Parking
Use the small pullout on the left side of a curve on Cape Royal Road, about 0.3 mile from Cape Royal. Cross the road to reach the trail.
Overview
About Cliff Springs Trail
Why go
- A spring beneath a broad overhang makes a memorable finish.
- The forested ravine offers a different feel from the open rim.
Heads up
- The steep descent makes the return a slow climb.
- Pets are not allowed on this trail.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Grand Canyon map
Full mapElevation7,461–7,749 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to go
Safety
4 active Grand Canyon alerts
- ClosureInner Canyon and North Rim trail closuresDo not enter the closed trails, bridges, campgrounds, and inner-canyon areas.Official details
- ClosureNorth Rim scenic roads closed for repairsCape Royal Road and Point Imperial Road are closed from sunset October 15 through sunrise November 3, 2026. - The roads are closed to accommodate critical road repair and rehabilitation work.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Grand Canyon Tour Guide
Your drive to Cliff Springs Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Grand Canyon National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Grand Canyon audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Cliff Springs’ Ravine Walk0:00 / 0:26
“Cliff Springs Trailhead is coming up, with a steep walk into a forested ravine. Choose it for the spring tucked beneath a broad red-rock overhang, a different experience from the open rim views.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Grand Canyon Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Cape Royal and Angels Window
- Walhalla Overlook and Pueblo
- Cape Final’s Forest Walk
- Why the Map Has Temples
- 79 audio storiesacross Grand Canyon’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor California Condor, Bighorn Sheep, American Bison, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 73 trails, 96 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Cliff Springs Trail
What you get for the walkCliff Springs Trail is a short, steep out-and-back from Cape Royal Road into a forested ravine.
Cliff Springs Trail is a short, steep out-and-back from Cape Royal Road into a forested ravine. It ends at a spring beside a chest-high boulder under a broad red-rock overhang. It’s a worthwhile change of pace if you want a sheltered ravine walk instead of another rim overlook. The mapped trail is about 0.39 mile each way, or 0.8 mile round trip; the published round-trip figure is 1.0 mile, so allow for the longer distance. Plan on one to two hours.
Down the wash to Cliff SpringCross the road from the pullout and follow the wash into the trees.
Cross the road from the pullout and follow the wash into the trees. After a marked archaeological site, the trail drops farther and cuts to the wash’s right side, then threads beneath rocky ledges to the boulder and spring. Return the same way; the uphill trip can take about twice as long as the descent. At the spring, frame the boulder with the overhang above it to show how tucked-away the water is.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Grand Canyon
718 sightingsCalifornia CondorMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
533 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
169 sightingsAmerican BisonMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
1,891 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
59 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
27 sightingsGray FoxMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Grand Canyon. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
