Location:  North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It is accessed by gravel road and lies about 71 miles South/southwest of Fredonia, AZ. Access From Fredonia take Highway 389 west about 7 miles. Turn south on Mount Trumbull Road. Next stop is the Rangers Station about 55 miles away when you enter Grande Canyon National Park. As of June 2009 there are 9 campsites about one mile from the canyon's rim. There are no services along the way. No gasoline, water, cell phone, food or lodging. In other words, no beer. This trip needs some study and preparation.

Find the location: Copy the coordinates below. Open Google Earth, paste the coordinates into "Fly To" and click on the magnifying glass.

Toroweap is roughly:
36° 12' 49.75" N
113° 03' 27.40" W

Equipment:  EOS 5D Mark II with 24-105 lens and polarizing filter. Taken at f22 for 0.5 seconds.

Digital manipulation: Color/saturation adjustment.

Notes: This was part of our Acrophobia 2009 Tour (see Horseshoe Bend Evening). The road to the park, about 55 miles was in good shape. It is a wide graded gravel road. Bad weather can change conditions and you might access the National Park website www.nps.gov for information. Now, the last 6 miles to the campgrounds and canyon rim are a different story. The road is narrow and very bumpy. High clearance is a must and four wheel drive is helpful. Coming out, it took us an hour to cover the 5-6 miles back to the park entrance. From there you only have about 55 miles back to the mail highway. The campsites cannot be reserved and, if full you will have to set up camp about 6 miles from the canyon edge. The campsites have two amenities: a circular area for a campfire (bring your own wood) and four very nice compost toilets.

As to photographic opportunities there are relatively few especially when compared to the North and South Rim sites. As you look at pictures on the Internet you'll notice that there isn't a great variety. The orientation of the canyon at Toroweap is NE to SW so the sun lights up different areas througout the day. There are no rails, so pets and children are at risk. If you go over the edge, the river is about 3000 feet below. The bottom line: Once you head south of Highway 389 on Mount Trumbull Road, you're on your own so water, food, and a tire repair kit with tire pump are all advised.