Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon Legacy of Pete Berry

It was 1895. Pete Berry sat on the back of his mule, Delilah, as they climbed the narrow, winding trail from the Last Chance Mine up toward Grandview—the modest wooden structure he’d built by hand on the rim of the canyon. The trail curved along sheer edges and weathered switchbacks, and below, the Colorado snaked in and out of sight like a long breath. Above, the light was changing again. Clouds broke open to reveal a wash of purple, rust, and sandstone gold—colors that belonged more to dreams than to geology. Even after all these years, the view still got to him.

Pete and his partners, the Cameron brothers, had first come to the Grand Canyon in 1888. They’d chased rumors of ore, camped in cold shadows, and spent long months hauling supplies in and ore out. In 1890, luck met labor. A vein of copper revealed itself on Horseshoe Mesa—rich, high-grade. They registered the claim, carved out a trail from canyon rim to mesa, and got to work.

That trail—Pete knew every twist of it. Every drop and rise. Today, he rode at the head of a ten-mule caravan, each animal carrying 400 pounds of copper ore in heavy canvas bags. Delilah, as usual, had her own ideas. She tossed her head, tugged at the harness, slowed to nibble at brush. “The unruly,” they called her. And yet, she always found her way back in line.

The ore was still good, but not as good as it had been. Costs were climbing. Transporting everything to El Paso was eating into what little margin they had, and Pete had heard the Santa Fe Railroad planned another price hike. He’d need to talk to Ralph and Niles. Something had to change.

The canyon was quiet except for hoofsteps and the distant call of a hawk. Pete’s mind wandered as it often did when the rhythm of the mules set in. He thought about the hotel he’d been sketching in his head—two rooms so far, sometimes rented out to the rare souls who braved the bone-shaking stagecoach ride from Flagstaff. They always arrived tired, dusty, and hungry. Maybe, Pete thought, if he had a proper kitchen. A place to rest. Maybe a lodge. Maybe even the first hotel at the Grand Canyon.

And then, there were the other thoughts. The ones he didn’t like to admit took up more space than they should.

“It wasn’t love,” he said to himself, low enough that only the canyon could hear. “It was duty. When John got himself shot, I stepped in. Took the saloon. Took the kids. Took Mary.”

She was sharp. Clever. Talented in ways he hadn’t expected. But she’d left. Not quietly either. She left with Frankforter—the same man Pete had once trusted with his business. He’d caught up with him once, drawn blood, but it hadn’t changed a thing. They were gone.

“I wasn’t the best husband. God knows I wasn’t present,” he admitted. “But with that man?” He shook his head.

He missed his brother. Missed the simplicity of Colorado before it all came apart. The canyon didn’t judge. It just held things—old bones, buried ore, and the pieces of a man too stubborn to give up.

As the trail leveled off near the rim, Pete stood tall in the saddle. Thirty-seven years behind him. Dust on his boots. The weight of a whole life in his chest. “It’s not a novella,” he muttered, half-smiling. “Though it reads like one.”

He let out a shrill whistle. Delilah surged forward. Somewhere in the distance, he imagined the outline of a lodge rising from the rock. A place for strangers to arrive, to look out over this land and feel what he felt.

Epilogue

In 1897, Pete Berry and his new wife, Martha, opened the Grandview Hotel—the first lodge at the Grand Canyon. For a few brief years, Grandview became the gateway to the canyon, its trail the path into its heart. But in 1901, the Santa Fe Railroad reached Grand Canyon Village, eleven miles west, and tourists followed the tracks. The hotel faded. The ore thinned. Pete moved on.

But his trail remains. If you find yourself near Grandview Point, pause for a moment. Look out over that impossible view. Somewhere in that wind, in that color, in that quiet—you’ll find the story still lives.

Pete’s story isn’t just history—it’s part of the emotional landscape that still echoes through the canyon. As an artist, I’ve often found myself trying to capture that same scale, silence, and layered meaning in my own work.

If you’re curious how the Grand Canyon’s immensity translates into abstraction, you might enjoy this:

👉 Riveting Stripe Paintings – A Series Of Stripe Compositions

An artistic interpretation inspired by the vastness of landscapes like the Grand Canyon.

2020: Exploring the Grand Canyon — A Guide for the Willing Soul

No photograph can truly hold the Grand Canyon. Even when you’re standing right at its edge, looking down into the void, your eyes can’t quite register where the bottom begins. You feel it more than see it—its depth, its scale, its pull.

You can explore the canyon from either rim. The north rim is higher by about 1,000 feet (305 meters) and quieter. The south rim—easier to reach and more popular—is where most first-time visitors go. Standing on the south rim, the sun will be behind you, which makes for exceptional photographs. But it’s the descent, not the viewpoint, that changes everything.

