Park officials are urging visitors to avoid midday hiking as temperatures in the inner canyon are forecast to reach or exceed 110 degrees following multiple heat-related deaths.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Grand Canyon National Park visitors are being warned to avoid dangerous hiking conditions as extreme heat is expected to return early next week after three hikers recently died in heat-related incidents.
The National Weather Service issued an extreme heat watch for the Grand Canyon from midday Monday through Tuesday, with temperatures at Phantom Ranch forecast to reach or exceed 110 degrees. Phantom Ranch sits at low elevation inside the canyon, where conditions are often far hotter than at the rim.
The National Park Service said visitors are “strongly advised” not to hike during the middle of the day, citing a “recent influx of heat-related incidents” in the inner canyon.
Two hikers, ages 67 and 68, were found dead June 16 on the North Kaibab Trail while an extreme heat watch was in effect. The National Park Service describes the North Kaibab Trail as the most difficult of the major inner canyon routes. Officials said the hikers appeared to have died after experiencing symptoms of heat-related illness.
A third hiker, age 72, died June 12 on the South Kaibab Trail after becoming ill from the heat, according to the Park Service.
Weather and park officials said Grand Canyon conditions can mislead visitors because temperatures at the rim can be 20 to 25 degrees cooler than temperatures at the canyon bottom. Hikers may begin a descent in relatively comfortable conditions, only to face extreme heat and a steep climb of thousands of feet on the return trip.
“It’s just a hot place at the bottom of the Grand Canyon,” said Justin Johndrow, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Flagstaff.
Johndrow said the region is nearing the hottest part of the year, before the late-summer monsoon season brings some relief.
“That’s very strenuous even on a mild day,” Johndrow said of the climb back to the rim. “Throw in temperatures of 105 to 110 degrees, and that causes some pretty bad problems.”
The heat danger comes as much of the Western United States, from the Rockies to the Pacific Coast, is experiencing above-average temperatures. Even hotter weather is expected early next week, and officials warned that dry conditions, low humidity and prolonged heat have increased fire danger.
About 90 miles south of the Grand Canyon, visitors and residents in Oak Creek Canyon were evacuated late Friday as a wildfire burned hundreds of acres north of Sedona.
The Pocket Fire was burning roughly 500 acres of steep, rugged terrain near Oak Creek Canyon, according to Dick Fleishman, fire information officer with the Southwest area complex incident management team. A federal interagency team and at least a dozen local agencies were involved in the response.
The fire was concentrated in the Red Rock-Secret Mountain wilderness area about 7 miles north of Sedona and had begun moving into the Coconino National Forest. Firefighters were working to keep the blaze from spreading toward Oak Creek Canyon, where evacuations were ordered, and toward Sedona.
Fleishman said the fire became difficult quickly because of steep terrain, nearby property at risk, intense heat from the blaze and the possibility of post-fire flooding if rainwater rushes down burned slopes.
“This fire ramped up in complexity quickly,” Fleishman said. “We want to try and keep it as small a footprint as possible.”
About 30 miles of the adjacent state highway was closed in both directions. The Coconino National Forest issued a closure Saturday afternoon for all campgrounds, picnic sites and trailheads in the affected area.
“For June 20,” Fleishman said after driving through the area, “I’ve never seen it that quiet.”
Oak Creek Canyon normally draws millions of visitors each year, but the fire and extreme weather risks have disrupted travel and recreation across the region.
At the Grand Canyon, officials are urging visitors to take the heat seriously, especially on inner canyon trails where conditions become significantly hotter and more strenuous than many hikers expect.
Park officials said those who choose to hike should avoid midday heat, carry enough water and electrolytes, rest frequently and understand that climbing out of the canyon is far more demanding than descending.
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