Mule train on Cathedral Stairs, Grand Canyon, AZ, 1925

Subjects: Horses National & State Parks
Card type: Linen
Date: c. 1925 (White Border)

Back of Mule train on Cathedral Stairs, Grand Canyon, AZ, 1925, Mrs. C. B. Phelps, NY, USA, c. 1925 linen postcard — Back

About this postcard

A mule train with riders descends the narrow, rock-walled switchbacks of Cathedral Stairs on the Hermit Trail, below the Grand Canyon rim. The canyon's striped red and buff strata fill the background. The Hermit Trail was one of the early rim-to-river routes developed by the Santa Fe Railway and Fred Harvey Company, and saddle mules carried tourists down to Hermit Camp on the first level. The Hermit Rim Road was a 30-foot crushed-stone driveway treated with crude oil, leading from El Tovar Hotel to the trailhead. The sender writes of riding buses along the rim and walking down from there.

Postcard Details

Message · English, in pen

On the Sunday we went buses on the top of [illegible] [illegible] from there we walked down Fred. Am

PublisherFred Harvey

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, ARIZONA. H-1505. LOOKING DOWN CATHEDRAL STAIRS ON HERMIT TRAIL. --- POST CARD A-99457 FRED HARVEY Hermit Rim Road is a driveway 30 feet wide, built of crushed stone rolled to a smooth hard surface and sprinkled with crude oil. It leads from El Tovar Hotel to the head of Hermit Trail. From there a wide bridle path that can hardly be called a trail, of a comfortable grade and with substantial wall on the outer edge, leads into the canyon. At the first level is Hermit Camp, maintained for those desiring to remain a while in the depths of the great chasm. THIS SPACE MAY BE USED FOR MESSAGE. THIS SIDE FOR THE ADDRESS.

PostmarkedLos Angeles, CA, June 3, 1925, 18:30

Addressed to

Mrs. C. B. Phelps

Norrie, NY

Postcard record

Postmarked	June 3, 1925, 18:30, Los Angeles, CA
Publisher	Fred Harvey
Series	H-1505. A-99457
Condition	Good
Place addressed	Mrs. C. B. Phelps, Norrie, NY
Stamp	2c George Washington, red, issued 1902
Stamp	2c George Washington, red, perforated on all sides
Notes	White border; visible linen/halftone mesh texture; scan is rotated 90 degrees; light edge and corner wear. Postmark: LOS ANGELES CALIF JUN 3 630PM 1925. Divided-back linen-era card with white border; Fred Harvey imprint, printed Hermit Rim Road caption, 2¢ Washington stamp; light edge wear and slight soiling.

Cite this card

Mule train on Cathedral Stairs, Grand Canyon, AZ, 1925, postcard, c. 1925. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/mule-train-on-cathedral-stairs-grand-canyon-az-1925. Accessed November 2, 2026.