Grand Canyon National Park Implements Water Restrictions

At press time, due to a malfunction in the pump that supplies water to the North Rim of Grand Canyon, the North Rim has entered Level 2 water restrictions. These restrictions only affect the North Rim and Supai Tunnel on the North Kaibab Trail.

Steps To Conserve

Under Level 2 water restrictions, North Rim visitors and residents must take steps to reduce water consumption. These steps are as easy as selectively flushing the toilet; taking shorter showers; only washing clothes or dishes with full loads and in eco-mode, if available, and turning off the sink while brushing teeth, soaping hands, or shaving.

Additional actions by the park and North Rim businesses include using disposable dishes and utensils at meals, serving drinking water at restaurants by request only, closing camper shower and laundromat services, and encouraging residents to fill buckets with shower water for watering plants or flushing toilets.

Be Prepared To Carry H2O

The pump malfunction also means drinking water is not available at Supai Tunnel on the North Kaibab Trail. Drinking water is available at Manzanita Resthouse, Cottonwood Campground, and Phantom Ranch. Drinking water on the Bright Angel Trail is not affected. All inner canyon trail users must be prepared to carry all their drinking water or a way to treat creek water.

Crews are working to fix the pump. If the repairs take longer than anticipated, the North Rim may implement further mandatory restrictions. Actively conserving water now delays more stringent water restrictions in the future.

Adopt Basic Practices

The South Rim and North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park always operate under Level 1 water restrictions, encouraging all residents, visitors, and businesses to mindfully use water and adopt basic water conservation practices.

Grand Canyon National Park has a large and complex water utility system that provides water to residents, businesses, and more than 6 million annual visitors. Although both the North Rim and South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park receive water from Roaring Springs, the North Rim's pipeline is not part of the Transcanyon Waterline.

Rangers Remind Visitors To Hike Smart At Grand Canyon National Park

Visitors to Grand Canyon, especially inner canyon hikers, mule riders, and backpackers, need to prepare for excessively hot days in the coming weeks. In the summer, temperatures on exposed parts of the trail can reach over 120 F (49 C). Hiking in extreme heat can lead to serious health risks including heat exhaustion, heat stroke, hyponatremia, and hyperthermia.

Precautions

Anyone still planning to hike into the canyon should take extra precautions to hike smart. Hikers should hike before 10 am and after 4 pm and rest in shade and near water during those times to avoid the worst heat of the day. Rangers advise that anyone hiking in heat needs to balance food and water intake, drink when thirsty, and get wet to stay cool.

All visitors to Grand Canyon should ensure they are drinking plenty of fluids, resting in shade during the heat of the day, watching for signs of distress in traveling companions, and dressing appropriately for the weather, which includes loose-fitting clothing. Visitors are also reminded they should be prepared to self-rescue while on the canyon's trails.

Heat=Search And Rescue

In 2017, heat contributed to 82 search and rescue (SAR) incidents at Grand Canyon National Park, many of which occurred in June. So far this month, park rangers have responded to multiple heat-related incidents in the inner canyon, including one fatality, Douglas Stewart, 61, of Alaska.

Additional information about hiking smart in the heat is available at https://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/hike-smart.htm.