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Call it a pocket park ranger. At Grand Canyon National Park, you can dial up an audio tour on your cellphone along the South Rim. At each stop, you call an indicated number, and the recorded voice of a ranger gives a two-minute talk about the scene before you.

As of May 12, a dozen stations had been installed. Eventually, up to 25 will operate over a 5-mile stretch of the path between Yaki and Maricopa points, said Judy Hellmich-Bryan, the park's chief of interpretation. The service is free, but you'll owe your usual cellphone charges. At one station, you'll hear a description of the night sky that changes each month, narrated by Tyler Nordgren, University of Redlands associate professor of physics.