It’s funny, the way we always think there’s time. We push plans out into the vague “someday,” not because we don’t care, but because life is so demanding, so fast, and so draining. Staying at The Grand Canyon Lodge on the North Rim (about a 5-hour drive from the Sheridan House Inn) was on Sheridan House Innkeepers Mark and Debbie’s “someday” list.
Our inn is just 1 hour from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World, and our guests come from all over the world to see it, usually always going to the breathtaking, but crowded, South Rim. But we dreamed about going where the crowds don’t go, to that remote other rim a thousand feet higher on the north side, sitting on the lodge’s iconic porch, looking across at the side we know so well, and being in total awe of its rugged ridges, endless blue skies and a hush that would allow us to breathe in this place that has endured for millennia.
But on July 13, 2025, we awoke to news we never expected. Flames swept through the North Rim with a speed that stunned even those who know how harsh the high desert can be. Ancient trees that had watched over the canyon for centuries – gone – as is the Lodge and most of the other buildings on the North Rim.
We are grateful that the North Rim had been evacuated so lives weren’t lost, and that the South Rim was untouched by this devastation – you can still take the trip to see the grandest of all places, and come stay at the Sheridan House because we can show you some wonderful ways to see this inspiring wonder. But we, and how many others, are sad that our chance to stay at the North Rim is gone, and “someday” became “never.” They will rebuild, as they’ve done before, but that will take time.
It’s easy to tell ourselves there will always be another season, another open window on the calendar and funds in the bank. But the truth is, there are no guarantees – not for places, not for people, not for dreams. Fires come. Storms roll in. A diagnosis occurs. Life changes in an instant. The world, for all its grandeur, is heartbreakingly fragile, and its people are truly only on this earth for an instant.
So, take the trip. Don’t wait for the perfect circumstances, the perfect weather, or the perfect you. Go with your imperfect self and your imperfect plans. Call in those vacation days, toss your bag in the trunk, and drive. Hike the trail. Eat the food you don’t eat at home. Stand at the edge of awe. Splurge on a place to lay your head where you are cared for. Let your memories be built out of footprints and laughter instead of regrets and unkept promises. This moment of reflection is a lesson for all of us. Nothing is promised.
So go. Take the trip. For the North Rim, for yourself, and for every beautiful, fragile wonder we are lucky enough to love – and for every person we are lucky enough to have love us back.
