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Grand Canyon National Park > The South Rim > Viewpoints > Mather Point
The majority of visitors to the South Rim first gaze over the Grand Canyon at Mather Point; although other places have slightly better views, Mather is the number one choice as it is closest to the entrance station, and right beside the road. The point has quite a large car park but this soon fills up on busy summer days, when excess cars have to park along the main road. It is not uncommon for both sides to be lined with vehicles for a third of a mile or more and for small queues to form. RVs and other large vehicles are not permitted in the official car park so they too have to be left at roadside. The park headquarters on the south rim (the Canyon View Center, opened in 2001) is a short distance south of Mather Point, accessible only by shuttlebus or on foot. The center is intended to be the northern terminus of a mass transit system, transporting people from large carparks in the village of Tusayan, but this is many years away from completion.
At least the actual viewing area is extensive. The point has two narrow, railed overlooks built on projecting rocks, various other view points along the rim in both directions, and to the west, the Rim Trail offers more vistas all the way to the next point (Yavapai).
On the south side of the Colorado River, the panorama at Mather Point extends from the lower end of Garden Creek taking in some of the Bright Angel Trail, over the deep canyon of Pipe Creek and eastwards to Cedar Ridge/O'Neill Butte, along which runs the South Kaibab Trail starting from the next point to the east - Yaki. Some of the Tonto Trail is also in view, near Pipe Creek. On the North Rim, the vista is centered on the long, straight Bright Angel Creek, flowing for 10 miles between a collection of tall red buttes and other ravines.
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