Grand Canyon, North Rim Camping

A few years back, my husband and I made the mistake of arriving at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon without a reservation for lodging. There was no room in the campgrounds or cabins. My 4WD truck was equiped for sleeping. We always carry water and I had everything necessary to survive a few nights without a bed, in my truck. It was dark by the time we found a service road and parked behind a pile of gravel, crawled in the back of the truck and went to sleep.
But not for long. At the count of 3, the Park Rangers jarred us awake with flood lights surrounding us. Why we didn't wake up when they circled our truck is still a mystery. In my shaken condition, I thought they were going to drag us outside, line us up against the truck and shoot us. It was a nightmare.
So this time I started two weeks ahead of our arrival date and worked on getting camping reservations. There was nothing open. Now here is how it works. If you have a 21 foot trailer or smaller, they have more sites avaialable than for a 27 foot trailer. As the size goes up in traveling units, the numbers of available spaces goes down. We have a 22 foot trailer and were able to get a site for one night, due to a cancellation. We planned on four nights.
Kaibab National Forest boarders Grand Canyon National Park on the north. You can camp anywhere in the National Forest as long as you are off the main highway #67, by a mile. Being self contained helps make your camping experience enjoyable. Finging water is a problem anywhere in that part of the state. Water has to be trucked in at Jacob's Lake. We found a site at the National Forest De Motte Campgrounds. This is a first come, first serve campgrounds with drinking water for camping needs only. You can't fill your trailers water tank. The towlets are very clean. The morning sunrise was a spiritual experience. We took our chairs and sat at the edge of tree line, taking in the meadow that exposes all the wildlife of the area. Buffalo herds stopped traffic at the gate entrance. Deer hopped in and out of the trees while turkey families focused on their quest for food. This delightful campgrounds is only 25 miles from the Grand Canyon Lodge on the North Rim. Our Golden Age Passport got us settled in and smiling, for half the price.