10 days hiking in the Grand Canyon

Feb 11th 2012 After more than just a few months of planning, all the players taking part in the adventure before us were ready. My fellow hikers are Mike L. Paul V.(Cuz) Dave G (Uncle Dave) Dave C and myself. We all assembled at my house to celebrate my wife's retirement of 42 years as a medical technologist. Valentine's Day, Pam's birthday and Mardi Gras were all wrapped up into one party, since I would be deep in the Grand canyon for 10 days and unable to be there for all of them. Mike drove down from South Dakota, Uncle Dave and Dave C. live locally. My Cuz had to fly in from Oregon. After eating our fill of shrimp gumbo and loading up the poor Subaru with back packs that made the vehicle resemble the Beverly Hillbilles, we headed to the airport to pick up Cuz.

By 9:00pm we drove into the parking lot of El Palomino Motel in Grand Junction. It would be our first stop on the 14 hour 700 mile trip to the rim of the Grand Canyon. After unloading the car we arranged our back packs and extra food that would be carried down by mule to Phantom Ranch, located at the bottom of the canyon. The rooms are just $50.00 and not far off the I-70 interstate. If you're wondering about the mule, we didn't bring our own steed, the park service wranglers handle the critters. Since we would be down in the canyon for 10 days we divided our food so that we would only have to carry 3 days worth of food until we connected with the food already brought down to Phantom Ranch. Doing it this way saves on a lot of weight, "Momma didn't raise no fool!"

Feb 12th We had a very visual journey through the country side of the four corners area of Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico. By 3:00 pm we arrived at the Grand View trail head along with a snow storm. Uncle Dave was experiencing foot problems which only seemed to get worse the deeper the snow built up on our back packs, so he decided to skip the first three days of hiking with us and meet us at Phantom Ranch with Dave C. on Feb 15th.

I decided to try the descending snow covered trail without steel cleats on the bottom of my boots. Faster then you could say flat on your back,there I was. I should have known since this is one of the most dangerous trails in the Grand Canyon at this time of year. All of us took off our packs and wisely attached some type of steel cleat to the bottom of our hiking boots. A few inches of new snow covered the glare ice trail, which made for a beautiful an also a dangerous scene. Cuz and Mike both have a fear of heights and this trip was either going to cure or kill which became apparent within a few minutes. If we would lost our balance, the steep drop off along the trail in most cases, would lead to an instant death after whistling through the air for a few hundred feet. I told Mike there are 100 ways to die in the Grand canyon and after an hour we passed 50 of them!

I was slowly working my way along the snowy trail with steel cleats and two hiking poles when my feet kicked out from under me. I landed on my buttocks with my legs straight out in front of me. Within seconds I turned into a human toboggan and slid down to the edge of the trail. I stopped with my legs dangling over the sharp edge,and I might say, a great view of the of the valley below. This all happened within a hour of starting our hike.

By 4:30 pm our group walked 4.5 miles onto the Horseshoe Mesa, the place we were to camp for the night. An old copper mine was on the hill above our camp with plenty of minerals to inspect after dinner.

Feb 13th: We had set our camp up behind small brush that dotted the landscape,and would act as a wind block during the night. It was needed, for during the night a gust of wind came ripping out of the valley below. We had descended about a 1000 feet below the rim with another 3000 feet to go before we reached the Colorado River. As the sun rose above the canyon the bright light rays made the red rocks of the thousands of canyons below us come alive. Teddy Roosevelt had it right when he said, "Don't try and change the canyon, we can't improve it!" I have been in the canyon 10 times and each time I forget about the beauty and the many dangers of the world below the rim. Every plant and rock seems to have sharp thorns or edges. The hundreds of narrow trails have life ending drop off points. But the area just keeps drawing me back for another look to, maybe the same spot but each time the angle of the sun light is different.

To the east of us lay a large drainage named Page Spring that held the only water source in that direction. The spring was 700 feet below Horse Shoe Mesa and lucky for us we had brought enough water so we wouldn't have to climb down and then back up its' nose bleed path. After eating breakfast and dropping our packs along the Cottonwood trail head we headed towards the old copper mine. Every color of mineral lay on the ground with some of it looking like it had fallen from Mars. Blue turquoise, usually associated with copper was attached to many rock crevices. Uranium deposits according to a National Park sign was also present, which made me wonder if we were going to wake up the next day glowing or with a stiffy or both.

After searching the area and visiting many spots where miners had lived and I suppose died, we started our adventure to the far reaches of the Grand Canyon. The trail was steep leading down to Cottonwood Creek, but with the thought of cold water on our minds, we travelled onward. The creek had just enough water to easily fill our containers. Mike filled his container down stream from Cuz and I. I got Mike's attention when I mentioned as a joke that we where washing out our undies up stream from him. After leaving Cottonwodd trail we entered Tonto Trail east.

