It is.
I've been riding the True Grit for about 6 months and find that the fork smooths things out noticeably. It isn't that the fork travels that much at any one time, but over the long haul the ride is much less jarring and fatiguing as compared to a rigid fork, no contest. The frame also adds to the comfort while being quite snappy under power. A gravel fork with a bit of travel is hard to give up once you realize the benefits.
fwiw I spent a week riding in the highlands of Iceland in August with a gravel tour, seeing much of the same terrain as the Rift. The terrain was varied, rugged and beautiful. Wind, loose sand, rocks, washboard, river crossings, steep hikeabike, as well as some perfectly smooth stuff. While only having moderate elevation gain, 200k of that terrain in one go would make 180k D2R2 seem relatively quaint in terms of difficulty.
I hear that conditions improve in wetter years because the gravel packs better - this season was unusually dry. In any case, it was incredible.
I used 700x42 RH Hurricane Ridge with Endurance casing. I would not use a smoother, skinnier or less durable tire in that terrain.
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