"so many people want material things. not me, i just want peace, truth, imagination, freedom, happy times, and people who love me... " ― bodhinku, imagination
pictured here is the remote tuweep overlook of the north rim of the grand canyon, with its breathtaking views of the colorado river straight down, and far below, all set under the night sky above the canyon...if you look in this impression, you can see thousands of stars, night clouds, the colorful core of the milky way, jupiter, mars, and the rising moon...
you seldom see this view of the grand canyon because it's such a tough place to get to...it is right on the edge of the north rim, positioned 3000ft (913m) above the colorado river below. there are no walls or safety features here. the edge is the edge. the drop is straight down. standing on the edge is like taunting death, a total adrenaline rush of fear and excitement. there is nothing like it anywhere else in the world. just natural views and an experience that has not changed an iota for millions of years...
this is a mystical place. once visiting tuweep for the first time, it is an experience you will never forget, and one you will want to return to frequently in the future...this is not a place that one checks off their "bucket list" as having "been there and done that"...the experience here is spiritual and soul touching, both day and night, your heart will feel contented...once you feel the pure romance of tuweap and the grand canyon, you will need to return here again one day to feel it again...
once off the arizona 389 highway, the drive down 60 mile long dirt road was its normal craziness, taking extra reserve from me on the long open stretches of road not to open it up and go 65mph, and instead to keep my speed around 30mph (50km/hr)...then the slow navigating of the rugged, uneven, and technical rock sections in the last half mile of the road to the overlook...
i had good weather for my entire visit, and was lucky enough to be out in front of the approaching smoke clouds from the southern california wildfires...they started to fill up the canyon with haze the morning i left, and were coating the skies the whole long drive back to san diego, creating for an eerie apocalyptic feeling with the orange-green sun shining down through deeper fire clouds and the smoky haze...
i searched for info on the park administering access to tuweep overlook being open all over the national park service online, but got no pure feeling on whether or not the locked gate would even be open...but i did the drive anyway...and when i got there, the gate was open!
once through the gate, you do a steady approach up to the ranger station (they can see vehicles coming literally from mile away). a nps ranger always comes out and greets you, and checks for your national park pass (or payment for day use fees), and a super sweet, kind, and awesome ranger, todd seliga met me and besos...
he talked with me for quite a while, and informed me (to my surprise) that new procedures now require an advance camping reservation for overnight stays needs to be secured beforehand via an online national park backcountry reservation system, and that we would have to exit the overlook shortly before sunset...at first, i thought that i'd be denied the chance to spend the evening and shoot sunset and then the the stars...as the two tuweap rangers (todd and elizabeth) are required to make each of the day-use people exit so they can lock the gate for the night (all new procedures to me since my last visit three years ago)...
btw, if you ever get the chance to visit, you will most likely meet todd, he is the backcountry ranger for the tuweep area. he patrols and manages 500,000 acres, over 140 square miles of land. while you might picture him driving around in a 4-wheel drive vehicle equipped for the rugged terrain, todd has recently been doing his work largely under his own power, pedaling a mountain bike to reduce carbon emissions that he might otherwise incur with a motorized vehicle...plus it turns out that this sweet kind man is an animal inside, as i found out that he holds all of the land speed records for timed travels on a mountain bike across the entire north rim of the grand canyon!
so, after talking with todd for some time, he obviously liked me, and stepped back from saying "no" originally to me camping for the night. he secured the $18/night camping fees from me, wrote down all my information, and decided to give me a provisional camping permit on the spot, presuming that the two extra spots he had would not be refilled before 7pm by people who already left early (guests that had reservations for multiple nights, but already left). presuming these folks would not be driving back and returning to camp back at tuweep for this night for some odd reason...
by 7pm, i knew it was all good, and i could stay the night, so i set up camp and scouted out the canyon's edge and where i was going to make my compositions with my camera...and btw, do not know where else to say this odd piece of info, but here at the overlook is literally the best and cleanest remote restroom in the entire united states, built on stilts with crazy breathtaking views...
and what a beautiful night it turned out to be...single-handedly my best visit ever to the grand canyon...
just imagine this experience...a gorgeous red glowing sunset, the milky way, constellations, the planets, an orange moon rise, billions of twinkling stars, the sunrise. all spent together with my doggie besos...laying under the stars on my back with the 3000ft drop-off edge a couple inches away, looking up to the universe above, seeing a super long shooting star that reached literally across the sky ending in a beautiful green flash...a time spent so magical, so beautiful, moments shared i with my pup that i will never forget as long as i live, and i always appreciate and feel lucky to have experienced with another spiritual soul as him...
besos and i will be going back, how can we not??
