At the second-most visited national park, getting away from the hustle and bustle takes a little more work. But the rewards of sleeping at Cottonwood Campground, deep inside the Grand Canyon, are worth the work.

When we visited in early September, we aimed to complete a rim-to-rim-to-rim hike along the Corridor Trail. I had never hiked inside the canyon before, and this trail was a great, well-maintained and well-traveled introduction. People complete this hike in a wide time range, but for our intended four-day hike, Cottonwood provided the perfect first night accommodations.

Our rim-to-rim-to-rim itinerary looked like this:

• Day 1: South Rim → Cottonwood Campground via the South Kaibab Trail (around 14 miles, but mostly downhill)
• Day 2: Cottonwood Campground → North Rim Campground (around 8 miles, all uphill)
• Day 3: North Rim Campground → Bright Angel Campground (around 14 miles, but mostly downhill)
• Day 4: Bright Angel Campground → South Rim, via the Bright Angel Trail (around 9 miles, all uphill)

It was a great, fast-paced itinerary for our group of 3 above-average hikers. Of course, there are a few barriers to hiking inside the canyon. We were able to snag last-minute permits the day before we left on our hike by arriving at the Backcountry Office about 30 minutes before it opened. Cottonwood is much less popular than Bright Angel campground, so your odds are better here.

The campground itself was comfy, with picnic tables, pit toilets, and potable water. It was very quiet, as I’m sure most hikers were more than ready to get a good night’s sleep before continuing their hike in the canyon. Don’t forget to shake out your clothes and shoes for small scorpions, who are not aggressive but defensive if you step on them.

Only about 1% of visitors to the Grand Canyon ever sleep inside the canyon, and it’s a magical experience.

For more about our rim-to-rim-to-rim hike, and our other two days at the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, read more on our blog: Switchback Kids (Grand Canyon)