Part 1 Preparing for the Arizona Trail
Permits and Grand Canyon Plans
If you read my post “2026”, you’ll know I’m planning on thru hiking the Arizona Trail (AZT) this spring. There isn’t too much planning that needs to go into the hike, but I’ll cover what preparation and planning I did do.
I like planning. Some people are good at spontaneity and zero plans. That’s not me. I like having a little structure and at least a general idea of what’s ahead. For me, it helps remove ambiguity and allows for lower stress while on trail. I’m not planning out every single day and the mileage I need to do. I like giving myself flexibility to do unexpected things while on trail, like when my hiking family and I took a three day road trip to Yosemite Valley while on the Pacific Crest Trail. I just don’t need or want the stress of trying to figure things out on the fly that I could have done from the comfort of my couch giving me more time on-trail to do what I want. I’m not spending that on-trail time doing as much research since it’s already done.
So, what planning have I done so far? Keep reading and you’ll find out in this multi post series.
Permits
The AZT doesn’t have one big permit like the PCT, but it does pass through areas where permits are still required: Saguaro National Park and Grand Canyon National Park as well as Arizona State Lands.
Saguaro and AZ State Land are the simplest permits to get and really, you can probably get by without either. To find out what permits I needed, I used the AZT Association website as my jumping off point (https://aztrail.org/explore/permits/).
Something to note, prices, permits, websites, and mile markers may change year to year. The information below is what I could find for spring of 2026. Do your research to find out what’s necessary if you want to hike this trail too.
Saguaro National Park
A permit is needed for camping along the AZT within the boundary of Saguaro National Park. According to FarOut [I’ll go over this app in a future post] the park boundary is between miles 128.6 and 144.1. This is a 15.5 miles stretch. For most thru hikers, this can be done in a single day. To do that though means you have to have a plan while on trail to make sure you’re camped strategically beforehand so you aren’t stuck doing a very long day or hiking all night to get through. I want to be able to take the trail day by day while out there, so getting a permit ahead of time allows for more flexibility and less stress while on trail.
Acquiring the Arizona Trail Thru Hiker Overnight Permit was very simple. All I needed to do was go to the recreation.gov page for AZT hikers in Saguaro NP (https://www.recreation.gov/activitypass/AP21620). This permit allows AZT thru hikers to camp in the two backcountry campgrounds along the trail within the park boundaries during peak thru hiker seasons (mid January to end of April and mid September to end of November). It is valid for a two week period and costs $8. I could choose the start date for the period I planned to be in the park when purchasing the permit. If I was planning to be there outside of the main seasons, I’d need to get a different wilderness permit. Pretty simple and straight forward. Also know, paying the NP entrance fee before entering is still required, so plan ahead for this as well. I have an America the Beautiful Military Lifetime Pass, so one less thing to worry about. If I did not already have an annual pass for that park or an America the Beautiful pass, I could buy one online. Links to the one time entrance fee or annual passes can be found on the same website as the AZT permit or https://www.nps.gov/sagu/planyourvisit/fees.htm.
Arizona State Land Department Recreation Pass
This pass is not really necessary unless you want a little more freedom and peace of mind. There are 91ish miles in State Trust Lands, not to be confused with state parks and public lands. Hikers are permitted to be within a 15 foot corridor of the AZT while on the State Lands. Seeing that Leave No Trace etiquette (see https://learn.lnt.org to learn more) and most wilderness rules for various regions require people to camp at least 100 feet from a trail, it’s probably best to get the permit. There’s also the safety consideration of being able to be farther off trail and out of line of sight for other trail users, most of which are good people, but I don’t want to take chances if I don’t need to. So, I got the permit.
To get the permit, I went to https://azland.my.salesforce-sites.com/recreationalpermit. The permit is good for a full year so I can spend more time after my hike in those areas or come back if I want. The individual permit costs $15 and a family permit costs $20 (covers 2 adults and their minors). I got the family permit in case a family member wants to join me along the way. After purchase, the permit is downloadable and printable. I’ll be bringing a paper copy and have the file on my phone just in case.
Grand Canyon National Park
The Grand Canyon is the most complicated of the permits and one I haven’t fully figured out yet. Unfortunately for me, I will need to wait until I get closer to know what to do. Currently, much of the North Kaibab trail within the GC is closed after an insane fire season. The AZT uses this trail to get from the Colorado River to the North Rim. If the trail were open as usual, the permit process isn’t too complicated or, like with Saguaro but with a way longer day, can be bypassed altogether. The NP boundary goes from mile 693.2 to 732.3. This would be nearly a 40 mile day with a massive descent and climb. Not ideal, so camping in the park is a much better plan. I definitely don’t want to risk not having a permit. The GC is thoroughly patrolled and fines are steep and breaking rules can result in felonies and park bans. The GC is a wait and see game. More information on what trails will be open will be released by April 1st. There’s a good chance it will be closed for the foreseeable future. I can’t really do much more planning here other than to bookmark the websites to check on statuses and look into permits later.
