This line is answered by a person during business hours. (If a person does not answer, follow the prompts to hear current recorded weather and road information.)

South Rim Grand Canyon National Park.

Updated: Tuesday, March 20, 2012 – 8:35 a.m.

As of this update, all South Rim roads are open. Please drive with caution, park roads are snow-packed and icy in places.

Highways OUTSIDE the park are open – but watch for snow-packed and icy places:

The South Rim roads listed below are the most likely to close with little or no notice as winter storms pass through the area and conditions change.

• Desert View Drive (Highway 64) within Grand Canyon National Park’s South Rim, follows the canyon rim for 25 miles/ 40km between Desert View and Grand Canyon Village.
• Hermit Road (West Rim Drive)Scenic route along the west end of Grand Canyon Village on the South Rim which follows the canyon rim for 7 miles/ 11 km out to Hermits Rest.

Please drive with caution and at speeds appropriate to the road conditions. Watch for deer and elk in the roadway. Motorists should be reminded that roads in the park can close with little or no notice as weather systems pass through the area and road conditions change.

Call 928-638-7888 for the latest park road information. This line is answered by a person during business hours. (If a person does not answer, follow the prompts to hear current recorded weather and road information.)

You may also view the Arizona Dept of Transportation Road Conditions and Closures Map: http://www.az511.com/adot/files/traffic/ to learn where the road closures are.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

Archeology Day participants sifting for artifacts. NPS PHOTO BY MICHAEL QUINN.

On Saturday, March 24, 2012, Grand Canyon National Park will host its 5th annual Archeology Day in honor of Arizona Archaeology and Heritage Awareness Month.

Arizona Archaeology and Heritage Awareness Month is intended to inform the public about archeology in the state of Arizona. In Grand Canyon National Park alone, over 4300 archeological sites have been recorded to date, and archeologists estimate that the park may have as many as 50,000 – 60,000 sites. Some of the artifacts found in the park date back almost 12,000 years, testimony to the vast extent of the human history of the area. That history lives on as the descendents of those ancient peoples continue to utilize the area today.

Grand Canyon National Park’s Archeology Day is intended to help park visitors learn more about those who lived here long ago and to gain a greater understanding of the work that archeologists do and what can be learned from their research. The event will feature opportunities for visitors to try their hands at making clay pinch pots and split-twig figurines; creating rock art using scratch art paper; coloring Hopi pot designs; sifting for artifacts; and planting corn, beans and squash seeds – traditional foods of the park’s native peoples. Additionally, there will be special programs by park archeologist Jason Nez and NAU anthropology professor Chris Downum. All activities are free and family friendly and will take place between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at the Shrine of the Ages which can be easily accessed via the park’s free Village Route shuttle.

Archeology Day will conclude with a very special evening program by Shonto Begay, artist, author, educator and Grand Canyon Master Artist-in-Residence. Begay will discuss how his Navajo heritage and the rich culture of the Navajo reservation have influenced his contemporary paintings, as well as his environmental and social justice activism. Begay’s program will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Shrine of Ages Auditorium located on the South Rim near Parking Lot A.

Additional special Evening Programs, focusing on archeology topics, will be held throughout the month of March.

For more information on Archeology Day (including a full schedule of events once available) and on special park programs happening throughout Archeology and Heritage Awareness Month, please visit the park’s web site at http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/arch_day.htm, or call Supervisory Park Ranger Libby Schaaf at 928-638-7641.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

Grand Canyon Pioneer Cemetary - NPS

Looking for famous historical figures involved in the development and protection of Grand Canyon? The Grand Canyon Pioneer Cemetery is a great place to explore! John Hance, Ralph Cameron, Pete Berry, Ellsworth Kolb, Gunnar Widforss, and Eddie McKee are just a few folks you might run into at the cemetery.

People interred at the cemetery include Grand Canyon pioneers, war veterans, tribal members, and employees of the concessioners, US Forest Service, and National Park Service. The cemetery, grave markers, and gateway arch are included on the List of Classified Historic Structures in Grand Canyon National Park.

