Forget Jimi Hendrix, Axel Rose and Robert Plant – the guide at the Grand Canyon is a true rock star
Occasionally you come across a guide who not only makes an instant connection with children, but can also make a seemingly mundane subject into something utterly transfixing. Granted, it helps if they’re called Dora – as all Dora the Explorer fans will testify – but I had to hand it to our guide from the Grand Canyon Field Institute (www.grandcanyon.org/fieldinstitute) – she knew how to make rocks sound cool.
Instead of droning on about the Grand Canyon’s 1.7 billion years of geology, she got the kids to act it out. Imagine a game of Twister where, rather than spinning an arrow pointer, you have thrusting mountains, invading seas and eroding rivers as cues.
Of course, it ended up being a great excuse for a scrum, but Dora still succeeded in getting across the basic principles of Grand Canyon tectonics to children aged six to 11 – no mean feat. She then produced several small pouches containing ten different rock samples and challenged everyone to match them to the correct strata in the Canyon walls.
You may be wondering if all this extra-curricular activity is really necessary when you take your kids somewhere as iconic as the Grand Canyon. Surely the views are enough? I’m not so sure.
“I wasn’t expecting it to be so big,” was as profound a reaction as I heard from children in our group. That’s not to say they weren’t initially gobsmacked by the Canyon – it’s just that endless hours of ‘dreamy-eyed spiritual contemplation’ is grown-up stuff.
Of course, there are plenty of ways to make the Grand Canyon more child-friendly. The Grand Canyon show at the National Geographic IMAX Theater (www.explorethecanyon.com) in nearby Tusayan is thrilling, and a flight over it (www.grandcanyonairlines.com) is another adrenalin-charged – if pricey – way to experience the world wonder.
But to get the most from the Grand Canyon you need to walk. Age and ability play a crucial role in what you can do. I saw parents on the brink of nervous breakdowns as they grappled to restrain high-energy offspring from climbing on viewpoint railings. That’s not to say the Canyon is a no-go zone for toddlers – just make sure you’ve got a firm handhold at the least.
Older children can join hikes into the Canyon, even if it’s just for a day walk on either the South Kaibab or Bright Angel Trail. For overnight trips to Phantom Ranch, consider joining a mule-assisted hike. Kids aged four to 14 who make it to this cluster of cabins at the Canyon’s base can qualify as Phantom Rattler Junior Rangers – just one of the education schemes operated by the National Park Service (www.nps.gov).
