An Evening with George Steck - Author and Hiker-Extraordinaire

photo of George Steck Grand Canyon, AZ - On Thursday, November 13, 2003, "An Evening with George Steck" is being presented by the Grand Canyon Association, Grand Canyon National Park, and many friends and admirers. A reception will be held from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Kolb Studio on the South Rim. George will be on hand to chat and sign books, and refreshments will be provided by Xanterra Parks and Resorts. The activities will move to the Grand Canyon Community Building at 7:00 p.m. for a slide-show by photographer Gary Ladd, the film "Worm Hole" by author Tom Myers, and assorted historical video and film footage.

George Steck is one of Grand Canyon National Park's premier hikers. He has hiked approximately 6,000 miles, spent 1,100 days in the canyon, and in 1982 hiked the entire length of the canyon from Lees Ferry to Grand Wash Cliffs on the north side of the Colorado River. He even repeated the effort the following year from Lees Ferry to Lava Falls Rapids. His well-known books, Grand Canyon Loops I & II, have been republished and compiled into one edition by the Falcon Press, and followers fondly known as "Steckies" are regularly seen with his book in hand while finding their way through the canyon.

George has worked as a Volunteer In Park (VIP) over the years on many projects including compiling a list of Grand Canyon place names and correlating them to topographical maps prior to the GIS era. He has also been consulted as a subject-matter expert by incident commanders for search and rescue operations. Those who wish to join in the tribute are invited to attend. Please contact Dawn O'Sickey, Public Affairs Specialist, at 928-638-7779 for more information.

For information about Grand Canyon National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/grca. For information regarding the Grand Canyon Association, please visit www.grandcanyon.org.