Gravestone in Grand Canyon Pioneer Cemetery - NPS

The Grand Canyon Pioneer Cemetery is still an active cemetery. To qualify for burial an individual must have lived at Grand Canyon for no less than three years or must have made a significant and substantial contribution to the development of, public knowledge about, understanding of or appreciation for Grand Canyon National Park.

For more stories about the Grand Canyon Pioneer Cemetery visit the Arizona State University webpages Nature, Culture, and History at the Grand Canyon: Cemetery.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

The park’s plan calls for the elimination of the sale of water packaged in individual disposable containers of less than one gallon, including plastic bottles and various types of boxes. The waste associated with disposable bottles comprises an estimated 20 percent of the park’s overall waste stream and 30 percent of the park’s recyclables.

Grand Canyon National Park’s plan was submitted and approved in accordance with the policy issued by NPS Director Jonathan B. Jarvis on December 14, 2011. Under the policy, parks are directed to implement a disposable plastic water bottle recycling and reduction policy, with an option to eliminate in-park sales – with the approval of the park’s regional director – following a thorough analysis of a variety of factors ranging from the cost to install water filling stations, to the cost and availability of BPA-free reusable containers, to potential effects on public safety.

“Our parks should set the standard for resource protection and sustainability,” said Regional Director Wessels. “Grand Canyon National Park has provided an excellent analysis of the impacts the elimination of bottled water would have, and has developed a well-thought-out plan for ensuring that the safety, needs and comfort of visitors continue to be met in the park. I feel confident that the impacts to park concessioners and partners have been given fair consideration and that this plan can be implemented with minimal impacts to the visiting public.”

Grand Canyon National Park has experienced increasing amounts of litter associated with disposable plastic bottles along trails both on the rim and within the inner canyon, marring canyon viewpoints and visitor experiences.

“We want to minimize both the monetary and environmental costs associated with water packaged in disposable containers,” said Grand Canyon Superintendent Dave Uberuaga. “We are grateful to the Director for recognizing the need for service-wide guidance on this issue and for providing a thoughtful range of options.”

“A lot of careful thought went into this plan and its implementation,” said Director Jarvis. “I applaud Grand Canyon National Park for its efforts to reduce waste and the environmental impacts created by individually packaged water. This is another example of The National Park Service’s commitment to being an exemplar of the ways we can all reduce our imprint on the land as we embrace sustainable practices that will protect the parks for generations to come.”

To view a copy of the servicewide policy on reduction of disposable plastic bottles in parks, go to www.nps.gov/policy/plastic.pdf. For additional information on the NPS policy on disposable plastic bottles, please contact IMR Associate Regional Director for communications and external relations Rick Frost at 303-987-6732. For more on Grand Canyon’s plan to eliminate the sale of water packaged in individual disposable containers, please contact Grand Canyon Public Affairs Specialist Shannan Marcak at 928-638-7958. And for more on Grand Canyon’s voluntary reusable water bottle program, please visit the park’s web site at http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/refilling_stations.htm.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

Each year in February, a main lottery is held to assign launch dates for river trips occurring the next year. Public notifications regarding main lotteries are made by both email and news release. In addition to the annual main lottery, follow-up lotteries are held as needed throughout the remainder of the year to reassign canceled and/or left-over river trips. Public notifications for these follow-up lotteries are made through email, an RSS feed, and Twitter (twitter.com/GCRiverPermits).

The weighted lottery web site can be accessed for free year-round to create or modify an account and to sign-up to receive e-mail notifications. Individuals who are interested in a future noncommercial river permit are strongly encouraged to create an account. Lottery applications are accepted through the weighted lottery web site only when lotteries are open.

Individuals must be 18 years or older to apply for a river trip permit. Noncommercial river trips must be self-guided, and technical whitewater experience is mandatory on each trip. Individuals may participate on a maximum of one river trip per year (commercial or noncommercial).

