Grand Canyon Rim to Rim

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October 19th 2006

Published: October 20th 2006

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travelbuffs

North Kaibab trail

absolutely a gorgeous canyon

Rim to Rim backpacking and hiking

13th Oct - 18th Oct 2006

This is one trip I doubted if I could do. I really don't know if I was eager to do it or wanted to get it over with. Backpacking Grand Canyon would be a feather in my cap. Hiking was never a problem, but no previous backpacking experience made me think twice. If Ganesh had not pushed/brainwashed me, I doubt if I would have even thought of it.

Rajesh had got permit for 7 people some 6 months ago. People started dropping out and Ganesh had the chance to get in. They could take in one more person-that is where I got an option to get in. This was some 3 weeks before the trip was actually happening. I actually asked myself " Was I ready?" The next couple of weeks went in very hectic for both of us. We hardly had time to do personal stuff. The question came up in my mind even more often then. In fact, I think I had that question linger in some corner of my mind until I actually started off for the trip.

Two weeks

South Kaibab trailhead

initial switchbacks

earlier, me and Ganesh did a practise hike to Mission Peak(to me, this is more difficult than half dome). I did carry a simulated backpack to get used to carrying weight. But, the question bothering me was, Grand Canyon is supposed to be a very strenuous hike...A lot of people do it, but a lot others don't even want to attempt it. If the hike itself is very strenuous, is it wise to backpack?(at least 30 lbs)...Too late to turn back. Already in. Maybe that was for good.

13 Oct
This was the first day we were meeting up with all those people(Rajesh, Bahi, Chandu, Manish & Vikram). All of them are friends of friends. A few days earlier, we had a common teleconference to discuss Grand Canyon stuff. That's it. I did actually feel a little unprepared.

All of us met up at Rajesh's place for handshakes and start-offs. It was not until security check in that we actually got to talk. So far so good. Everything went on fine... Not for long!!
We boarded flight 2803 heading to Chicago via Las Vegas. Manish was at the other end waiting to pick us up at Vegas

Grand canyon and us

A lot of people were hiking down this trail, but the canyon is so big that you can have a major part to yourself

airport. Around 7:00 pm, we were getting ready for descent. I could see the sky light up from Las Vegas. The ride was bumpy(some 10ft drops too) all the while due to weather; It certainly kept us entertained, but I would have preferred to land asap. I am not a big fan of roller coasters. All of a sudden, I realized that the plane was circling out of Vegas. Soon enough, the Pilot announced that Vegas was having a major thunderstorm and the airport was taking in our flight after another one. Don't know what happened after that, but the Pilot announced that the airport was closed and we were being redirected to Ontario, CA. All plans seemed to foil all of a sudden. How do we get to Vegas? to Grand Canyon later? Then again, it was out of our hands. Ganesh and Vikram were busy making up plans B, C etc. 😊

Fortunately for us, we took off in an hour after filling fuel. It was a smooth 20 minute ride to Vegas. Did this place just had a thunderstorm? I wouldn't believe. Sky was clear. Vegas was all died down then. Maybe it was the rain.

chaotic southwest 2803

redirected to Ontario, CA for an hour

We had to grab a subway sandwich and head straight to St George(UT), 2 hrs away.

14th Oct
By the time we checked in at Sun time Inn, it was 2:00am. despite the fact we woke him up, he asked us if it was a long drive for us. Nice people are still around.
After a very short night sleep, we got ready to go by 7:00am. Grabbing something for breakfast, we headed to the North Rim to catch the Transcanyon shuttle. Experiencing snowfall on the way, a lot of us got worried about the trail conditions. Flash floods??? Should we turn back??? Not going to give up so soon. We checked in with the backcountry office. They gave us some tips(last tip was to call in for a chopper 😊). So, decided! We were going to go for it. We met a couple of hikers at the trailhead. The elevation was no longer an issue. We had to watch out for flash floods... Could it get any worse? We don't write destiny, do we?

Parking our cars at the North Kaibab trailhead, we were asking fellow hikers about the trail conditions. Smelled tension all over

Sunset

Yavapai Point: this is where we lost Bahi

the air! Giving us company in the shuttle were 3 amazing hikers who hiked rim to rim in just 10 hrs(we were going to do it in 3 days). Kudos to them! Our driver, Chris, told about this person, an 81 yr old man, hiking rim to rim for the 82nd time in this yr alone. Thats often enough. We might even meet him down.

