Snowy Canyon

Snowy Canyon, Grand Canyon Village, December 1990

When my wife and I arrived at the Grand Canyon, we were all set for a new backpacking adventure. But after a fresh snowfall earlier in the day, we drove out to check the trailhead and immediately said, “No way!”—it was completely covered. We were still Grand Canyon backpacking newbies and had never done any winter hiking, so this was out of the question.

That night, even more snow fell, and by morning, the canyon was transformed into this breathtaking winter scene, which I captured from the Rim Trail. As luck would have it, the storm led to some last-minute cancellations at Phantom Ranch, and we managed to snag a few nights there. Instead of braving the rough, snow-covered trail we had planned, we took one of the maintained trails down and ended up with an entirely different adventure—one we hadn’t expected but wouldn’t trade for anything.

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