Hermit Trail

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Hermit Trail
Hermit Trail near Lookout Point
Length	8.9 mi; 14.3 km
Trailheads	Colorado River Hermit's Rest, Grand Canyon South Rim
Use	Hiking
Elevation Change	4240 ft
Highest Point	South Rim, 6640 ft
Lowest Point	Colorado River, 2400 ft
Trail Difficulty	Very Strenuous
Season	Year Round
Sights	Grand Canyon Colorado River
Hazards	Severe Weather Overexertion Dehydration Flash Flood

The Hermit Trail is a hiking trail in Grand Canyon National Park, located in the U.S. state of Arizona. This trail provides access to a historic area of Grand Canyon and offers a more challenging route to the Colorado River for more experienced canyon hikers.

1 Description
2 History
3 References
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Description

Mileages and features along the Hermit Trail ^[1] ^[2] ^[3]
Distance (mi)	Elv (ft)	Location	Connecting trails	Toilet	Water
0	6640	Trailhead, Hermit's Rest	Rim Trail	Portable
1.2	5400	Trail Junction	Waldron Trail
1.6	5240	Trail Junction	Dripping Springs Trail
2	4900	Santa Maria Spring			Ephemerial
4	4200	Lookout Point
6.2	3120	Trail Junction	Tonto Trail East
7.8	3040	Hermit Creek Campsite	Tonto Trail West	Composting	Hermit Creek, Perennial
8.9	2400	Hermit Rapids, Colorado River			Hermit Creek, Colorado River

[edit] Access

The trailhead is located 0.25 miles southwest of Hermit's Rest on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. The trailhead is accessible by shuttle bus from Grand Canyon Village, Arizona on the Hermit Road. The road is closed to private vehicles between April and October annually, and is open to all traffic other months. Two exceptions are for vehicles with government issued handicap placards and backpackers with valid permits for overnight camping in the Hermit use area. Those users can obtain the gate code by visiting the Backcountry Information Center in the park. ^[4]

Access to the trailhead parking area and some of the facilities at Hermit's Rest may be restricted due to ongoing construction of a new restroom facility. Construction began in April 2006 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of September. ^[5]

[edit] Condition

Grand Canyon National Park categorizes the Hermit Trail as a threshold trail and does not officially maintain it. The trail is rutted in many places, and the once exquisite construction of placed stones on the upper-half of the trail is now crumbling and rough. ^[6]

Numerous rockslides cut through the trail and require rock scrambling and route finding to pass. The most recent major rockslide occurred in the evening of 1 March 1983, when a large section of rock in the Supai Group broke away from a cliff face and scattered down Hermit Canyon, cutting the Hermit Trail in two places. A rockslide that took place in the early 1930s cuts through the trail in a third place. These breaks in the trail require scrambling to get over, but are well marked with cairns. ^[7]

[edit] Water availability

All water sources along this trail must be treated, filtered, or boiled before drinking. ^[8] ^[9]

Water is available year-round at Hermit Creek and the Colorado River. The trail between the Hermit Creek camping area and the Colorado River parallels Hermit Creek and provides additional water accessibility. Also, water flows periodically from Santa Maria Spring, located 2 trail miles in from the trailhead, but should not be counted on. ^[10]

Hermit Creek above the Hermit Creek campsite is dry except in time of flood or flash flood.

The park's Backcountry Information Center has current water conditions for all water sources along the Hermit Trail. ^[11]

[edit] Camping

Camping is allowed in designated sites along the Hermit Trail by permit only, issued by the Grand Canyon National Park Backcountry Information Center. Use of these areas overnight are regulated by the National Park Service, and they call for a maximum number of groups (7 to 11 people) and parties (1 to 6 people), as well as a maximum total number of persons. ^{[citation needed]}

There are two designated campsites in the Hermit Use Area. ^[12] The three letter code indicates the park's use area designation:

BM7 - Hermit Creek / Up to 23 persons for 1 group and 3 parties.
BM8 - Hermit Rapids / Up to 17 persons for 1 group and 1 party.

Use permits are available on a first-come, first-serve basis from the park's Backcountry Information Center. Requests are taken beginning on the 1st day of the month, up to four month's before the requested first night of camping. ^[13]

[edit] Hazards

Hazards hikers can encounter along the Hermit Trail include dehydration, sudden rainstorms, flash flooding, loose footing, rockfall, encounters with wildlife, and extreme heat. At the Colorado River, additional hazards include hypothermia (due to the river's consistently cold temperatures), trauma (due to collisions with boulders in rapids), and drowning. ^[14]

[edit] History

This trail was built in the last decade of the 19th century by horsetheives, but was improved by different prospectors of that era, most notably Dan Hogan. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway improved the trail further around 1910 to compete with the Camerons' Bright Angel Trail which charged a toll at the time. The railroad operated Hermit Camp about 7 trail miles below rim until 1930s when the National Park Service took over control of the Bright Angel Trail and officially rescinded its tolls.^[15]