Are you wondering which direction is best for hiking the Grand Canyon? Or why it is that so many rim-to-rim (or R2R) hikers start at the South Rim and go northbound?

If you read my earlier blog posts, then you already know I hiked the Grand Canyon in both directions in 2017. And I’m eager to share all the pros and cons of each route.

I also want to address a few questions that can help you narrow down which direction is better for your own rim-to-rim hike. For example:

• What time of year are you hiking?
• Do you prefer a longer descent or a longer ascent?
• Do you plan to traverse the Grand Canyon in a single day?
• Are you hiking R2R or R2R2R?

So let’s dive right in and figure out the benefits of hiking in each direction.

NOBO vs. SOBO

Throughout this post I’ll use two common hiking terms when describing the direction you can traverse the Grand Canyon. These phrases are Northbound (or NOBO) and Southbound (or SOBO).

As a NOBO hiker, you begin your rim-to-rim hike at the Grand Canyon’s South Rim and head north. It doesn’t matter whether you start on the Bright Angel Trail or the South Kaibab Trail. The destination is still the same – the North Rim.

Meanwhile, as a SOBO hiker, you start at the North Rim and hike south toward your destination. Again, it doesn’t matter whether you intend to end at the Bright Angel Trailhead or the South Kaibab Trailhead.  Either way, the goal is crossing the finish line at the South Rim.

If you’re having a hard time keeping these two terms straight in your mind, just remember that a NOBO’s goal is the North Rim and a SOBO hiker’s goal is the South Rim.

And if you’re an aspiring R2R2R hiker, you’ll be doing both NOBO and SOBO hikes. Thus, the goal of this post is to help you narrow down which rim is best for as a starting/ending point.

So, let’s kick this off with the question I hear the most…

Which direction is easier?

The short answer to this question is neither! Regardless of which way you go, you’ll be hiking between 22-24 miles with a 10,000+ foot elevation change. So, neither direction is going to be a cakewalk!

But, there are definitely some terrain considerations that may cause you to prefer one direction over the other.

If you look at the map below, it depicts the Grand Canyon’s corridor routes – or the most direct routes across the canyon.

Glancing over at the right side of this diagram, you can see there’s the option of the South Kaibab Trail or the Bright Angel Trail at the South Rim.

I go into far more details about these two South Rim trails in my post HERE. But the bottom line is that either one will get you down to the Colorado River. And from there, they’ll merge and connect to the North Kaibab Trail like the two ends of a “Y” meeting in its center.

The two rims are at a different elevations too (the North Rim is 1000′ higher), so very the best way to understand the entire route is by looking at its the lowest point – the Colorado River – and working outward.

Looking up

So let’s start with the Colorado River and imagine you are at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

As you glimpse over one shoulder, you’ll see the southern portion of the route. This distance back up to the South Rim is 7-9 miles long (depending on which trail you use) and has a 4,500 feet of vertical gain. While this is definitely challenging, it’s considered the easier of the two legs of your rim-to-rim hike.

Meanwhile, over your other shoulder, you see the northern portion of the route. This distance between the Colorado River and the North Rim is 14 miles long and there’s 5,500 feet of vertical gain. This additional distance to the top might lead you to conclude that the slope on northern side is gentler. Unfortunately, that not the case.

The north side of the Colorado River has two distinct parts to traverse. The seven-mile stretch closest to the river is essentially flat, with nominal elevation gain. Then the trail rises sharply to the North Rim in the second seven miles. Thus, the route from the Colorado River to the North Rim is both longer and steeper than either of the South Rim options.

Knowing this information, you have to ask yourself which challenge you prefer.

Would you rather have a shorter walk down followed by a longer ascent?

If so, starting at the South Rim and heading NOBO might be the better option. Of course, hiking rim-to-rim in this direction means you’ll be tacking the hardest and longest climb up to the North Rim at the end, which requires more sustained effort when you’re already fatigued.

Or do you want a longer descent so you can end with the shorter climb?

If so, starting at the North Rim and heading SOBO could be better for you. Be forewarned though. If you have knee problems, the long downhill route from the North Rim could place a real strain your knees early into the hike.

When will you hike the trail?

The terrain isn’t the only factor to mull over as you’re deciding your hiking direction. The time of year can impact the decision as well.

Trying for a single day rim-to-rim hike at the peak of summer or during winter is not recommended. So, few rim-to-rim hikers are going to attempt their crossing during these months. Spring and autumn have much better conditions for such an extreme adventure.

I’ve already discussed all the reasons why I think late May, late September, and early October are the best times to hike the Grand Canyon. And if you hike the Grand Canyon during those windows, either direction will work equally well.

But there are some hikers who want to set out on their rim-to-rim hike during the shoulder seasons on the outward edge of these ideal windows. In those cases, direction really does matter.

Early Spring Hiking

If your goal is to hike the Grand Canyon in the early spring, then you may find yourself overlapping with some Arizona Trail (AZT) thru-hikers. The AZT crosses the Grand Canyon via the South/North Kaibab Trails. And there’s a general preference to hike NOBO during the spring.