Individuals interested in professionally-guided river trips should not apply through the lottery, but instead should request space on a commercial trip. A list of commercial companies offering guided trips can be found by visiting www.nps.gov/grca, selecting “River Trips/Permits”, then “3 to 18 Day Commercial Trips”.

For more information about this 2013 weighted lottery, please visit the Grand Canyon National Park web site at http://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/whitewater-rafting.htm, or contact the River Permits Office at 1-800-959-9164 or 928-638-7884, or by e-mail e-mail us.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

Visitors who arrive on the anniversary of Arizona’s statehood (February 14, 2012) will be allowed to enter the park free of charge. Those who plan to spend time in the park beyond February 14 will need to pay the regular entrance fee for the remainder of their stay. Park visitors are reminded that the fee-free designation applies to entrance fees only and does not affect fees for camping, reservations, tours, or use of concessions.

In addition to offering fee-free entry on the state’s 100^th birthday, Grand Canyon National Park hosted the 3^rd Grand Canyon History Symposium, an Official (Arizona) Centennial Event, from January 26 – 29, 2012. Symposium participants had the opportunity to attend almost 40 presentations; ride on the historic train from Williams, Arizona to Grand Canyon National Park; attend dinners with keynote speakers Wayne Ranney – geologist and author, and Brad Dimock – river historian and author; and participate in tours of the Trail of Time, Grand Canyon Cemetery, historic Kolb studio and residence, and historic boat collection. Additionally, the public was able to join symposium attendees for a special screening of Grand Canyon newsreel clips unseen since their original screenings in 1929.

The National Park Service congratulates the great state of Arizona on 100 remarkable years of statehood.

For more on visiting Grand Canyon National Park, please go to the park’s web site atwww.nps.gov/grca. For more on Arizona’s centennial celebrations, please visitwww.az100years.org/, and for a calendar of centennial events, please go towww.az100years.org/events/calendar-of-events/.

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

According to Grand Canyon Association Executive Director Susan Schroeder, “Grand Canyon Association has been presenting Canyon Country Community Lectures since 2004. We added the Ranger Lecture Series in 2009 to offer a way for people in northern Arizona to connect directly with park researchers about science and resource management at the Grand Canyon.”

The 2012 Conversations on the Edge lectures will take place the first Thursday of each month, February through May, and will include the following four lectures:

February 2: Science and Resource Management Deputy Chief Jan Balsom and Tribal Program Manager Janet Cohen present “Bridging the Gap: Finding the Intersection between Park Management and Tribal Values.” Park managers will share their experiences working with the park’s traditionally associated tribes to maintain lasting relationships that recognize the significance of Grand Canyon in tribal histories, on-going culture and daily lives.

March 1: Physical Sciences Program Manager Deanna Greco presents “It’s Not Just Scenery: The Physical Sciences of Grand Canyon.” While some may think that landscape features are merely unchanging scenery, they are dynamic resources that require preservation and management. Greco will give a brief history of physical science management at Grand Canyon, and share some of the program’s new directions and emphasis areas.

April 5:Resource Planner and Wilderness Coordinator Linda Jalbert presents “Keep It Wild: Managing Wilderness in Grand Canyon National Park.” More than 93% of Grand Canyon National Park’s area qualifies for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System and must be managed in the same manner as congressionally designated wilderness. Jalbert will explore the challenges and benefits of managing Grand Canyon wilderness.

May 3: Watershed Stewardship Program Manager Todd Chaudhry presents ”Thinking Big and Starting Small: Watershed Stewardship in Grand Canyon National Park.” Grand Canyon’s Watershed Stewardship Program was established in late 2010. One of the program’s first emphasis areas is a pilot stewardship project at Granite Camp and Monument Creek.

