In June, Matt, my brother Scott and I went camping in the Grand Canyon. It was a memorable trip because I wouldn’t recommend it.

Would you go to the Grand Canyon in June?

Let me clarify. I would totally recommend visiting the Grand Canyon but I wouldn’t recommend going to the Grand Canyon in June to camp or hike.

The Grand Canyon is Spectacular

This was my first time here and I was just in awe how Grand it really is. We enjoyed ourselves but I really had no idea how incredibly hot it would be. We woke up before sunrise to start hiking but by noon I was done. By done I mean we spent most of the rest of the day in our car in the air conditioning and in gift shops and the visitors center (anything with A/C). I remember just sitting in the gift shop hoping no one would make us leave just so we could stay cool. There were not a lot of gift shops so it was fairly awkward.

What hike did we do?

We did the Bright Angel Trail. I turned back and Matt came with me. The heat was killer. My brother actually made it to Plateau Point (which was 12 miles round trip). I was worried about him because I noticed all of the signs that are posted that talk about not hiking alone and having enough water while you hike. There were many signs talking about how people die every year in the Grand Canyon because they got too hot. Silently I prayed he wasn’t going to get dehydrated or get heat stroke. Scott made it to Plateau Point and more importantly he made it back up. Since he went further down the canyon he got a much better view of the river than we did (so this photo is from him).

On our way back to Utah we stopped at Horseshoe Bend right outside of Page, Arizona. It is just a few minutes off the road and less than a ten minute walk from the car. It was definitely worth a stop.

Maybe I’m a wimp but have you ever hiked or camped in the Grand Canyon in the summer time? I would love to go back and hike rim to rim or do a white water rafting trip down the Colorado River. There are so many places to explore in the Grand Canyon.