The biggest reason to head NOBO has to do with the snow. As previously mentioned, the North Rim is 1000′ higher in elevation than the South Rim. Thus, the top few miles of the North Kaibab Trail tends to get more winter snow and ice.

By Spring much of this snow will be patchy or melting, but it can refreeze overnight when temperatures drop. Hiking NOBO allows you to hike upward on the North Kaibab Trail, which provides better footing than than descending the trail in these marginal conditions.

Also, NOBO hikers are more likely to reach the steepest portion of the North Kaibab Trail (just below the rim) in the afternoon hours. This allows the daytime sun to thaw some of the snow or ice on the trail. That’s a much safer proposition that trying to traverse a slick trail going SOBO first thing in the morning.

Autumn hiking

You can realistically hike in either direction in the autumn, but hiking SOBO has some major advantages.

All the services on the North Rim close around October 15th, but the park remains open for “day use” until the Arizona Department of Transportation closes Highway 67 for the winter (usually around December 1st).

If you’re hiking in November, the North Rim access is only open from dawn to dusk. There is no overnight parking on the North Rim during this period. So you can’t stage your car there and just retrieve it at the end of your hike. And if bad weather descends, you might find a ride home at the end of your hike. Thus, if you’re a NOBO hiker in November, you’ll in for some logistical problems.

Because of these challenges, heading SOBO in November is a far better proposition. This allows someone (a shuttle, friend, etc) to drop you off at the North Kaibab Trailhead so you don’t need to leave a car behind. And, if you hike slower than expected and arrive at the South Rim late, it’s not a catastrophe. After all, the South Rim is open year-round and your ride will be waiting.

SOBO hikers can also better manage their water resupply options during the autumn (when the seasonal water inside the canyon is turned off). You’ll still need to carry sufficient water to complete the 14-mile North Kaibab Trail. But, once you reach Phantom Ranch, you can resupply from the year-round water sources at the bottom of the canyon. And you can re-fill again halfway back to the South Rim at Indian Garden Campground.

How long do you plan to hike?

Your timeline for hiking the Grand Canyon can also impact the direction you hike. The National Park Service considers a single day rim-to-rim hike as “day use” of the Park. Thus, you won’t need a backcountry permit to take on this adventure.

However, let’s suppose you want to break up your hike into two days (or more) and want to be spend the night inside the Grand Canyon. This means you’ll either need to get a coveted reservation at Phantom Ranch, or apply for a backcountry permit to camp.

A permit is required to stay at each of the backcountry campgrounds at Indian Garden, Bright Angel, or Cottonwood. So, permit availability could affect which direction you ultimately hike.

For example, if you’re able to get a camping spot at Bright Angel Campground near the Colorado River, your hike can easily start at either rim. However, if you can only get a spot further up trail at Cottonwood Campground or Indian Gardens Campground, you’ll may have to adjust where you planned to start or which direction you’ll head.

R2R2R hiking

This brings me to the final topic, namely R2R2R hikers. Obviously, if you’re among these hikers, you’ll be tackling the Grand Canyon’s corridor trails in both directions. But the question still remains on where to start/finish your hike.

Many R2R2R hikers opt to begin and finish on the South Rim. Thus, they’ll start their R2R2R journey NOBO, and finish it SOBO. This preference comes from looking at the Grand Canyon as a single 48-mile circuit.

Hiking NOBO-SOBO allows R2R2R hikers to put the hardest part of the climb in the middle of their hike. Essentially, you view the middle 14 miles of the journey as a hike up and back down to a 8,200′ mountain peak (aka the North Rim).

This also saves the slightly lower South Rim climb for the end – when you’re likely to have less of an energy reserve. It also ensures you have two year-round water sources available in the last 9 miles of your hike, when you most need the hydration.

To hike it in reverse (i.e., beginning and ending on the North Rim) is still an acceptable strategy. But, it sets the South Rim peak in the middle on the journey, and delays the North Rim’s long, hard ascent to the very end of your hike when you’re most fatigued.

Moreover, starting on the North Rim means you’ll have to push through the final 14-miles to your destination without any year-round water sources. Thus, this variant of a R2R2R hike is generally less desirable, unless the seasonal water points on the North Kaibab Trail are definitely turned on.

Final Thoughts

Which direction is the better option for your hike?? Only you can decide that. But, hopefully this post gave you some valuable information to understand the pros and cons of being a NOBO or SOBO hiker.

Each direction is spectacularly beautiful in its own way. And they’re both well deserving of the time and effort it takes to successfully complete a rim-to-rim hike.

Want to know more about hiking the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim?

Check out my other R2R blog posts on:

• Gear Every Rim-to-Rim Hiker Should Carry
•  What’s the Best Time of Year for a R2R Hike?
• How Much Water Will You Need When Hiking the Grand Canyon?

---

The material provided in this blog is informational only. Hiking in the Grand Canyon is an inherently risky activity. Every hiker is responsible for their own health and safety, and should plan for their rim-to-rim hike with those risks in mind. Outdoor Pilgrim is in no way responsible for the use or misuse of this information. Please hike responsibly!