We reached South Rim(~220 miles covered in 4 hrs 30 min) around 3:30pm. Checked into Yavapai lodge later. Rushed to see the sun set at Yavapai point. Every time you see the canyon, it takes you by surprise! No exceptions. We spent over an hr there until we lost Bahi somewhere.

We rushed back to the lodge to find Bahi waiting for us near the shuttle stop. So much for an adventurous start. After last minute cold weather purchases, all of us headed to the room to rearrange our backpacks. Dinner in the room was quick as all of us were hungry. Bidding good night, all of us crashed.

15th Oct
Early morning start at 5:00 am, but still got ready only by 6:30am. Breakfast at the lodge woke everyone

The Grand Canyon

Isn't it a maze?

up. Our backpacks made a lot of people turn faces off from their breaskfasts. Remember a guy asking Rajesh if the backpack weighed more than him 😊.
Got the shuttle to South Kaibab trailhead(Alternate bright angel trail was less scenic, but less steep too). Got off. Around 8:00am we started hiking down the canyon. The whole canyon was all covered up in fog. It was cold. But our backpacks warmed us soon. With the elevation loss, we got to see the canyon better. It was a steep 7 mile descent to the river. We started off late. We had to bear the heat too. Heard my knees tell me, "Enough!"
Crossing over the bridge to the other side of the muddy Colorado river, we saw bright angel campground. The last few steps, I just could not move.
Too tired to do anything! But still got our tents up. Had lunch only by 3:00pm. Not one of us walked without an "ow" or "ah". Thats what you hear after 7 hrs of hiking😞.
We attended the 7:30pm ranger talk on Grand Canyon's geology at the Phantom Ranch amphitheatre. Lying down at the bench, looking up the sky, we saw all kinds

South Kaibab trailhead

8:00am 14th Oct; the big day!

of stars & satellites. Sky was so well lit.
I was stunned seeing a scorpion on a rock. The Ranger showed it up with a black light. Other nearby rocks showed scorpions too. Gosh! I did not keep my leg down on the ground for a while after seeing it.
The water pipes at Bright Angel campground was broke some 2 miles away. So, we had to be careful on drinking water; and use creek water for restrooms. We saw some wild turkeys walk in to our site. It was probably the Indian food smell! A skunk checked our site too! So, after dinner(dehydrated REI food), we had to hang our emptied backpacks. A good night sleep, here I come!

16th Oct
5:00 am again. But, very good sleep this time. We had to get all our backpacks repacked again. That took time and after our oatmeal breakfast, were able to get out only by 8:00am. It was late, very late. When I passed by Phantom Ranch, I probably thought people who stayed there were better off. Sane enough to stay in a hotel down the canyon.
Today was not going to be that difficult with 7

South Kaibab trailhead

beginning descent into the foggy canyon

miles to Cottonwood campground with an elevation gain of 1500 ft. Not too bad compared to yesterday. With breaks on the hr, we were doing better speed than yesterday.
At 9:30am, we saw a fellow hiker waiting to give us way to get through. Manish just asked the hiker, if he was the 81 yr old person Chris mentioned. His answer was postive. We were like "wow". He was on his way to complete his 82nd rim-rim hike for the yr. He told me that if he hiked 104 times, it would average to two hikes every week. Hats off!
Later, when Chandu asked if I got his autograph, I realized how slow my brain was working. I should have got it.

After that, whenever I felt my heavy backpack, I just thought of him. Never would whine again: told myself!

A quick detour to Ribbon falls refreshed all of us. It was after the Sun came out that we felt the tiredness. A mile from the falls and we were like, "Mission Cottonwood accomplished". 5 hours of hiking.
We had a tasty noodle lunch immediately. Ganesh went in for a stroll; Rajesh went in for a nap.

South Kaibab trailhead

first decent view of the canyon below the south rim

I crashed on R.K. Narayan's Malgudi days. I did not hear the other guys play blackjack. It was then that I realized I was asleep. Made me fresh.
Soup preceeded dinner. All of us had to hit the bed by 8:00pm if we were to get up by 2:30am. I could not sleep. Neither could Ganesh. A sound from the other tent told me they did not sleep either.

