.  Old friends and new friends, great weather, great stops, great roads, and great stories combined for an awesome week.  The roads, the riders, the restaurants, the camaraderie…it all clicked on this one.  But don’t take my word for it.   Take a look at the photos.

Leighton and a killer hot dog in Topock on the Colorado River just as we crossed into Arizona. You get a discount coupon for the local coronary care unit when you order this meal.
A few of the boys and their RX3s in Oatman. Clark Gable and Carole Lombard stayed in this hotel back in the day.
Wild jackasses roam the streets in Oatman.   I could have a lot of fun captioning this photo.
On our first night, we stayed in the Colorado Belle, a riverboat hotel on the Colorado River in Laughlin, Nevada.  It was our first day and we rode through three states already.  Gresh and I closed the bar that first evening. They had a live group doing ’60s Motown hits and the music was fantastic. Or maybe we just had a few too many cervezas. Or maybe it was both. The trip was off to a great start.
Day 2 on the way to the Grand Canyon. The weather was perfect for the entire ride.
Velma and Orlando, who rode two-up on a brand-new blue RX3. Orlando taught me Spanish on this ride: El naranja es el color más rápido.
Another shot of the most photogenic couple you’ll ever see on an adventure ride, this time using a super-wide-angle lens on my Nikon.  You can actually see the curvature of the earth in this photo.
Good buddy Rob, with who I’ve ridden several times in the US and Mexico, buys a drink for a new friend at the Grand Canyon.
On the road to Zion along Arizona’s Highway 89A after visiting the Grand Canyon. This was a glorious ride.
Marble Canyon in Arizona as we re-crossed the mighty Colorado River.
Zion, the Crown Jewel of our National Parks. This was shaping up to be one of the best trips ever.  From left to right, it’s Dan The Man, Orlando and Velma, Gary in the back, Leighton, Willie, and Rob.  Add Gresh and yours truly, mix well, and you have the makings of a grand adventure.
My buds in the rear view, as we waited for a group of big horn sheep to cross the road. You could say the delay was baa-aa-aa-ad, but it was worth it to see those magnificent big horns.
The next day it was on to Nevada for the long trek to Tonopah. We took the world-famous ExtraTerrestrial Highway. Here’s a shot of shot ET after he phoned home.
Selfies in Rachel, Nevada, where Joe Gresh made friends with an elderly waitress. She schooled Uncle Joe on the finer points of place settings, ketchup assignments, and more. You had to be there to fully appreciate the training session.  It was funny as hell.
On the ET Highway, headed toward Tonopah. The riding was incredible; the camaraderie even better.  We set a sedate pace to conserve fuel.  Everyone did over 70 mpg (even Orlando and Velma, riding two up).  Folks commented that they liked the slower pace.  I did, too.
After a night in Tonopah, it was on to Death Valley (entering from the northeast) the next morning. It was awesome. That’s Willie, Dan, and Gary.
The entire valley, as seen from Dante’s Peak. Death Valley is an exceptional destination.  If you’ve never been to Death Valley, you need to go.
The crew (from left to right) included Gary, Willie, Orlando, Rob, Velma, Dan, Leighton and me (I was on the other side of the camera).  Gresh was there, but he spun off to see Stovepipe Wells in Death Valley that afternoon.  He had his reasons.
We stayed in Shoshone our last night. The Shoshone Inn had a fun firepit outside. Gresh bought the beer. It had been a grand ride and it would end the next day.  I think we doubled the population the night we were in Shoshone.
Dinner in Shoshone. Like every meal on the road, it was awesome.
Back through Baker after a freezing early morning ride, breakfast at the Mad Greek (another great meal and a popular motorcycle stop), and then home. What a week!

We did a lot of grand trips at CSC, and it did a lot to help publicize the RX3.  Baja, the Western America Adventure Ride, the China ride, the Colombia ride, and more.  I did a similar ride for Janus Motorcycles (Janus makes another great 250cc motorcycle) through northern Baja with a couple of their execs and it, too, was awesome (you can read about that one here).  There’s a lot to getting these rides organized and there are always things that can go wrong (personalities, bike issues, etc.), but I’ve been lucky.  Every one has been a hoot!

This is a good time to buy a CSC or Janus motorcycle.  Both companies are running awesome Thanksgiving sales.   Check out both motorcycles; you’ll be glad you did!