Jacob Lake, Arizona, is known as the “Gateway to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.” Are you visiting the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and wondering what there is to do in Jacob Lake?
The main things to do at Jacob Lake are visiting the nearby North Rim of the Grand Canyon and getting a shake at the Jacob Lake Inn. However, there are SO many more amazing things to see and do in and around this little town, including hiking, climbing, watching wildlife, and swimming.
We’re Matt and Cheryl and have spent a lot of time at the Grand Canyon. We live in Utah and spend 70 days a year traveling around the West.
Let’s start with the things closest to the town and then venture out.
Jacob Lake and the North Rim, in general, receive fewer visitors than the South Rim, so it has a really nice laid-back atmosphere.
The North Rim is known as the “other rim,” but we are tempted to call it the “better rim” because it just has a different feeling than the South Rim.
People are known to return to the North Rim more often than the South Rim because it’s more of a vacation experience.
We loved playing board games in the Jacob Lake Campground in the evenings. By the way, our favorite family game right now is One Night Ultimate Werewolf. It’s easy to learn, fast to play, generates controversy, and will mess with your mind!
Before we went on our vacation, virtually everyone said, “Oh, you MUST get an ice cream at the Jacob Lake Inn!” So we did!
And yes, they were delicious!
Our favorite cookie was the Lemon Zucchini, but you can’t go wrong with any of them. We also tried the shakes, and they were all fantastic. Word of caution, they are huge so find a buddy to share with!
While the ice cream and cookies get all the attention, the restaurant doesn’t have the same rave reviews. However, we put it on the list because it is literally the only place to eat in Jacob Lake (the Kaibab Lodge is 30 minutes away; see below).
Well, we did see a Navajo Taco food truck outside the gas station, but I don’t know how permanent that is.
We can’t rate either place because we cooked our own food at the campground.
The Jacob Lake Inn also has a little store where you can buy things such as Native American Art and stickers for the…Kaibab Squirrel!
The Kaibab Squirrel only lives on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon; it is found nowhere else in the world.
So the little town of 928 people is understandably very proud of its squirrel. You’ll see stickers, socks, and even paintings of the squirrel.
Visiting the Grand Canyon and need a game plan? Check out our itinerary!
The Kaibab Plateau Visitor Center sits right next to the Jacob Lake Inn. It was closed when we were last there, but it has some interesting displays inside and outside the building.
The Kaibab Forest encompasses the entire top plateau of the Grand Canyon (both North and South). It’s over 7000 feet above sea level and it is home to Ponderosa and Pinyon Pine Trees.
The visitor center has a plaque for Teddy Roosevelt, who visited the area a few times and liked to hunt mountain lions here.
It also has a plaque for the…wait for it…Kaibab Squirrel!!
The Kaibab Forest is home to many Ponderosa Pine Trees. The bark on these trees is noticeably more red and thicker than other pine trees.
They also have a fragrant smell to them! Get right next to them and smell the bark.
Most trees smell like either vanilla or butterscotch. Sounds crazy, but you’ll see (or smell) for yourself.
You can find these all over the area, including the Grand Canyon.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built this rickety fire tower in 1934. We found this little gem right on the main road, just a mile south of town.
It is STILL used today as a lookout tower to spot fires early on when they can (hopefully) still be suppressed.
It’s 80 feet tall, and you can climb it! If you dare, that is. It feels lightweight, and it sways at the top. But it provides beautiful views of the surrounding forest.
Note that you cannot go into the top of the tower where the lookout station is. You can only climb the stairs to it.
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Unfortunately, the lookout tower couldn’t prevent a huge forest fire in 2020 in the drought-plagued area.
On June 8, 2020, a fire started at nearby Big Springs. By June 12, the town of Jacob Lake was evacuated. They feared the town would burn to the ground.
Indeed, the Jacob Lake ranger station was “within feet” of catching fire. The image of the fire below was taken from Fredonia, AZ, which is about 30 miles away.
As you drive in and out of Jacob Lake, you’ll see the charred remains of the forest all around.
OK, we’re not actually suggesting you visit the lake in Jacob Lake because….there isn’t one. The lake has dried out. It’s literally just a hole in the ground. Perhaps the recent drought has taken the lake out of Jacob Lake.
From our understanding, sometimes there IS a lake. Although it’s always been small, it was known as the lake that provides for the abundant deer on the Kaibab Plateau.
It’s located right behind the Kaibab Camper Village.
Although not a popular hike due to a little thing called the Grand Canyon (with its hiking trails) being near here, the people who have done this trail say it provides solitude and deer sightings.
It doesn’t provide much in the way of views unless you like seeing a lot of trees up close.
It’s 5.2 miles out and back, is very flat, and meanders through the forest.
There are quite a few lodging options around here, although they do fill up during the summer, so plan ahead!
The Jacob Lake Inn has rooms and cabins.
We stayed at the Jacob Lake Campground and it was fantastic. It was well-maintained and had clean restrooms. It’s right across the street. Get your reservations on recreation.gov.
The Kaibab Lodge offers lodging, fine dining, and fly-fishing tours. It’s only 5 miles from the Grand Canyon National Park entrance.
The Kaibab Camper Village is owned by the same company, although it’s closer to Jacob Lake.
We cover this in our post, 10 Best Things to Do at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (+ Where to Eat and Stay), but this is clearly the number one thing to do at Jacob Lake.
The views from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon aren’t as iconic, and the drop-offs aren’t as sheer, as the South Rim. But they are more colorful (red rocks and green trees), and the atmosphere is so much nicer.
