USFS · Arizona

Kaibab National Forest

Kaibab National Forest borders both the north and south rims of the Grand Canyon, in north-central Arizona, United States. Its 1.6 million acres is divided into three sections: the North Kaibab Ranger District, the Tusayan Ranger District, and the Williams Ranger District. It is managed by the United States Forest Service. Grand Canyon National Park separates the North Kaibab and the South Kaibab. The South Kaibab covers less than 1,422 square miles (3,680 km2) and the North Kaibab stretches over 1,010 square miles (2,600 km2). Elevations vary on the forest from 5,500 feet in the southwest corner to 10,418 feet at the summit of Kendrick Peak on the Williams Ranger District. The forest as a whole is headquartered in Williams.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.6 million acresUSFSAZ18 campgrounds within 10 mi35 Forest Service sites64 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateArizona
Size1.6 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0307, region 03
Center point35.9485, -112.1564
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 24)

Boundary map

3 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Kaibab National Forest20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 1.23 inches of precipitationFebruary: 1.21 inches of precipitationMarch: 1.20 inches of precipitationApril: 0.69 inches of precipitationMay: 0.61 inches of precipitationJune: 0.40 inches of precipitationJuly: 1.66 inches of precipitationAugust: 2.06 inches of precipitationSeptember: 1.37 inches of precipitationOctober: 1.34 inches of precipitationNovember: 0.77 inches of precipitationDecember: 0.82 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 29.9°F averageFebruary: 32.1°F averageMarch: 38.2°F averageApril: 43.2°F averageMay: 51.1°F averageJune: 60.3°F averageJuly: 67.0°F averageAugust: 66.1°F averageSeptember: 58.6°F averageOctober: 47.8°F averageNovember: 37.3°F averageDecember: 29.2°F average0 in0.5 in1 in1.5 in2 in2.5 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Grand Canyon NP AP, 0 miles from the center point at 6,606 feet, station USW00003195 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 13 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

11 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 7 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Big Springs Cabin Site
Reservable7 sites
FS · Inside
Demotte
Reservable38 sites
FS · Inside
Dogtown Lake Campground And Group
Reservable55 sites
FS · Inside
Hull Cabin
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Jacob Lake Group Campground & Picnic Site
First-comeAZ
FS · Inside
Jacob Lake Recreation Area
Reservable54 sites
FS · Inside
Jumpup Cabin
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Kaibab Lake Sites And Group Areas
Reservable75 sites
Show 4 more

6 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 35

The Forest Service lists 35 recreation sites in this forest, among them 6 campgrounds, 5 viewpoints, 5 visitor centers, 4 cabins. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 35

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 64 named trails in this forest, 559 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Great Western Trail ↗143.1
Arizona Trail ↗75.1
North Timp Snowmobile Trail ↗42.3
Overland Road Historic Trail ↗27.7
Rainbow Rim ↗26.8
Ranger ↗25.9
Beale Wagon Road ↗23.5
Tusayan Mtn Bike ↗18.2
Snake Gulch ↗17.4
Sunflower Flat Mtn. Bike ↗14.2

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 64 trails in Kaibab National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Kaibab National Forest?

1.6 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Kaibab National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Kaibab National Forest in?

Arizona.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Kaibab National Forest?

11 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Big Springs Cabin Site, Demotte and Dogtown Lake Campground And Group. 18 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Kaibab National Forest?

The Forest Service lists 35 recreation sites here, including 6 campground campgrounds, 5 viewing scenerys and 5 visitor centerss. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Kaibab National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 35.949, -112.156. Grand Canyon National Park is 1 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

How dark is the night sky at Kaibab National Forest?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 24 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, very dark ground, a faint glow at most.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Which national parks are near Kaibab National Forest?

Grand Canyon National Park (1 mi), Old Spanish National Historic Trail (12 mi) and Pipe Spring National Monument (14 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Kaibab National Forest?

93 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Grand Canyon Park Operations Building and Grand Canyon Power House.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Kaibab National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.