The Nankoweap Trail is an unmaintained hiking trail on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park, located in the U.S. state of Arizona. The Nankoweap trail descends 6,040 feet in 14 miles from the Saddle Mountain trailhead to Nankoweap Creek and on to the Colorado River. It is considered to be the hardest of the trails into the Canyon. Hikers have to carry and cache water as there is none in the 11 miles between the trailhead and Nankoweap Creek.
| Nankoweap Trail | |
|---|---|
| Length | 13.9 mi (22.4 km) |
| Location | Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, United States |
| Trailheads | North Rim Colorado River, Grand Canyon (North Rim) |
| Use | Hiking Backpacking |
| Elevation change | 6,040 ft (1,840 m) |
| Highest point | North Rim, 8,840 ft (2,690 m) |
| Lowest point | Colorado River, 2,800 ft (850 m) |
| Difficulty | Expert (unmaintained) |
| Season | Early Spring to Late Fall |
| Sights | Grand Canyon Colorado River Puebloan granaries |
| Hazards | Severe Weather Overexertion Dehydration Flash Flood |
In June 1996, a Boy Scouts group ran out of water in the vicinity of this trail, although they were not following the actual trail, but an off-trail route on a nearby ridge.[1] Although one member managed to reach the Colorado River, another ultimately died from heat exhaustion and dehydration.[2] This was covered in season 2 of I Shouldn't be Alive.
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ Can Doc, Ammo (2000). "Tragedy at Little Nanko" (PDF). The Waiting List. 4 (4): 30–31.
- ^ Swenson, Jason and Matthew S. Bennett (June 8, 1996). "BOYS RUSHED FOR WATER IN TRY TO SAVE SCOUT". Deseret News. Archived from the original on March 7, 2014. Retrieved March 7, 2014.
Further reading
edit- John Annerino, 2006, Hiking the Grand Canyon. Sierra Club Books, 3rd ed., ISBN 1-57805-150-9
External links
edit- Nankoweap Trail at HikeArizona
- Nankoweap Trail National Park Service factsheet.