Kaibab Plateau and Grand Canyon North Rim

 "Squeek Squeek!" Hello from the Kaibab Squirrel! 

Dateline: 6:45 MST, 10/2/2025, Kaibab Camper Village, Jacob Lake, AZ

I was preparing to take Trooper for his morning "business" walk. As I headed across our campsite toward the Ponderosa Pines, about 25 yards away I spotted what appeared to be a skunk with a white tail. I quickly hooked the leash to the dog and watched as the critter scampered across an open area between trees. It stopped, sat up on its back haunches, and I swore it was a rabbit, as the ears were quite long. But rabbits don't have bushy white tails. It continued on, zigzagging along, and its gait reminded me of a squirrel. So what was it - a skunk, rabbit, or squirrel? 

Marge, our campground hostess, told us it was a Kaibab (pronounced KY-babb) squirrel, also known as a Kaibab white-tailed squirrel. She informed us the squirrel only lives on the Kaibab Plateau, which begins near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and continues north towards the Arizona/Utah border. In fact, the plateau stops not too far north of Jacob Lake, our current location. Attempts to expand the squirrel's range to other Ponderosa Pine forests have been unsuccessful. It lives here, and nowhere else on the planet. I was thrilled to see one, even if I first thought it was a skunk.

The Kaibab Squirrel has a maroon stripe down its back.
The ears are tufted, so they look long like a rabbit's.
But the white tail is the most visible feature.
Photo credit https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/119111-Sciurus-aberti-kaibabensis 

But I'm getting ahead of myself. I booked this campground back in April for October 1 and 2, hoping the crowds at the Grand Canyon North Rim would be thinned out. Then, on July 4, the Dragon Bravo Fire was started by lightning, consuming the North Rim visitors center, historic lodge, and much of the Kaibab National Forest in and surrounding the national park. The park was officially closed in mid-July for the rest of the year. 

I phoned Kaibab Camper Village to cancel our reservation, but no one answered. I emailed. No response. For two weeks I assumed the worst - that the fire had burned the campground, knocking out phone lines and destroying the office with the booking computer. Then, in August, I happened to try again, and sweet Marge answered the phone! Her family had been evacuated as the fire approached their home and campground business. They left with very little "stuff" except for 7 chickens. The fire burned close to their home location, but did not destroy anything on their property. They finally were allowed to return and arrived the very day I phoned! 

Being from a state that relies on tourist dollars, we understood their situation, and decided to keep our reservation and support the local business people whose yearly revenue depended on North Rim tourism. Marge suggested we could rent an ATV, enjoy a meal at the restaurant at Jacob Lake Inn, or help support others who were trying to get back to normal. Even if we couldn't go to the Grand Canyon National Park, we could still get to parts of the North Rim that are not in the park, and were not affected by the fire. 

Then, on September 25, the NPS announced a partial reopening of certain overlooks and trails. The areas we specifically wanted to see were going to be open on October 1, the very day we planned to be camping in the area at Marge's Kaibab Camper Village! Now, if only the government shutdown doesn't shut down the park on the very day it was supposed to open!

We arrived at Kaibab Camper Village, set up our camper and drove to the park with our water, food, and dog, spending 4 hours taking photos and hiking. 

Pics from our initial entrance into the park:

Aspens bring fall color to the meadows in the park.
The burned trees here are from a previous fire.

We begin to see Dragon Bravo Fire damage along the road.

Aspen forests burned, as well as several types of pine, and juniper. 

Our first hike was out to Point Imperial. There we met a man and woman who were involved with the Dragon Bravo fire. The gentleman had just returned from a flight where infrared cameras took pictures of the area. Absolutely no hot spots were present. The fire is completely out! The gal works with GIS data mapping technology, which uses various types of data, maps it, and helps draw insights and connections. For example, in the recovery phase of Dragon Bravo, the burned landscape may cause erosion problems. GIS can pinpoint and target the areas most in need of replanting or road repair. Read more about how GIS is being used with wildfire data here: https://www.fulcrumapp.com/blog/how-gis-supports-every-phase-of-wildfire-response-strategy/

Point Imperial with Mt. Hayden in the foreground.

From Point Imperial facing east

Reminders of the fire at Point Imperial's parking lot.

From Point Imperial we drove along the road toward the iconic Cape Royal overlook. We stopped at various other overlooks along the way, but noticed places where the asphalt had melted from a burning tree falling across the road.

Melted asphalt

Hard to see in this shot, but there are debris heaps along the road.
Some appears to be fire mitigation efforts rather than post-fire clean up.

Although most of the views into the canyon did not show fire damage, this one is from Vista Encantada. The burned trees in the foreground are all from the Dragon Bravo fire.

Vista Encantada

Our next stop was Walhalla Overlook. I love the ripple effect of the opposite side of the canyon. Just a smidge up from the center of the photo is the Colorado River.

View of the Colorado River from Walhalla overlook

I zoomed in for you in this next photo. Aren't I nice?

The Colorado used to look more greenish than brown.

The Glen Canyon Dam we visited a few days ago pulls water from the top of Lake Powell, leaving the minerals on the bottom of the lake. So these minerals don't make it along the Colorado River as they originally did before the dam was constructed. Erosions with and without the minerals in the river are very different from each other. Geologists have concerns about the future erosion in the Grand Canyon, what it might look like, and if that erosion will be hastened or slowed. 

Now for the view we've waited literally years and years for! Dave's Dad took a photo at Cape Royal many decades ago - he had it enlarged and it hung over the living room couch as long as I can remember. At last it was our turn to take the same photo from the same overlook. Ah, the lighting wasn't the same, but we feel we got a worthy photo.

This feature is called Wotans Throne. 
I call it "Dad V's North Rim Photo."

Today, back at the camper, Dave and I enjoyed a portable corn hole game my sister Debbie gave us for an early Christmas present. We had to change the rules a bit, because the lay of the land caused the corn bags to slowly slide off the wooden surface. Gravity! Can't live with it, can't live without it... The new rule: If the bag stays on the wood for 5 seconds, it's worth 1 point. If it slides off before that, no point is awarded. There were other rule modifications, but daughter Kristi will have a fit that we changed even one rule, let alone 3 or 4. For example, how many points are awarded (or subtracted) if Trooper walks into the playing field and "takes one for the team?"  Let's just say that mulligans were given frequently.

Next up: Sedona! Lots of hiking opportunities with Trooper! But first I have to brush the corn dust out of his floof...