Toroweap Overlook (also known as Tuweep Overlook or Toroweap Point) is a viewpoint within the

Grand Canyon National Park Grand Canyon National Park, located in northwestern Arizona, is the 15th site in the United States to have been named as a national park. The park's central feature is the Grand Canyon, a gorge of the Colorado River, which is often conside ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, United States. It is located in a remote area on the North Rim of the

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a m ...

, west of the North Rim Headquarters (but by road). The overlook is the only viewpoint in the National Park from where the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

can be seen vertically below. The overlook stands above the river.

Terminology

Toroweap and Tuweep are used more or less interchangeably. The term Tuweep, a Paiute word for "the earth", was used for an early

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into se ...

settlement in the valley, and is now used by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

to refer to the area. Toroweap, a Paiute term meaning "dry or barren valley", strictly refers to the valley and the overlook.

Geology

At Toroweap the layer of soft

Hermit Shale The Permian Hermit Formation, also known as the Hermit Shale, is a nonresistant unit that is composed of slope-forming reddish brown siltstone, mudstone, and very fine-grained sandstone. Within the Grand Canyon region, the upper part of the ...

is about 800 feet thick, much thicker than farther east. Erosion of this layer formed the broad Esplanade Platform on the resistant

Esplanade Sandstone The Lower Permian Esplanade Sandstone is a cliff-forming, resistant sandstone, dark red, geologic unit found in the Grand Canyon. The rock unit forms a resistant shelf in the west Grand Canyon, south side of the Colorado River, at the east of th ...

. Further erosion formed a deep side canyon, draining into the Colorado. The Toroweap Fault underlies the valley, and volcanic activity along the fault resulted in the

Uinkaret volcanic field The Uinkaret volcanic field is an area of monogenetic volcanoes in northwestern Arizona, United States, located on the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Lava flows from the Uinkaret volcanic field that have cascaded down into the Grand Canyon, ...

, from where

lava flow Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

s filled the side canyon. Sediment and lava flows eventually filled the side canyon to the level of the Esplanade Platform. The high outer rim of the Grand Canyon is absent at Toroweap, and the overlook can therefore be reached by a road which follows the Toroweap Valley to the brink of the Inner Gorge. Just west of the overlook the Lava Falls can be seen spilling over the rim and falling to the river. Nearby is

Vulcan's Throne Vulcan's Throne is a cinder cone volcano and a prominent landmark on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States. The volcano is adjacent the Colorado River, (thousands of feet above the river) as it is the source material for L ...

, a

cinder cone A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is a steep conical hill of loose pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are formed by explosive eruption ...

from the period of volcanic activity.

Access

Toroweap is reached by rough unpaved roads. Mohave County road 109 leaves State Route 389 8 miles west of Fredonia, and runs 61 miles south to the overlook. The Clay Hole road reaches the overlook from Colorado City, 56 miles from Toroweap, however, this route should not be traveled after rain or snow. Toroweap can also be reached by the "Mt. Trumbull/Main Street Route" from St. George, Utah, 90 miles away on Bureau of Land Management road 1069 and Mohave County road 5.

Facilities

There is no lodging, food, gas or water in the area. The National Park Service only intermittently staffs the Tuweep ranger station 6 miles north of the overlook. There is no cell phone service in this remote area. There is a primitive campground 1 mile north of the overlook that now requires reservations several days in advance from the Grand Canyon National Park backcountry office.

Hiking trails

The short Saddle Horse Loop Trail allows access to more viewpoints near the overlook. The Tuckup Trail starts near the Toroweap campground. The Lava Falls Trail provides a difficult route to the river from near Vulcans Throne. Another hike to the river is much shorter with only 1,000 feet of elevation change to the river compared to 3,000 feet at Toroweap. This trail starts in Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument at Whitmore Canyon Overlook, 9 miles west of Toroweap. It is located in Whitmore Canyon at the overlook on the BLM1045 road. Take the Mt. Trumbull/Main Street Route west from Toroweap Valley past Mt. Trumbull. Turn south onto BLM1045 at the Mt. Trumbull Schoolhouse. This is a better option to reach the river.

References

External links

* {{coord, 36, 14, 51, N, 113, 03, 21, W, type:landmark_region:US_scale:50000_source:GNIS, display=title Grand Canyon, North Rim Grand Canyon Geography of Mohave County, Arizona Tourist attractions in Mohave County, Arizona Scenic viewpoints in Grand Canyon National Park Grand Canyon, North Rim (west)