Hikers on the sandstone Esplanade of the Thunder River Trail below the North Rim of the Grand Canyon outside Fredonia, Arizona November 2011. The 21.4-mile loop descends 2000-feet in 2.5-miles through Coconino Sandstone from the Bill Hall trailhead to connect the Thunder River and Deer Creeks trails. Hikers descend into the lower canyon through a break in the 400-foot-tall Redwall to access Surprise Valley, Deer Creek, Tapeats Creek via Thunder River and even the Colorado River.