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GRAND CANYON NORTH RIM

Part 10 in a series exploring the American West with an 8 week old baby

By Tommy Nagle

April 13^th, 2020

A QUICK LOGIC LESSON

The Grand Canyon South Rim = The 1994 action classic 'Speed'.

THEN

The Grand Canyon North Rim = 'Speed 2: Cruise Control'.

Both have great views (Sandra Bullock, or Keanu Reeves/Jason Patric, according to your proclivities). But one is just way, way worse.

Hmm. Maybe that's harsh. Speed 2 really is very crap.

It's more like comparing any 'Jurassic Park' sequel to the original.

i.e. You've really got to love the franchise to see it.

But then, who isn't a fan of the Grand Canyon franchise?

Fair enough, Grand Canyon: Deep and Wide was a flop at the box office, but the pageant-themed Grand Canyon 3: Just Gorges is a classic.

The North Rim has around one million visitors a year, approximately 17 of whom we encountered on this windy day in early November.

"A million visitors?! That's loads!" I hear you cry.

Well, the south rim gets 5 million. So there.

(There's also a West Rim, but that only gets 200,000 visitors. Pathetic.)

The main reason behind the disparity in visitor numbers is that the north rim is more remote, there are fewer services and fewer places to stay.

But it's just as beautiful, in it's own way. I mean, it is the Grand Canyon after all.

Here ⇣ you can re-enact my posing ⇡ atop a precarious rock:

On the way back, we were escorted through a guard of honour manned by smoke-shrouded trees, behind which a controlled burn was occurring.

We got to see more of the results of that a couple of days later, before our visit to the White Pocket.

Thanks for reading!

Next up:

⇣

And if you missed the previous story in this series, then you can find it here:

✦

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All photographs taken with Panasonic Lumix GH4, Processed in lightroom

All photographs taken with Panasonic Lumix GH4, Processed in lightroom