At the North Rim, you can get a drink from the Roughrider Saloon and take in relaxing views of the canyon from the deck of the Grand Canyon Lodge.
You can also stop at the visitor center, go hiking, and ride a mule. You might also see bison on your way into the park!
Vermillion Cliffs is an amazing hiking area, but most of the hikes are over an hour away from Jacob Lake. However, you can drive along the cliff face of the cliffs for gorgeous views. You can also see California Condors!
The California Condor is one of the biggest conservation success stories in history.
The Condor has the largest wingspan of any North American bird and it looks like a vulture. In 1987, there were only 27 Condors left in the world.
Every Condor was captured and put in a breeding program. Over 1000 Condors have been released back into the wild. Today, the Condor remains one of the rarest birds in the world, with a little over 500 alive.
Each bird is captured and tagged with a number. If you see a Condor up close, you’ll see a number on its wing.
The birds are captured and released at the Vermillion Cliffs, within 30 minutes of Jacob Lake. They move around all over the West, but many make their homes in the Grand Canyon and Zion canyon.
There’s no guarantee you’ll see these birds here, but since food is often put out at this spot to entice and catch the birds, they tend to hang out a lot here.
You can also see Condors at Navajo Bridge (see below).
Below is a poor image taken with my iPhone, and a better image from Wikipedia.
There is a town (ghost town?) nearby called Cliff Dwellers. It sits next to the Vermillion Cliffs. It has an interesting story behind it.
Apparently, a Broadway actress was traveling through the area in the 1920s and her vehicle broke down. So she just decided to start a restaurant and lodge to cater to travelers coming through.
You can still eat at the Cliff Dwellers Lodge today!
You can also play Real Life Where’s Waldo (our own game we made up) in the interesting rock formations near the lodge. There are similar rock formations near Lee’s Ferry (see below), and that’s where we played Real Life Where’s Waldo.
Before the automobile, Lee’s Ferry was the only way to cross the Colorado River for hundreds of miles in either direction.
The Navajo Bridge was built in 1929 to accommodate the automobile. But in 1995, a new bridge was built to accommodate the larger vehicles and increased traffic of today.
Thankfully, they left the old bridge for us to walk on today.
This area is still technically the Grand Canyon! It’s not part of the National Park, nor does it have the iconic views that you think of with the Grand Canyon. However, it is federal land, and still provides really great views of the Colorado River.
We saw 6 or 7 California Condors flying around here, and they even perched on cliffs nearby, and right below our feet on the bridge itself!
This was one of the highlights of our recent trip to the Grand Canyon.
Right next to Navajo Bridge is a turnoff to Lee’s Ferry. This was another highlight for us.
At Lee’s Ferry, you can drive right down to the Colorado River — the only place you can do this for many miles in either direction (not counting Page, AZ which has Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell).
It was 115 degrees outside, and even though the river was a bone-chilling 48 degrees, it was nice to cool down and get wet.
Check out: How to Visit Horseshoe Bend (+ Rafting Review)
You can raft, boat, and kayak here. There are also a few historical buildings and some hikes.
On the way to Lee’s Ferry, there are some interesting rock formations very similar to the Cliff Dwellers area mentioned above.
We stopped here and played Real Life Where’s Waldo in the rocks. One person closes his eyes while everyone goes off into the rocks to partially hide their bodies (heads must be completely visible to the searcher!). Then the searcher opens his eyes and tried to find the rock dwellers just by standing there and pointing them out.
It’s more difficult than you think!
There are so many things to do in Kanab, about 40 minutes away, including world-famous hikes like “The Wave” and the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. You can read more in our article 22 Absolute Best Things To Do in Kanab (+ Where to Eat & Stay). But the town is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts who like to ride jeeps and hike in slot canyons.
Kanab was known as “Little Hollywood” because so many Westerns were filmed in and around the area in the heyday of Western movies. You can even visit the Little Hollywood Museum in Kanab.
Pipe Spring has a very interesting history and provides some nice views as well.
As the name indicates, there is a spring of water here. Water was (and is) like gold in the Western desert. So pioneers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints settled the area. Paiute Indians and others also relied on the water from Pipe Spring.
Here you can learn the history, see longhorn cattle, and take a short walk to an overlook of the area.
Pipe Spring was named by Jacob Hamblin, a missionary for the Church, who ventured through this area.
Jacob Hamblin is also the person whom Jacob Lake was named after!
Yes! Planning a trip to the Grand Canyon can be overwhelming. Let us lighten your load and relieve your stress.
We have put together must-have travel guides to the Grand Canyon. They include a daily (flexible) itinerary and an AUDIO GUIDE!! Matt shares with you many fun and interesting stories about the Grand Canyon while you drive around the park. It’s like having a tour guide with you in your car!
GRAND CANYON GUIDE: To read or watch all of our content about the Grand Canyon, check out our Grand Canyon Homepage
AREAS: The Grand Canyon is divided into 4 areas: The South Rim, North Rim, Grand Canyon West, and the East Side of the Grand Canyon (Page, AZ). Learn about the 4 areas of the Grand Canyon with our Free Printable
THINGS TO DO: There is much more to do than hike and look at viewpoints. Explore Antelope Canyon, ride a mule, or take a ride on the Grand Canyon Railway
WHERE TO STAY: Learn all about where to camp or stay when visiting the Grand Canyon.
WHERE TO EAT: Check out the best places to eat and get groceries at the South Rim
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: Discover the best and worst times to visit the Grand Canyon
WATCH: Enjoy videos of the beautiful Grand Canyon while learning our best tips for visiting by watching our Grand Canyon YouTube Playlist
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