The Grand Canyon is Indeed Grand

In September of 2008 after a summer of training hard, we were ready to go to the Grand Canyon for our epic Rim to Rim hike. In addition to the physical training, we had planned our trip pretty meticulously. We had been to the Grand Canyon twice already and we were familiar with all the great things to see on the way up to the Canyon.

I had typed up a detailed itinerary for each day as well as a more general itinerary. The itineraries, permits, maps, hotel and car rental receipts were all sorted by day and in their special envelope that I would carry with me in my carry-on. We were uber prepared.

We flew to Phoenix and met up with Mark and Vicki and then drove our rental car to Flagstaff for a stop at Peace Surplus so Vicki and Mark could rent gear. We then stayed the night in a hotel in Flagstaff very close to some train tracks which was conveniently not in the brochure for the hotel. Surprisingly the trains did not really keep us up.

The next day we drove north towards the Grand Canyon. But rather than take the direct route, we took the scenic route through Sunset Crater National Monument, Wapatki National Monument, and the Painted Desert. We took our time and stopped to see all the Native American Ruins and take lots of photos. Driving through that desert is always amazingly peaceful. There are not many cars and when you stop the car and walk up to the ruins, it is so very quiet and still. Each time I go, I always imagine the native people who lived there. I imagine them working the fields, playing their ball games, telling stories and communing with the earth. It is nice to get away from the business of tv, computers, phones, traffic, and all the other excesses we normally encounter each day. It is a very nice break.

We arrived at the Grand Canyon and had our first view at Desert View. I will let the picture speak for me now.

We checked into our hotel and then took in some more views.

We spent the night on the South Rim and the next day took a 5 hour shuttle to the North Rim. We drove through miles and miles of very remote territory and several Navajo reservations. It was a very long and sometime bumpy drive. We did stop a few times but by the time we got there I was dying to get out of the van.

We spend another night in a hotel on the North Rim. Then finally the next morning we donned our Backpacks for our hike down into the Canyon. Below is a picture of Melissa and I at about 7:30 AM at the trail head.

Our first leg of our hike was 7 miles and was all down down down. From the trail head to our first campsite we descended just over 4000 feet. The scenery was incredible and really indescribable. The Grand Canyon is so vast and awesome in the true sense of the word. But it is also HOT. Very hot. And since it is very dry, you don' t realize how much water you are losing. It is very important to drink all the time and eat salty snacks whenever you stop for a rest. We were prepared for that and made sure to drink lots of water and eat lots of snacks whenever possible. We did not see too many people on the way down. It was Great!

After 7 miles of backpacking down 4000 feet in the hot hot hot weather, I was pretty pooped. Our campsite at Cottonwood was very cozy. The best part about the campground was the freezing cold creek. Vicki, Melissa, and I all sat in the creek for about 30 to 45 minutes. It was very cold but it was so therapeutic. Not only did it cool us off but it was just like an ice bath. I have been known to take ice baths after long training runs to aid in recovery. It really helps you bounce back and this cold water soak was key in allowing us to press on the next day without any pain.

On day 2, we continued our descent. It was another 7 miles to the bottom of the Canyon but this time we only had about 2500 feet to descend. We took a side trail to Ribbon Falls which was an oasis in the desert. Ribbon fall is a must if you ever hike the North Kaibab trail. You can climb up behind the water fall for some really excellent photo opportunities.

After Ribbon Falls we continued down. We had started very early in the morning to beat the heat. The last part of the hike is very hot. There is not much shade at all and in the heat of the afternoon, the last part of the trail goes through a canyon that traps all the heat. It can get up to 120 degrees or more in this section referred to as "the box."

Before getting to the Box we continued through some very interesting terrain. And the desert is so darn quiet. I loved it. Don't get me wrong, I like people but sometimes getting away from everyone is nice.

After we arrived at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, we set up our campsite at the Bright Angel Campsite next to Bright Angel Creek. We then walked a short way up to Phantom Ranch where there are some cabins, other structures, and a little snack bar with tables. We got some lemonades and sat in the shade sipping away, very relaxed, and a little sore. After hanging out for a while, we went down to the creek and sat in the creek for a while. The creek was not quite as cold down here at the bottom of the canyon but it was still therapeutic.

We were staying two nights at the bottom so we had plenty of time to recover and relax. It was very nice to be able to just chill out and take in all the sites. There were two ranger presentations that we attended. One was about the Civilian Conservation Corps who built all the campsites and trails throughout the park. It was quite interesting and the ranger had some great old photos of the CCC at work. The second presentation later that night was about bats. This presentation was also very interesting. The ranger had a device that could record the bats in flight and allow you to hear them hunting for their insect dinners.

The following day, Mark and I went on a morning hike. We went up a very steep trail that put us up high above the Colorado river with great views of both the silver and black foot suspension bridges. I was so glad that we did this hike. We did not see anyone along the trail and there were so many vistas. I could have spent all day just sitting and gazing across the canyon.

After Mark and I were done with our morning hike, we hooked back up with Melissa and Vicki and did an afternoon hike. There is a short 2 mile hike that crosses both foot bridges and has some great views of the Colorado including a little beach right along the Colorado. Here is a picture of me attempting a yoga pose in my boots.

After our day hikes we attended another Ranger program. A different ranger gave a great presentation about the geology and creation of the Grand Canyon. It was a very informative presentation with the added bonus of being pretty funny. The young ranger was almost like a stand up comic in his presentation. Who would have thought you would find such a presentation all the way down a the bottom of the vast Grand Canyon.

The next day we started our ascent. We would be doing our climb out of the Grand Canyon in two days. Our first leg would take us about 3.2 miles and 1400 feet up to the Indian Gardens Campground. Indian Gardens is quite plush and for some reason a little cooler. We made the ascent to Indian Gardens, setup camp and had lunch. Then we went on a day hike to Plateau point. This was a nice leisurely walk of about 1.5 miles with little elevation change. Plateau Point has lots of colorful scenic vistas and is a must if you are doing the Bright Angel trail. Below is a picture from the trail.

We stayed out on Plateau Point for quite some time-taking in all the ambiance. It was cloudy which actually was a good thing since there is no shade at all on the hike out or when you get there.

After our day hike we went to bed very early. The last part of our hike would take us up many switchbacks and we wanted to get an early start. At 4:30 AM, we got up, broke camp and headed for our last climb up to the top of the South Rim. Melissa and I had done this portion of the trail before and we knew it was not easy. It was up, up, up, up. Out last leg would take us up 3000 feet in just over 4 miles.

Interestingly enough we felt great. We had beat the heat by leaving early in the morning and we had trained so well. We took our time so we could enjoy all the sites. As we got closer to the top of the South Rim, we started to see more people doing day hikes down. We must have looked pretty rough and smelled pretty bad but people still stopped to ask us about our hike. We chatted up a lot of people during the last 1.5 miles up. Before we knew it, we had reached the top. And it was not even lunch time yet. We felt a great sense of accomplishment but at the same time a little sad that our hike was over and we were closer to going back to our normal lives.

Here are a few more pictures from the trip.

We had trained well, planned well, and had a wonderful trip. I highly recommend it to everyone. If you ever want to know more about planning a trip to the Grand Canyon, please let me know.