All lectures are free and open to the public and are held at 7:00 p.m. at the Cline Library, located at the intersection of Knoles Drive and McCreary Road on the Northern Arizona University campus. Parking is available to the west of the library (Lot P13 on Riordan Road).

“We are very pleased to be working with the Grand Canyon Association and Cline Library on a lecture series that provides an invaluable opportunity for park Science and Resource Management staff to share information with the Flagstaff community about some of the issues affecting Grand Canyon National Park,” stated park Superintendent Dave Uberuaga.

For additional information on the 2011 Ranger Lecture Series, Conversations on the Edge, please contact Allyson Mathis, Grand Canyon National Park Science and Education Outreach Coordinator at 928-638-7923 or Beth Hickey, Grand Canyon Association Membership Program Manager at 928-638-7022.

To download a copy of the 2012 Conversations on the Edge flyer,  go tohttp://www.nps.gov/grca/naturescience/upload/Ranger_Conversations_Spring_2012.pdf; and for information on all Grand Canyon Community Lectures, visithttp://www.grandcanyon.org/events_lectureseries.asp

Plan your trip to the Grand Canyon when you stay in Sedona at the Sedona Real Inn & Suites, ask our concierge for more information.

Grand Canyon’s artist-in-residence program welcomes not only artists who work in the long-honored traditions of representational landscape photography and painting, but also encourages the involvement of artists working in new or experimental mediums, and whose art is in direct advocacy of the Park’s environmental, cultural and historical values.

While in-residence, the South Rim artists have the opportunity to live in the historic upstairs apartment of the Verkamp’s Visitor Center, perched on the rim. The North Rim artist space is in an historic and rustic two-room cabin in the cool shade of the ponderosa pines.

A panel of professional artists and administrators along with National Park Service representatives selected this year’s artists from a pool of 98 applicants on the South Rim, and 70 applicants on the North Rim.

The SR AiR program is honored to be hosting the following artists for the October 2011 – September 2012 season.

• October 6, 2011 - Cellist Rhonda Rider returned to present Grand Canyon-inspired compositions created by contemporary composers for her residency (SR AiR February 2011)
• October 16 – 23- Night sky photographer Stan Honda – New York City, NY
• October 24 – November 21 - Sculptor Michael Yinger – Brooklyn NY
• November 21 – December 21 - Filmmaker, animator, screenwriter Lares Feliciano – Oakland, CA
•  January 6 – 31 - Drawer and painter Michele Lauriat – Wakefield, MA
• February 1 – 29 - Jeweler Georgia Orme – Bath, England
• March - 2012 marks the inaugural year of a Master Artist residency, inviting well-established artists to spend one to two weeks at the South Rim working on their art, gaining inspiration from the canyon and presenting one public program.
•  Pete Fromm, award-winning Montana outdoor/fiction writer, will be in-residence  March 14 – 18, and will read from his work in an Evening Program on March 17, 7:00 p.m. at Shrine of the Ages.
• Shonto Begay, renowned contemporary Native American painter, will be in-residence March 19 – 31, with an evening artist talk on March 24, 7:00 p.m. at Shrine of the Ages. This will be the keynote presentation for the annual Archeology Day celebration, and will focus on Shonto’s work in-context with his strong ties to Navajo tradition, art and culture.
• April 8 – 30 - New media, digital photography and designer Jing Zhou – Ocean, NJ
• May 1 – 31 - Paper and ice sculptor/photographer Deborah Bird – Leicester, England
• June 1 – 21 - Composer James Romig – Macomb, IL
• June 22 – July 15 - Painter Melinda S. Esparza – Tucson, AZ
• July 16 – August 7 - Composer and sound artist Erik DeLuca – Charlottesville, VA
• August 8 – 31 - Composer Linda J. Chase – Arlington, MA
• September 1 – 30 - Fabric artist Bobbie Sullivan – Scituate, MA

The NR AiR program is honored to be hosting the following artists for the May – October 2012 season.