"i've been truly listening to the signs of the universe. i have found that there are no coincidences, only events and chances to truly understand how everything happens for a reason...i have been following down my path, only certain in my uncertainty, but glad to be able to breathe, learn from my mistakes, and feel so alive from my experiences, both good and bad"― bodhinku, just imagine
HISTORY
"just imagine a world where natural beauty is celebrated, and egos are tamed, and life is based on peace, not greed" ― bodhinku, just imagine
at 3,000 vertical feet (915 m) above the colorado river below, the sheer drop from tuweap overlook (a.k.a totoweap) offers a breathtaking and dramatic view by any standard. the volcanic cinder cones and lava flows in this ancestral home of the southern paiute people make this area unique.
situated on the iconic rim of grand canyon, a visit to tuweep provides an opportunity for an uncrowded, rustic, and remote experience. access is challenging and demands skill at negotiating difficult roadways. summer brings monsoonal rain and lightning. winter includes rain, snow and freezing temperatures.
any visitor to tuweap needs to be prepared and ready for quickly changing conditions, and they must bring their own supplies, because there is no water, gas, food, lodging, or phone service here...it is isolated and off the grid, something totally welcome and embraced by this adventurer these days...
to even get to tuweep overlook, a high clearance 4x4 vehicle is absolutely required, and with the weather, road conditions change suddenly...the 2 mile drive from the ranger station to the campground/rim overlook can take an hour to navigate the slickrook, sharp rocks, dips, drops, rises, gullies, wobbles, leans, and high standing rocks, and that is in good conditions, the road in unnavigable in wet conditions...it is like driving across a rockfield with hidden potholes that has a couple tire tracks on it, once on it, you are committed with no way of really turning back until the end ...btw, our progress was so slow that we were passed by a ranger (elizabeth) on a bicycle at one point!
the day use area is open from sunrise when the gate is unlocked and opened, to 30 minutes past sunset, when the gate is locked. you can stay overnight, but camping requires an advanced reservation permit, and permitted campers must arrive by sunset before the rangers lock the gate for the night 30 mins after sunset.
pets are permitted but must be leased...things prohibited: vehicles and vehicle combinations longer than 22 feet (6.7 m) are prohibited. this is the total length from end to end, including anything towed. highway licensed vehicles only, no atvs. driving muddy roads prohibited. fires and charcoal grills prohibited. no hunting or collecting. no drones, wingsuits, or base jumping. filming/photography permit required for specific activities and all commercial filming. commercial filming is only permitted when beneficial to park operations and will be determined on a case by case basis.
be prepared when you visit...on the 60 mile dirt road from pavement to tuweep, flat tires are most frequent on smooth, graded sections of the roadway hiding unseen fractured, sharp, limestone. so travel slowly, 30 mph (50 kph) or less, to avoid flat tires. bring tire plugs and a portable air compressor, or bicycle pump, to repair flat tires. ensure you have enough fuel, full size spare tire, jack/lift, and owner’s manual. remember (i learned the hard way, driving to fast and getting a double flat as a result) tow service costs $1,000–2,000, and assistance is not guaranteed. aaa does not cover "unimproved roads" such as this one.
also, carry extra water, food, and warm clothing. due to rapidly changing conditions, be equipped to spend the night. during monsoon season, visit in the morning before the afternoon storms. flooding may occur when the chance of precipitation is as low as 10 percent. during muddy winter conditions, travel when routes are frozen and overnight temperatures below 20°f (-7°c). complete travel prior to thaw by around 8:30 am.
and of course, watch your step! for your safety with the drop off to death below, but also as well as the protection of a delicate ecosystem, be careful where you step and drive. a 3000-foot (915 m) drop is one concern. the less obvious micro-biotic crusts are another; they hold soil and plant nutrients in place and can be easily damaged. when exploring on foot, please stay on trails, roads, washes, or rock surfaces to protect the crusts and avoid damaging native plants. when driving, passing another vehicle, or parking, stay on the road or in delineated parking areas.
tuweap overlook is dramatically different than other grand canyon viewpoints, tuweap overlook peers out over an abrupt gorge set in a broad corridor 3,000 feet (915 m) below the rim. eight, million-year-old lava flows and conical black cinder cones stud the landscape. walk to the edge for a breath-taking experience, no walls, no fence, just an all-natural edge that should not be crossed (duh). to the west, view the largest rapid on nearly 300 miles (485 km) of the park’s colorado river. listen carefully for the roar of the river or the faint sounds from boaters below. to the east, enjoy dramatic views, such as the one captured in my impression here today....
"the edge is the edge. the drop is straight down. standing on the edge is like taunting death, a total adrenaline rush of fear and excitement. there is nothing like it anywhere else in the world. just natural views and an experience that has not changed an iota for millions of years" ― bodhinku, the tuweap edge