If the German-language signs at the top of Bright Angel Trail are any indication, the signs for the park's legions of foreign visitors need work. There are several other similar flubs, unfortunate slights to the foreign visitors who have contributed mightily to the increase in park attendance. In 1919, when Grand Canyon National Park was established, it recorded 44,173 visitors. By 1969, the number had reached 2 million, and last year it surpassed the 5 million mark for the first time. Because relatively few visitors venture below the rim, the Park Service faces a gargantuan problem of crowd control.
Plans are under way for a virtually car-free park.
But for now, traffic remains dense on the South Rim, especially around the park's center, Grand Canyon Village, which is home to an undersized visitors center, campgrounds, lodges, stores, gift shops galore and the elegant El Tovar Hotel. The 23-mile East Rim Drive is especially magnificent at sunrise and in early morning, when the slanting rays of the new day slowly flood the Canyon from the top down. Lipan Point is a wondrous place for watching the light show away from the crowds around Grand Canyon Village. It offers panoramic views of the Canyon's northeastward sweep toward the Vermilion Cliffs and the Little Colorado River Gorge and its westward bend toward the inner gorge. Early morning and late afternoon are the best time to admire the Canyon's vast dimensions and shifting color schemes.