For a normal year, if I want to have a hike with no leeway and less fun (IMO), I can prebook a campsite months ahead of time through a lottery (https://www.recreation.gov/permits/4675337). I don’t want to do this nor would recommend this for Northbound (NoBo) hikers since the GC is nearly the end of the hike. Planning pace that far out can be suffocating. I don’t want to be super constricted and would like to have the freedom to make decisions spur of the moment. I want to be able to take random zero days, or get off for side adventures, or wait out heat waves, or have unplanned meet ups with friends or family. Who knows though, I may change my opinion on this if I find out there are no permits available when I want one. The other option in a normal year is the walk-up permit. Usually 2 group sites are held open in the Bright Angel Campground for AZT hikers, so there’s a chance to get a walk-up backcountry permit to stay there for one night. Last point with the GC, don’t forget the entrance fee (https://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/fees.htm)!
I have a few ideas for myself that I will go over in more detail on how I’ll approach the Grand Canyon as a whole.
Grand Canyon Plans and Options for Me
With the whole Dragon Bravo Fire closure, there are a few paths (literally) I can take. I mentioned in the previous post a few of them, but now’s the time for a little more detail. As you now know, the AZT uses the North Kaibab trail to get up and out of the canyon to the North Rim. That trail north of Ribbon Falls and some of the surrounding area is still closed and could be for the foreseeable future. More information is planned to be released around April 1st once further safety evaluations are completed. I’ll be periodically checking the Grand Canyon NPS website for any updates on changes.
So my options…
Option 1. The canyon trails reopen. 🥳 I obviously have no say on if this option will be available to me, but if I’m luckily enough that this happens, it will be the route I take. I’ll go to the backcountry office on the South Rim to see if I can get a permit to stay overnight on the canyon floor then hike out along the normal AZT route. This option is the best case scenario and as of now, the one I’m expecting the least likely to happen. I’m hoping I’m wrong though.
Option 2. Attempt a continuous foot path. This can go a few different ways. First off, I’m planning to still hike as much of the AZT as I can that is open. This would mean heading down the South Kaibab trail, across the river, and up the North Kaibab to Ribbon Falls where the closure brings, turn around and hike back. I’ll still try to get a permit to stay on the canyon floor which is often a highlight of the AZT. Then on to the continuous footpath part.
The easiest way to accomplish this and see a spectacular amount of the canyon will be to start at the South Rim and hike along the Bright Angel Trail. Next, take a left onto the West Tonto trail which is part way down the canyon. Hike this trail for quite a few miles (40ish?) until it crosses the South Bass trail where I’d hang a right down to the river. It gets a little tricky here. It’s not recommended to try to swim across the Colorado River. It’s big and fast and cold and has rapids. People drown in it every year. The trail meets the river at the Bass Rapids, though it looks like there’s a path to the end of them. From here the goal would be to flag down a raft and try to hitch a ride, having them ferry me across to the opposite shore where I can connect to the North Bass trail up and out of the canyon to a series of back roads back to the AZT. If that doesn’t work, I swim or backtrack out. This whole detour is highly dependent on being able to get some backcountry permits along the West Tonto trail and whether the rangers think it’s a terrible idea. There’s also a similar option where I can do most of this but being above the canyon on a road just outside the NP so I don’t actually need any backcountry permit, but I’ll be doing a full day to get through both Bass Trails and across the river in one shot. This would be a really cool route if it comes to it. I’d be able to spend an extra 4-5 days in the canyon and add an extra 80 miles to my hike.
Option 3. Take a shuttle around. This is a time crunch option/crossing the Colorado River is too dangerous option. I could pay for a shuttle service to take me from the South Rim to the North Rim. This is a pretty pricey endeavor and a lot of time in a car, around $120 and 4-5 hours.
Option 4. End my hike early. This is the one I will least likely do. Unless things aren’t going well or I’m just not enjoying the trail enough, I plan to keep going. Ending at the GC would mean cutting my hike short by at least 85 miles, over 10% of the trail. Not ideal so this is my last resort option. It’s always possible though that I will be fulfilled enough to end early or something could take me off trail that’s unexpected, but my goal is to finish.
Option 5. Bike pack around the Grand Canyon. I recently learned about this option which would be a pretty awesome work around albeit much more planning. The Western Wildlands Route travels through the Navajo Nation and around the GC, crossing over the AZT near the Utah border. To see if this is possible for me, I’ll need to look into what permits may be necessary to cross into and camp in the Navajo Nation as well as where to rent a bike and how to drop it off again. Maybe do an out and back? This may be tricky to pull off without a support person in the area.
At least I have a few ideas on paths forward. I have a while yet of waiting to see what option will be best and make that decision when the time comes. Hopefully I’ll be able to have a more solid plan once April is here. More likely, it will be a last minute decision when I get there.
