Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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particularly great spot to take sunrise and sunset photos. Here you'll also find the historic
Yavapai Observation Station,
which houses a small museum and has big walls of glass
to take in those extraordinary vistas. A paved pathway extends west from Yavapai Point
for 3 miles, passing through Grand Canyon Village along the way. This trail also contin-
ues 2.5 miles east to the Pipe Creek Vista.
Continuing west from Yavapai Point, you'll come to a parking lot at park headquarters
and a side road that leads to parking at the Market Plaza, which is one of the closest
parking lots to the Canyon View Information Plaza.
West of these parking areas is Grand Canyon Village proper, where a paved pathway
leads along the rim providing lots of good (though crowded) spots for taking pictures.
The village is also the site of such historic buildings as
El Tovar Hotel
and
Bright Angel
Lodge,
both of which are worth brief visits to take in the lodge ambience of their lobbies.
Inside Bright Angel Lodge you'll find the
Bright Angel History Room,
which has dis-
plays on Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter and the Harvey Girls (see box “Fred Harvey & His
Girls,” on p. 98). Be sure to check out this room's fireplace, which is designed with all
the same geologic layers that appear in the canyon. The
Hopi House Gift Store and Art
Gallery,
across from El Tovar's front porch, dates to 1905 and was the first shop in the
park. This store was built to resemble a Hopi pueblo and to serve as a place for Hopi
artisans to work and sell their crafts. Today, it's full of Hopi and Navajo arts and crafts.
Verkamp's Visitor Center,
adjacent to the Hopi House, was originally a curio shop and
also dates back to 1905. Today it is a small information center that houses displays on
the history of Grand Canyon Village. Hours vary seasonally.
To the west of Bright Angel Lodge, two buildings cling precariously to the rim of the
canyon. These are the Kolb and Lookout studios, both of which are listed on the
National Register of Historic Places.
Kolb Studio
is named for Ellsworth and Emory
Kolb, two brothers who set up a photographic studio on the rim of the Grand Canyon
in 1904. The construction of this studio generated one of the Grand Canyon's first
controversies—over whether buildings should be allowed on the canyon rim. Because the
Kolbs had friends in high places, their sprawling studio and movie theater remained.
Emory Kolb lived here until his death in 1976, by which time the studio had been listed
as a historic building. It now serves as a bookstore, while the auditorium houses special
exhibits.
Lookout Studio,
built in 1914 from a design by Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter,
was the Fred Harvey Company's answer to the Kolb brothers' studio and incorporates
architectural styles of the Hopi and the Ancestral Puebloans. The use of native limestone
and an uneven roofline allow the studio to blend in with the canyon walls and give it the
look of an old ruin. It now houses a souvenir store and two lookout points. Both studios
are open daily; hours vary seasonally.
HERMIT ROAD
Hermit Road leads 8 miles west from Grand Canyon Village to Hermit's Rest, and mile
for mile, it has the greatest concentration of breathtaking viewpoints in the park. Because
it is closed to private vehicles March through November, it is also one of the most pleas-
ant places to do a little canyon viewing or easy hiking during the busiest times of year:
no traffic jams, no parking problems, and plenty of free shuttle buses operating along the
route. Westbound buses stop at eight overlooks (Trailview, Maricopa Point, Powell Point,
Hopi Point, Mohave Point, the Abyss, Pima Point, and Hermit's Rest); eastbound buses
stop at only Mohave and Hopi points. December through February, you can drive your
own vehicle along this road; but keep in mind that winters usually mean a lot of snow,
and the road can sometimes be closed due to hazardous driving conditions.
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