 Choosing Your Descent

Four trails lead to the Colorado River from the south rim, and one from the north. Day hikes are open to all—no permit required if you’re not staying overnight.

If you plan to sleep below the rim, you’ll need a backcountry permit.

👉 Apply for a Grand Canyon backcountry permit via the National Park Service.

My Suggested Route: Down South Kaibab, Up Bright Angel

If you’re looking for a deeper journey—one that lives in your body as well as your memory—I suggest this:

Descend on the South Kaibab Trail, stay two nights at Phantom Ranch, and ascend via the Bright Angel Trail. It’s demanding but doable, and deeply rewarding.

South Kaibab Trail – Fast, Open, Breathtaking

This is the steepest, quickest route to the bottom: 7 miles and 4,780 feet down. There’s no water or shade, just exposure and astonishing views. The trail carves through space with wide-open vistas that frame the canyon like a painting. With the sun at your back, the colors burn bright in every direction.

Phantom Ranch – Rest, Regroup, Reflect

At the canyon’s floor, you’ll find Phantom Ranch, a cluster of rustic stone cabins where time slows.

👉 Book or enter the lottery for Phantom Ranch via Xanterra’s official site.

I recommend staying two nights. One to rest from the descent, and another to enjoy where you are—whether it’s hiking toward the North Kaibab Trail, resting near the riverbank, or simply sketching the surreal light of canyon dusk. Dinner is simple and hearty: steak or vegan chili, served family-style in the canteen.

Bright Angel Trail – Gradual, Shaded, Kind but Not Easy

This 10-mile climb ascends 4,380 feet. Compared to South Kaibab, Bright Angel is longer, more forgiving, and offers several freshwater stations along the way. The switchbacks seem endless, but the views are dramatic—cliffs stacked like pages in a geological book.

The final stretch is steep, and in winter, shaded sections can become icy.

Other Ways to Experience the Canyon

You don’t have to hike. Riding a mule down the trail is a time-honored tradition and one of the most unique ways to experience the descent.

👉 Watch a short video about the Grand Canyon mule rides.

For the truly ambitious, some choose to run the entire rim-to-river-to-rim route in a single day.

👉 See this video of a full canyon run experience.

A Few Final Words

• Pack light.
• Wear good shoes.
• Be prepared for dramatic temperature differences between rim and river.
• Most of all, condition your body—this is not a casual stroll

There is no cell service. No Uber. No shortcuts.

The canyon demands your attention—but it gives something timeless in return: stillness, scale, silence. 

Listen well. Know when to rest. There’s a fine line between a meaningful challenge and a miserable mistake.

2013: 13 Things That Still Stun Me After All These Years

There are places in the world that defy explanation—where the land feels older than language, where scale and silence stretch your perception. The Grand Canyon is one of them.

No matter how many times I’ve been there, it humbles me. You stand on the rim, trying to absorb its depth, its layers, its slow geological breath—and still, it keeps some part of itself hidden.

In that spirit of awe and curiosity, here are 13 facts I’ve gathered—some well-known, some wonderfully obscure—that continue to deepen my reverence for this canyon carved by time, wind, and water.

1. Its Age Is a Mystery.
   For years, geologists believed the canyon was six million years old. But new studies suggest some parts may date back as far as 70 million years. The canyon, like many things here, doesn’t yield its secrets easily.
2. There’s a Gap in Time Hidden in the Rocks.
   The Great Unconformity is one of geology’s riddles: layers of rock 250 million years old sit directly above layers 1.2 billion years old. The time in between? Missing.
3. It Never Stops Changing.
   Though slow and subtle, the canyon continues to evolve. Wind, water, and time keep shaping its walls, ever so quietly, day by day.
4. Its Size Is Almost Incomprehensible.
   277 miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and over a mile deep. And the total park area? Roughly one-quarter the size of Israel.
5. It Isn’t the Deepest Canyon in the World.
   Nepal’s Kali Gandaki and Peru’s Cotahuasi Canyon dive deeper. But no other canyon matches the Grand Canyon’s scale, presence, and silence.
6. Not Even the Deepest in the U.S.
   That title goes to Hells Canyon on the Oregon-Idaho border. It drops even farther than the Grand Canyon.
7. The Rims Are at Different Heights.
   The North Rim stands 1,000 feet higher than the South Rim. That elevation makes the views, the weather, and the vegetation strikingly different.
8. It Takes Hours to Drive Rim to Rim.
   Though only 10 miles apart as the eagle flies, the drive between the North and South Rim is over 200 miles long and takes about 5 hours.
9. Its Temperatures Are Wildly Varied.
   The canyon’s floor can be 25 degrees warmer than the rim. In summer, you can bake in 100°F heat below and still need a jacket at the top.
10. Its Air Is Among the Cleanest in the U.S.
    Out here, the sky isn’t just blue—it’s crystal. Dry desert winds and limited pollution make the air clarity exceptional.
11. The River Keeps Cutting.
    The Colorado River, wide and steady, still moves at 4 miles per hour, about 300 feet across. It carved this masterpiece and keeps sculpting it.
12. Fossils Abound—But Not of Dinosaurs.
    Ancient marine fossils, yes. But no dinosaurs. The canyon walls formed long before they roamed the Earth.
13. There Are Hundreds of Hidden Caves.
    More than 1,000 caves are believed to exist inside the canyon. Only 335 have been recorded, and just one—the Cave of the Domes—is open to the public.

