Parking
No road approach or parking. Reach the river-left landing at Upper National Camp only by an authorized Colorado River trip.
Overview
About National Canyon (River Access)
Why go
- Distinctive limestone narrows, alcoves and pools close to the river.
- A short out-and-back offers a glimpse into a side canyon.
Heads up
- River-trip access only, with no road trailhead or services.
- The wash is unmarked and can change after floods.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Grand Canyon map
Full mapElevation1,750–1,844 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
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 National Canyon (River Access), 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 tour- 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 National Canyon (River Access)
A short hike from the riverNational Canyon (River Access) is an informal out-and-back from Upper National Camp, with…
National Canyon (River Access) is an informal out-and-back from Upper National Camp, with roughly 1.2 miles round trip to the lower narrows. About 0.1 mile crosses the landing beach to the canyon mouth; from there it is about 0.5 mile up the wash each way. Allow around 1.5 hours for ledges, loose gravel and a look at the pools and Muav Limestone alcoves. River-mile labels for this area are rounded differently, from about 166.4 to 167; those numbers are not hiking distances.
Turn back at the lower narrowsThe approach follows the creekbed on ledges and gravel rather than a built, signed trail.
The approach follows the creekbed on ledges and gravel rather than a built, signed trail. Pools and the sandy mouth can change after floods; a 2013 flash flood reshaped the entrance. The route here ends at the lower narrows. Beyond that, descriptions include choke stones and fourth- or fifth-class scrambling; that technical continuation is outside this short walk.
Reach it by riverThere is no road trailhead, parking or services.
There is no road trailhead, parking or services. You need an authorized Colorado River trip to reach Upper National Camp on river left. Private noncommercial river trips require an NPS permit. Hualapai land lies along this stretch of river left, and hiking above the historic high-water mark may require separate tribal permission; confirm access for this landing before launch. Pet access is not established for this walk, so check before bringing a dog.
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.
