Cottonwood Creek Trail from Grandview Point

Starting at Grandview Point, this is about a 9-mile out-and-back down Grandview Trail, across Horseshoe Mesa and west to Cottonwood Creek and the Tonto Trail, then back the same way. The park’s route figures give 3 miles to Horseshoe Mesa and about 1.5 more to the creek; the familiar 6-mile Grandview trip turns around at the mesa. Allow roughly 10–12 hours for the creek extension: even the shorter mesa hike takes 6–9 hours, and this adds another steep descent and climb. This is a full canyon day for experienced desert hikers, not a first inner-canyon hike.

The trail leaves beside the Grandview Point overlook and quickly becomes steep, rocky and exposed. You’ll cross old log cribbing and uneven ledges above the Coconino cliff, then reach stretches of hand-laid sandstone paving. At Coconino Saddle, the trail meets the Hermit Shale and opens a view into upper Hance Creek. Steep switchbacks drop through the shale before the grade eases across Supai terrain toward Horseshoe Mesa.

At the mesa, take the west descent toward Cottonwood Creek; the east-side routes toward Page Spring and Hance Creek are different hikes. Not every junction is signed. The west route is the rougher choice, with very steep sections and washouts above the creek. The path then follows the creek’s west bank on a gentler, partly shaded stretch before meeting the Tonto Trail. The return retraces the same steep climb to the rim.

Indigenous people gathered mineral paints on Horseshoe Mesa before miners used Grandview to reach its copper deposits. Mule trains began hauling ore up this route in 1893. Rusted tools, cans and structures remain as protected archaeological resources. The old mines are unsafe and closed; leave artifacts where they are and do not enter the workings.

Park at Grandview Point on Desert View Drive. There is no dependable drinking water below the rim: the upper trail has none, and the lower springs can fail, so treat any water you find. Summer temperatures can exceed 100°F even in shade, monsoon lightning is a concern from July through September, and upper sections can be dangerously icy in winter and early spring. Vault toilets are at the Horseshoe Mesa campsites. Pets are prohibited below the rim, though service animals are allowed. Overnight camping requires a backcountry permit; Horseshoe Mesa campers must use designated sites.