The first few miles on the Grandview Trail pass quickly, the steepness pulling us down towards Horseshoe Mesa.
The first version of the Grandview Trail, originally called the Berry Trail, was built in 1892/93 by Pete Berry and his employees to transport copper ore from the Last Chance Mine on Horseshoe Mesa. Ore was transported by trains of 8-10 mules who made daily journeys to and from the mesa with loads of 200 pounds of ore and supplies. In addition to the mine Barry and his wife Martha opened the Grandview Hotel - a two story lodge that catered to the increasing number of visitors to the canyon.
As we descend off Horseshoe Mesa sections of the Tonto Trail are visible on the plateau below - viewed from above the Tonto is an amazing dream route thru the canyon. However, as usual, down on the Tonto - even for a short stretch - a hot-dry-shadeless-hotter-and-hotter-still-shadeless reality sinks in... Deep black patches of canyon shade far below in Hance Creek transform my Tonto dreams into thoughts of lazy days in beautiful shaded, wet, canyons.
The trail turns west as it leaves Hance Creek and begins to climb again towards the mesa. I've been this way before but it still takes a bit to spot the tailings from the Last Chance Mine that point out the improbably steep path up.
The climb back to Grandview Point is slow - far too much time to ponder which sections of cobblestone are from the original trail, and even with sunset approaching more breaks than the most prolific photographer could ever need...
In 1901 the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line to the Grand Canyon was completed. The train was cheaper, more comfortable and quicker than a stagecoach to the Grand Canyon and the train's terminus many miles from the Grandview Hotel contributed to its eventual demise. Abandoned by 1920 it was torn down in 1929.
The Last Chance Mine produced hundreds of tons of copper ore before it was closed in 1907 after a drop in copper prices.
Notes:
- One of the most interesting features you pass on this hike is the gated entrance to the Last Chance Mine - you will probably notice the web address on the gate - MineGates.com - which might seem like just another forgettable advertisement - but it turns out that they have an absolutely fascinating page on the Last Chance Mine and the installation of the gate (including some interesting historic pictures of the mine) - MineGates Inc - Grandview and Last Chance Mines, Grand Canyon National Park
- The Grand Canyon Conservancy has two short, interesting, pages on the history of the area: Grandview Trail and Last Chance Mine – Nature, Culture and History at the Grand Canyon
- The Grand Canyon National Park's page on 'Miners' also has some interesting details on Pete Berry, the Last Chance Mine and the Grandview Hotel (this page is also interesting to scroll thru because it lists a number of other historic figures and places)
- The Grandview/Last Chance Mine National Register of Historic Places Inventory and Nomination Form includes several pictures of buildings in mine area from 1972.
- It is easy to find information on the Grandview Trail online - two nice resources to start with are Day Hiking the Grandview Trail and Grandview Trail and Horseshoe Mesa from the National Park Service.
