I once again return to my favorite dark skies - The North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

The new moon on May 1st was too tempting to miss.  Finally, evenings had grown warmer and the prospect of spending an entire night in the wilderness wasn't so chilling.  So I made reservations at my favorite North Rim lodging - Jacob Lake Inn - and headed towards Arizona.
However,  I had forgotten that the North Rim was closed until May 15th.
Not to worry, Kaibab National Forest doesn't close from December 1st - May 15th like the Grand Canyon does.  I therefore chose a destination that is accessible by forest roads.  That destination happened to be Crazy Jug Overlook.

GETTING THERE:

Forest Road 425 is a sparsely traveled, primitive road through a valley of oak, aspen and ponderosa pine stands. Interspersed among those stands are a number of sunny, upland meadows and several excellent dispersed campsites. This is an excellent place to see deer, eagles and coyotes as well as all of those smaller, but just as interesting, critters that frequent these habitats.

Near Big Saddle Point there is a large stock corral, and Forest Road 292 heads south to Crazy Jug Point. The drive here is uphill and washboarded, but the view will make you forget the effort! A number of loop rides are possible off the main route using different combinations of Forest Roads 425, 214, 272, 272A and 292.

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