With little fanfare, Grand Canyon National Park has expanded the upcoming closure of Bright Angel Trial by 14 weeks. The trail will be closed from Havasupai Garden, formerly known as Indian Garden, through and including Silver Bridge, from October 21, 2024 to May 14, 2025.
• Bright Angel Campground’s closure has been expanded to Nov 4, 2024-May 14, 2025
• The closure of Plateau Point Trail beyond the Tonto Trail Junction, which began in 2023, will continue until May 14, 2025.
• These closures are due to the repairs to the Transcanyon pipeline, a 220 million dollar project that is essentially running a garden hose through the old aluminum pipeline.
• To the best of my understanding, the pipeline between Havasupai Garden and River Trail was replaced by the Plateau Point pipeline, and the only thing that runs down Bright Angel Trail between Havasupai Garden and River Trail is a buried power line that serves Phantom Ranch. Why this power line was not re-routed along the shorter Plateau Point route is a mystery to me, as the route along Bright Angel Trail is complex and circituitous.
• The good news is access to Tonto Trail West has been maintained, but access to Tonto Trail East has not. Doing work on that short portion of Bright Angel Trail before the cut-off to Tonto Trail East should not take too long, but apparently that access is closed for the duration.
• Hikers who wish to go to Phantom Ranch, Cottonwood, or the North Rim will need to use South Kaibab Trail. The Park Service has limited access to the South Kaibab Trial, both by restricting access and by reducing bus service.
• The Park website warns in bold red letters that parking is not allowed at the South Kaibab Trail head. Last year, the erected barriers to stop hikers from parking along the rim road closest to the trailhead. Also, they reduced bus service so that in Winter months, the first bus to the trailhead arrives after 8am. Why the Park has limited access to South Kaibab Trial during a time it is the sole corridor trail to the deep Canyon is a mystery to me, but I guess it is your tax dollars at work. I have a separate video about how to access South Kaibab Trial.
• Hopefully, the work on the transcanyon pipeline will be complete before too long, and access to all the popular trails in the Park will be restored.
