Friday we decided to do our long hike rather than Saturday. The weekend before we had literally run-ins with downhill, out of control runners who rammed right into us rather than slow down to let uphill hikers pass.  The Saturday before, we contended with 80 illegal in-and-outers.  Any group which requires people to sign up in advance to do a day hike below the Tonto level must get a permit, and is limited to 30 people. 

Anyhow, we figured Friday would not have as many wing nuts on the trail, so we did Plateau Point.  A few nice cactus flowers, but not as many as one would expect.  Saturday we just walked the rim, and Sunday we did my first organized outing for the Grand Canyon Historical Society.  Here is the write up I did for the Ol' Pioneer, our newsletter: 

The primary goal of the US Forest Service for a long time (some would say too long) was the total suppression of fires.  To this end, during the early 1900’s, tall trees with sweeping views were utilized as de facto lookout towers.  The top was lopped off, a ladder or bolts hammered into the bark, and a platform constructed for the hardy fire spotter.  A telephone or telegraph completed the system.  If a fire was espied, the spotter would phone another ranger who would in turn load his equipment onto a horse and hie off to extinguish to the flames. 

The Hull lookout tree

Glass insulator for the phone line

An insulator between the tree and the road, just as we were discussing where the phone line might have run.

Saturday, May 6, the Historical Society met with Kaibab National Forest anthropologist, Neil Weintraub and hiked to two of these trees.  The first of these, the Hull Tree, was about a mile through the woods.  Along the way we found remnants of glass insulators: an indicator of the possible direction the phone line ran back in the day.  After a quick jaunt up the historic Grandview Tower, we adjourned to the Tusayan Lookout Tree.  This one is very close to the road and has a nifty new interpretive sign.  Many thanks to Mr. Weintraub for taking time out of his Sunday to give us the benefit of his expertise.