The World's Largest Community of Grand Canyon Explorers

For more than a century, the trails of the Grand Canyon have remained open to all who wish to experience them. As public land these trails belong to everyone and are available to anyone to explore and enjoy 365 days a year.

This enduring tradition is a cornerstone of what makes the Grand Canyon the "Crown Jewel" of America's National Parks. Hiking below its Rim is the experience of a lifetime for hundreds of thousands of visitors each year and the highlight of visiting the Grand Canyon. Since 1919, visitors from every walk of life—young and old, planning years in advance or deciding to embark on a last-minute spur of the moment adventure—have been able to set foot below the Rim without unnecessary barriers.

This policy of open access is not incidental nor accidental; it reflects the core promise of the National Park Service under the 1916 National Park Service Organic Act: to preserve natural resources while ensuring their public enjoyment for present and future generations. It hearkens even further back to the pre-Park days of miners and prospectors who first began to develop tourism operations in the late 1800s.

This tradition, however, should not be taken for granted. As fiduciary and operational stewards of the Grand Canyon National Park the NPS finds itself confronted with budgetary pressures, short term priorities and management preferences may not align with the preservation of public trail access. Maintaining the NPS mission balance requires vigilance, thoughtful policy, and meaningful engagement with the visitor, and particularly, the hiking community.

A Record of Constructive Engagement

During the National Park Service's 2015–2016 effort to update its Grand Canyon Backcountry Management Plan (BMP), significant concerns emerged within the hiking community regarding proposed changes to long-standing access policies.

Granterra's founder and executive director, Benedict Dughoff, through the Grand Canyon Trails Association (GCTA) which he also co-founded—established to represent the Grand Canyon hiking community—played an instrumental role in engaging constructively with the NPS during this process. GCTA conducted an in-depth and detailed analysis of the proposed BMP revisions and identified serious issues that warranted reconsideration.

Among the concerns were proposals that would have:

• Restricted public access to the Corridor Trails—the primary routes below the Rim.
• Potentially reduced safety for hikers, rangers, and search-and-rescue personnel.
• Shifted unintended pressure onto wilderness areas.
• Created economic and stakeholder impacts.
• Introduced policies perceived as unfair or discriminatory toward certain visitor groups.

Two proposals in particular represented major departures from more than 100 years of established National Park Service practice supporting mission-aligned "concentrated use (funneling)" of tourism recreational activities to the Corridor Trails and Corridor Zone.

Concentrated use (funneling) has been a de facto management practice the NPS has employed since the founding of the Grand Canyon National Park. It signifies the recognition that resources are limited and have to be prudently allocated. It recognizes that in order to fulfill its tripartite mission, visitor infrastructure and services should be funneled towards and concentrated in a few specific locations at the Grand Canyon. This also benefits the majority of visitors by providing services where they are needed and desired most, while simultaneously preserving and leaving unimpaired as much wilderness and natural and historic resources as possible.

Preventing Unnecessary Policy Reversals

Successful management practices should be continued and reinforced or expanded; not reversed or terminated. Two of the proposals listed in the draft BMP would result in just that; the interruption of effective policy without proper justification. Two of these proposals are highlighted here:

1. Proposed Day Use Permits

One proposal introduced aberrant and unneeded "Day Use Permits" for members of the public to arbitrarily restrict or block Corridor Trail access. This would have marked an unprecedented shift away from the historic policy allowing visitors—once admitted to the Park—to explore trails without additional access barriers.

Analysis indicated that such permits would unnecessarily restrict access, complicate visitor experience, reduce safety by altering use patterns, increase pressure in less suitable areas, and create unintended economic consequences. Importantly, the proposal conflicted with over a century of open-access tradition that has defined the Grand Canyon experience.

2. Commercial Guide Contract Reallocations

A second proposal involving Commercial Guide Contracts within the Corridor Zone would have reduced general public access to as little as 10% of campground availability along the Corridor Trails. This represented a substantial reallocation of access away from independent visitors and raised significant equity and policy concerns.

A Measurable Outcome

Through the engagement of tens of thousands of members and stakeholders, the Grand Canyon Trails Association—now a Granterra Initiative—was able to directly and effectively communicate these concerns to the National Park Service.

As a result of this engagement and in collaboration with other stakeholders both proposals were ultimately withdrawn.

Public access to Grand Canyon trails was preserved. A century-long tradition remained intact. And the National Park Service avoided implementing changes that would have represented unforced policy errors—counter to historic practices, established management principles, and the long-term interests of visitors and the Park itself.

Ongoing Stewardship and Vigilance

This outcome reflects a proven track record of advocacy for public trail use interest and fair and equal access for all Grand Canyon visitors to its most popular destinations. The Granterra team has demonstrated the ability to analyze complex policy proposals, mobilize stakeholder communities, and engage constructively with the National Park Service to help safeguard both visitor access and the Park's foundational mission.

The work, however, is never finished.

Preserving fair and equal public access to Grand Canyon trails requires continued vigilance. Future proposals must remain aligned with the Organic Act's mandate, with historic precedent, and with policies that strengthen—rather than weaken—safety, conservation, and equity.

Granterra remains committed to ensuring that the Grand Canyon continues to welcome any visitor who is willing and able to take on the challenge of exploring one of America's most extraordinary landscapes on foot—just as it has for more than 100 years.