This place holds both presence and mystery. It reminds me that deep time doesn’t speak in words, but in layers, silence, and light.

A History of Exploration, Culture, and Spirit

The Grand Canyon is not just a marvel of geology—it’s a vast and layered tapestry of human presence, spirituality, and myth, stretching across millennia. Beneath its staggering cliffs and along its winding river lie stories that pulse with memory and meaning. Here are ten reflections—woven from archeology, Indigenous wisdom, early exploration, and modern legacy—that offer a deeper lens into the canyon’s soul.

1. The Grand Canyon Holds Echoes of Humanity Dating Back 12,000 Years
   Long before tourism and trails, this canyon sheltered Paleo-Indians. Split-twig figurines of deer and bighorn sheep—delicate, ritualistic, and carved by hand—rest in the walls like prayers left behind. These artifacts are among the oldest in North America, reminders of the canyon’s ancient role as sanctuary and shrine.
2. For the Hopi, the Canyon is a Threshold to the Afterlife
   Known as Öngtupqa in the Hopi language, the canyon holds deep spiritual resonance. The “sipapuni,” a dome-shaped mineral spring near the Little Colorado River confluence, marks the portal through which Hopi souls journey westward after death. Here, geography becomes cosmology.
3. The First Europeans Stumbled Upon the Canyon in 1540
   Led by Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, a scouting party from Coronado’s expedition emerged onto the South Rim. Guided by Hopi locals, the Spaniards looked down into a gorge so vast that distance itself collapsed. They tried to descend for water but failed—defeated not by the canyon, but by thirst.

👉 Read more:

4. Then, Europe Forgot About the Grand Canyon—for a While
   For over 200 years, the canyon remained largely untouched by European eyes. Not until 1776 did Spanish priests Francisco Dominguez and Silvestre Vélez de Escalante come seeking a westward route to Monterey, California. In the same year, missionary Francisco Garcés tried to convert the Havasupai—without success.
5. No One Reached the Bottom Until 1869
   John Wesley Powell, a one-armed Civil War veteran, led nine men on a harrowing 1,000-mile descent of the Colorado River. Six survived. Powell returned in 1871 with scientists and cartographers, producing the first meaningful maps of the region—and becoming an early advocate for conserving the West’s precious water.

👉 Watch Powell’s legacy unfold in this documentary:

6. Teddy Roosevelt Found a Loophole to Protect It
   After visiting in 1903, Roosevelt declared, “Leave it as it is.” He couldn’t create a national park without Congress—but he didn’t need them to create a national monument. Using a presidential proclamation, he shielded the canyon in stages until full park status was granted in 1919.

👉 Watch Roosevelt speak on preserving wild lands:

7. The First Car Arrived at the South Rim in 1902—Five Days from Flagstaff
   Imagine rattling over dust and rock for days, not hours. The canyon, even with its grandeur, was once accessible only to the most determined.
8. In 1909, a Myth Took Root: The Smithsonian Hoax
   A newspaper article claimed explorers had found Egyptian or Tibetan relics in a tunnel beneath the canyon. The Smithsonian denied everything. Yet to this day, conspiracy theorists insist a treasure chamber exists, hidden in the rocks and sealed by institutional silence.
9. The FAA Was Born from Tragedy Over the Canyon
   In 1956, two commercial planes collided above the canyon. The devastation prompted Congress to establish the Federal Aviation Administration—born, in part, to protect what we can’t afford to lose.
10. Today, Nearly Five Million Visitors Come Each Year
    Once remote, the Grand Canyon is now a global pilgrimage site. Since 1919, its numbers have grown from 44,000 to millions. Still, in quiet corners, if you listen carefully, you can almost hear the whisper of ancient prayers, echoing across stone and time.

👉 Watch an aerial tribute to the canyon’s enduring magic: