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Mule use to resume on South Kaibab Trail in Grand Canyon National Park
Trail reconstruction project on South Kaibab trail near completion

GRAND CANYON, Ariz. - The National Park Service (NPS) will reopen the South Kaibab Trail within Grand Canyon National Park to mule and stock use beginning May 15 at levels approved in the park's new stock use plan, dated January 5. The trail had been closed to mule and stock use during a reconstruction project to improve the condition of the trail for both hikers and mule users alike.

Although the project, which began in March 2009, is not yet fully completed, the remaining work can be accomplished safely while still allowing the passage of hikers, mules and stock. Remaining work includes areas around Windy and Ooh-Aah Points, which should be completed by September 30. Upon completion of this project, the NPS will consider a similar project on the Bright Angel Trail, when funding becomes available.

The $3.5 million project on the South Kaibab Trail is one of the largest reconstruction efforts on a Grand Canyon trail since the mid 1960s.

"Grand Canyon has a total deferred maintenance of over $262 million, of which over $24 million is attributed to Grand Canyon trails," stated Barclay Trimble, deputy superintendent for business operations. "Funding through the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act and the American Recovery Act has helped to reduce this backlog and significantly improve conditions on one of Grand Canyon's most popular trails."

Grand Canyon National Park is renowned for its trails. The park has more than 630 miles of trails, including 415 miles of inner canyon backcountry trails and 42 miles of inner canyon corridor trails. Corridor trails include Bright Angel Trail, the River Trail, and the South and North Kaibab Trails. Over 200,000 visitors use the corridor trails on an annual basis.

The South Kaibab Trail begins on the South Rim near Yaki Point and descends to the Colorado River. The distance from the trailhead to Phantom Ranch is approximately 7.5 miles with an elevation change from the rim to river of 4860 feet.

The project includes resurfacing of the trail; rebuilding steps; stabilization and preventative maintenance to existing retaining walls; replacing retaining walls that had been lost to floods, slides, and erosion; repairing and aligning existing water features; and more. To date, approximately 1,300 square feet of retaining wall has been constructed, over 10,000 square feet of cobblestone trail tread and nearly 6,600 linear feet of liner rock has been installed. Crews also laid over 14,600 cubic feet of crushed rock sub-base, installed 82 stone water bars, replaced 291 retaining bars and over 575,000 cubic feet of dirt, and cleaned over 110,000 linear feet of trail and over 450 water bars.

Major reconstruction occurred at multiple sites along the South Kaibab Trail including critical sections of trail at Ooh-Aah Point (3/4 of a mile from the rim), Mormon Flats (approximately three miles from the rim), and an area known as the Red and Whites (approximately four miles from the rim). Additionally, the entire 7.5 miles of trail between the rim and Phantom Ranch was improved to maintain the rigors of livestock as well as pedestrian traffic.

Work to date has been completed by Grand Canyon National Park's Trail Crew with significant help from crews with the American Conservation Experience (ACE), Coconino Rural Environment Corp (CREC), both located in Flagstaff, and the Student Conservation Association (SCA), based in Charleston, New Hampshire. Additional support was provided by Xanterra South Rim, L.L.C. through their trail maintenance program and livery barn.

"A significant amount of hard work has been completed to improve conditions on the South Kaibab Trail," Trimble said. "We appreciate the efforts of our trail crew and those from the American Conservation Experience, Coconino Rural Environment Corp, the Student Conservation Association and Xanterra. Their work contributes to the preservation of this world renowned resource and deserves our recognition and encouragement."

As outlined in park's the new stock use plan, the South Kaibab and other stock use trails will be monitored to assess conditions and impacts to resources. Cost of trail work, amount of work completed, and amount of stock and hiker use will be tracked to determine impacts and whether additional management actions are needed.

For more information on this project or Grand Canyon National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/grca or call 928-638-7888.


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