•  May 21 – June 11 - Painter Elizabeth Black and photographer Chris Brown, Boulder, CO
• June 12 – July 2 - Painter Dennis Farris – Fort Worth, TX
• July 16 – August 6 - Silk painter Nancy McKay – Ann Arbor, MI
• August 13 – September 3 - Encaustic painter Rodney Thompson – Redding, CA
• September 4 – September 24 - Textile artist Bobbie Sullivan – Scituate, MA

While in-residence, each artist will present a minimum of three public outreach programs, presentations or performances that are free, family-friendly and open to the public. For information on these programs, please check at a visitor center information desk or contact the AiR coordinators:

• Rene_Westbrook(at)nps.gov (SR AiR program coordinator), 928-638-7324, and
• Robin_Tellis(at)nps.gov (NR AiR program coordinator), 928-638-7739.

Grand Canyon’s NR AiR program began in 2003 and invites up to six artists each May – October. The SR AiR program began as a winter-seasonal program in 2006 and has been hosting artists year-round since 2009, inviting twelve artists (or collaborative groups) per year.

Both programs will be accepting new artist proposals between February 1 and April 1, 2012. For complete application process details, information on this year’s selected artists (including biographies, work samples and links to their websites), or more on Grand Canyon’s AiR program, please visit the park’s website at http://www.nps.gov/grca/supportyourpark/air.htm.

Entrance fees will be waived for all visitors to Grand Canyon National Park January 14 – 16, 2012. Visitors arriving in the park on any one of those three days will be allowed to enter free of charge. Those who plan to spend time in the park beyond the 16th will need to pay the regular entrance fee for the remainder of their stay.

“Winter can be a wonderful time to visit the Grand Canyon,” says park Deputy Superintendent Palma Wilson. “There are fewer people in the park and the pace is slower, more relaxing. Fee free days are a great opportunity to discover a new season in your favorite national park.”

The fee free designation applies to entrance fees only and does not affect fees for camping, reservations, tours or use of concessions. Park entrance stations will have Interagency Senior and Annual Passes available for those who wish to purchase them.

Park visitors are reminded that Grand Canyon’s South Rim sits at approximately 7,000 feet and that winter weather and driving conditions are always a possibility during the month of January.

The National Park Service will be offering additional fee free day throughout 2012, including April 21 – 29 (National Parks Week), June 9 (Get Outdoors Day), September 29 (National Public Lands Day) and November 10 – 12 (Veterans Day weekend.)

For more on what there is to see and do in Grand Canyon National Park, please visit the park’s web site at www.nps.gov/grca. For more on National Park Service fee free days, go to www.nps.gov/findapark/feefreeparks.htm.

Did you know that the Grand Canyon is a quick two hour drive from the Sedona Real Inn & Suites? If you’d like to drive yourself, it makes a great day trip. Once up there, you can choose from a large menu of adventures. Many of our guests come back raving about the helicopter and airplane rides. Some folks just want to see it with their own eyes!

For great tips on creating your own intinerary, ask our concierge.

The Dishchii'bikoh Apache Group performing at Grand Canyon's 2010 Native American Heritage celebration. NPS Photo by Erin Whittaker.

Grand Canyon, Ariz. — On, Wednesday, November 16, Grand Canyon National Park will be celebrating National Native American Heritage Month with a day of special presentations and demonstrations.

Each year, November is recognized as National Native American Heritage Month. American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians are a special part of the tapestry of our Nation’s history. As keepers of a rich and ancient cultural heritage, Native Americans share with all of us the beauty of their art, power of their songs and grace of their people.

Grand Canyon’s Native American Heritage Month celebration will take place from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Shrine of the Ages located on the South Rim.Visitors are encouraged to utilize the Village Route (Blue Route) Shuttle which stops both eastbound and westbound at the Shrine of the Ages.Parking may also be available nearby in parking lot A.

All are invited to participate in this special day of programs and demonstrations as we recognize and celebrate the many accomplishments, contributions, and sacrifices made by First Americans.