Of the 6 million people who visit Grand Canyon National Park every year, the majority set foot on the South Rim. But there’s another world on the North Rim, which is surrounded by the alpine forests, lakes and meadows of the Kaibab Plateau. It’s beautiful up there, and the low summer temperatures make it even more so.
A Portfolio Edited by Jeff Kida
Photograph by Tom Bean
North Rim ferns thrive amid aspen trunks in an intimate view of the forest floor. The North Rim averages nearly 26 inches of moisture per year, allowing plants such as these to proliferate. | Phillip Noll
Rock outcroppings punctuate a view of mature aspens on the Kaibab Plateau. Aspens are among the region’s most visible tree species, particularly along State Route 67 (the North Rim Parkway). | Larry Ulrich
A view of a mixed forest on the Kaibab Plateau shows the region’s biodiversity. Aspens, ponderosa pines, Douglas-firs, Engelmann spruce, blue spruce, oaks, piñon pines and junipers can all be found here. | Adam Schallau
Marble Viewpoint, north of the North Rim developed area of Grand Canyon National Park, offers a view of Marble Canyon, the Echo Cliffs and distant Navajo Mountain. This overlook is accessed via a series of Kaibab National Forest roads starting near Kaibab Lodge and DeMotte Campground. | Suzanne Mathia
Storm clouds gather over one of the Kaibab Plateau’s evergreen-ringed meadows. Like elsewhere in Arizona, dramatic storms are possible on the plateau during the summer monsoon, which officially lasts from June 15 through September 30. | Shane McDermott
Delicate wildflowers grow beneath tall aspens in an afternoon view of a small lake on the North Rim. Such bodies of water attract a variety of wildlife, including pronghorns, raccoons and even a herd of non-native bison. | Byron Neslen
Multicolored wildflowers blanket a meadow ringed by aspens and evergreens near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. In contrast to the spring wildflowers found in Arizona’s warmer and lower-elevation regions, blooms on the North Rim often wait until summer to appear. | Tom Bean
Mule deer graze at the edge of a meadow, as seen from one of the North Rim’s trails. The species is a frequent sight along the Widforss Trail, a roughly 10-mile (round-trip) hike to an overlook southwest of Grand Canyon Lodge. Suzanne Mathia
Late-afternoon light casts a glow on lupines and Indian paintbrushes blooming in abundance on the North Rim. Both wildflower species have traditional uses by some of the American Indian tribes with ancestral ties to the Canyon. | Byron Neslen
