Access via the North Rim, a lesser-used gateway to the national park, was closed as the White Sage fire continued to burn on Saturday.

The NPS recommends avoiding hiking the Grand Canyon's inner trails between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., when temperatures are at their peak. Temperatures in the inner canyon can reach over 120 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade, creating "extremely hazardous conditions for hikers," the NPS said.

A hiker has died on the South Kaibab Trail in the Grand Canyon National Park while attempting to reach the Colorado River.

The mules are a part of a century-old Grand Canyon experience in which visitors ride into the canyon while admiring its vistas from the saddle. The park service keeps mules for transporting supplies into the canyon, but it's up to the concessionaires to run the daily rides and maintain the mules that carry visitors.

Officials evacuated Jacob Lake and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon was closed to visitors because of the fast-moving White Sage wildfire.

A 67-year-old man hiking in the Grand Canyon National Park died on the South Kaibab Trail, below Cedar Ridge. Officials believed that extreme heat created hazardous hiking conditions. The Grand Canyon National Park Service said at about 11:50 a.m. July 8, the Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center received a report of an unresponsive hiker.

A 67-year-old Texan planning to spend a night at Phantom Ranch on the floor of Grand Canyon National Park collapsed and died while hiking down the South Kaibab Trail.