The hotel at head of Bright Angel Trail is reached early in the evening.
The tourist then finds himself on the verge of a high precipice, from
which is obtained by moonlight a magnificent view of the opposite wall
and of the intervening crags, towers, and slopes. The suddenness, the
surprise, the revelation come as a fitting climax to a unique trip.
After nightfall the air becomes cold, for here you are 7,000 feet above
the sea; yet the absence of humidity, peculiar to these high altitudes,
makes the chill less penetrating than on lower levels. By day, in the
sunshine, there is usually a genial warmth—then overcoats, gloves, and
wraps are laid aside.