17th Oct
Big day! All of us got up on time. Getting things done in the dark was difficult. Bidding goodbye to Cottonwood at 4:40am, we were off! It was windy, very very windy. Almost pushed us. But it was definitely better than the Sun.
It was not until dawn that I could actually see wind. Yes- I saw it. Wind coming through into the Canyon and getting pushed from all sides of the canyon walls. I could actually hear the wind roar. If I was alone, maybe I would have got scared, but being with 6 other people made me awe at it.
Me and Rajesh took turns to look up at the sky. Rain was in the forecast. We reached Roaring Springs(2.2 miles from Cottonwood) at

Almost at cedar ridge

see that rainbow there?

7:00am.
After that, the trail seemed to clilmb up all the way. But Rajesh set up a slow pace and we did not feel much strain. One step at a time, we went. North Kaibab trail was more scenic than S.Kaibab trail. North rim had these amazing cliffs. We stopped a lot to take pictures.
From nowhere around 9:00am, we met with rain and had the company until the very end, only in different forms. Rain soon turned into hail. We were still going, one step at a time. Our next water stop was Supai tunnel(~3 miles from Roaring Springs). As we were going up, we felt the freeze. Soon enough, snow followed. We were this close to the rim; we were not going to stop. We did stop at Coconino viewpoint for a group shot, though.
We went like: one more switchback & we will get to the parking lot. Finally, we did. It was snowing badly then. And a freezing 32F. We made it!
It was not after the group hug and photo session that I had time to think "Oh, What an experience!" My mind just wouldn't work before then. All of us were safe and sound.

Cedar ridge

1.3 miles down

Boy! Were we happy to see our red Toyota Sienna there? We took the drive further in to check if the visitor center was opened. North rim officially closes by 15th Oct. But the park is open until 15th Nov.
We were all hungry. We stopped in at Jacobs lake Inn for a sandwich. Pathetic food I've ever had!
On our way to Las Vegas. Back to civilization, finally. Reached Las Vegas arouond 7:30pm. I was looking forward for a major hot water shower. Me and Ganesh stayed back while the others headed to an Indian restaurant, Gandhi. After a good shower, both of u headed to a nearby subway. Continued ahead for a stroll along the strip. At Hotel Venetian around 11.30pm, we took a U turn back to our room. Somehow I felt the strip being very silent. The first time I saw Vegas was during Christmas 2003. There were lots of people then. I do not relish the present Vegas as much. Maybe it was a weekday.

18th Oct
All of us got a good night sleep, I'm sure. A good shower made it all happen. At 7:30 am we left Travelodge to

Manish staring at the canyon

he he he

the airport. There was a huge security line. Only at the last minute did Rajesh realize that his swiss knife was in his carry-on. Too bad he had to let go of it. We made it just in time to catch our flight back to San Jose. No bumpy entertainment, this time. Thank God!
All of them had to get to work. As always, I have to get back to all that unpacking.

Thanks to each and everyone who made this trip possible. I am dead sure that I would not have made it, if not for this group. We felt completely at home with all of them. Me and Ganesh will always be grateful for that.
Sometimes, you get the best when you don't know what to expect. Being unprepared need not be a sign of insecurity.
All is well that ends well. I will remember the "I am at the top finally" feeling in a long time.

Grand Canyon has a lot to offer. I am glad I got the chance to see it. Who knows! We may even go back.

On a personaly level, I learnt a lot from this mission. We are all

skeleton point

Good view of the canyon from here

very small people in this world. Almost a spec of dust. Nature is all powerful! More so, nothing is in our hands. If Grand Canyon(anything else for that matter) is in your destiny, you will do it, somehow. And when you do it, you need to open your eyes and ears for the lesson it teaches you. There is wealth in there.

I really want to finish this journal when it is still fresh in my memory. I am going to crash now.

Next trip is not too far away.
Am I greedy or what?😊

-travelbuffs

Strangers are friends that you haven't met. Thank you God, for the 5 strangers you turned as friends for us.

fyi
The total distance Rim to Rim is 21 odd miles. We divided that equally into 7 miles each day(almost).
From the South Rim to the river, the total elevation loss is around 5000ft. And the evelation gain from the River to north rim is roughly 6000ft.

The Grand Canyon
Planning for a smiliar hike?
From nps website

Additional photos below

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