The trails in the canyon follow the thousands of drainages that dot the landscape. Each time we came out to a point we knew that it would usually lead back to a long forgotten washout. Some of the trails were within inches of a deep canyon with red rock walls hundreds of feet above the valleys below.

By 3:00 pm we reached our next camp site at Grape Creek after an 8 mile walk. We set up camp and then took a short hike up the drainage with polished marble rocks as our sidewalks. All our thighs where sore from yesterday's hike down the steep Grand View trail. After dinner it was hiker's midnight which translates to 8:00pm, and we hit the sleeping bags.

During the night I was awakened with blowing rain beating on my tent. I wondered what I was going to do if my tent blew away and I was exposed to the elements. The storm was having fun with our little shelters as it showed us who was boss in this drainage. Just when we thought the storm had moved off it came back with all its' power. By dawn it had blown itself out and we woke up to wet tents, but they were in one piece anyway.

Feb 14th This morning we got our first view of the mighty Colorado River a thousand feet below our path. I know from my 2006 trip in the canyon and along this same route that water would be scarce. Our camp site would be Cremation Creek, except there wouldn't be any water,maybe another name could be Damnation. We would have to pickup and carry water from Lone Tree canyon and carry it to our camp. The weather was cool but it was perfect for hiking with some gusty winds. We met a few couples along the way that informed us that water was available at Lone Tree.

By 3:00pm we hiked onto a mesa above Cremation after 8 miles and found some flat spot to set up our shelters. The views were grand but we would be open to any bad weather with no bush or tree in sight. After dinner we did some exploring and followed a herd of deer, as they made their evening rounds looking for green grass. Good luck with that! That evening the clouds had cleared and we sat around talking and enjoying a thousand stars in the sky.

Feb 15th: So much for clear skies but the temperature was still mild compared to the temps on the rim. A large storm was raging in a far canyon and it was delightful to watch it evolve. Large curtains of rain and snow was swiping back and forth in the distance.

Our hike of 8 miles would be fairly easy today with Phantom Ranch as our final destination. Uncle Dave and Dave C. would meet us at the ranch for a three day layover. Uncle Dave had dropped off our extra food with the mule wrangler at the South Rim and mule wrangler would carry it all down South Kaibab trail.

By 10:00am we walked into the intersection of Tonto and South Kaibab trail. A seasonal worker was cleaning out the priveys and we stopped and talked to this very cheerful woman. We were all talking about the work in the park since Mike had worked for the forest service for 35 years. Come to find out this girl was Cuz's nephew's room mate in Wyoming.

Within a hour we were standing above the Colorado River and could see rafters paddling towards the beach at Phantom Ranch. A tunnel bored through the mountain leading us onto the steel bridge above the river. The bridge's 550 foot cables had to be carried down the trail by Indians when it was built in the 1960's. I bet that was a sight!

We planned on eating lunch on the beautiful sunny beach below the ranch along with the rafters. We had lunch and cold beer in our hands, thanks to our new found friends within minutes of sitting on the beach. The rafters had miscalculated a critical rapid above the ranch and had flipped there rafts into the cold water. A rafter from Louisiana was soaked and shaking and headed towards the ranch where warm food and coffee was waiting. This group had been riding the Colorado River from Lee's Ferry and had been having a great time. One guide had done this same trip 81 times.

After lunch we walked towards the campground and found the same spot where I usually camp. After settling in and walking up to the ranch for some hot chocolate, we also picked up our food bag. A little history about the Phantom Ranch. It was a working ranch at one time and Teddy Roosevelt stayed here. The water for the cattle at that time and our water today comes from the Bright Angel Creek that travels down the canyon. The name Phantom comes from the name of a creek that connects to Bright Angel Creek and seems to come out of no where.

As we walked towards the beach the two Dave's appeared and we had an exchnage of stories. We continued back to the steel bridge and did some exploring along the river. Dave C. had bought all his meals at the ranch so the rest of us ate our carried food. Then at 8:00 pm the ranch is open for $4.75 beers and free conversation with fellow hikers. Some guests had walked down and were staying at the cabins, dorms and camping. Some had rode mules down and were staying at cabins. There was a major storm on the top of the rim, when we were fighting the winds and rain two days before and because of that, Uncle Dave told us that many people had cancelled their trip down to Phantom Ranch, which was too bad since the weather was great now.

Feb 16th We woke to clear skies-Praise the Lord and pass the granola!! We would all head up Bright Angel creek trail towards the North Rim. The twisting and turning path would lead us through the narrow canyon that had been formed by the creek. Every turn in the path gave us new discoveries to ponder with the sun shining at different angles. The solid granite walls had a shiney polished look due to thousands of years of water screaming down after major thunderstorms high up in the canyon.

By lunch time we had made Ribbon Falls and what a sight it was. I have seen the falls many times before but each time it is like a new thrill. The falls are maybe 50 feet tall with some sort of mineral in the water that encourages the growth of moss, for the whole kit and kabutal is covered with a vibrate green moss.

After eating our lunch we had heard about the upper Ribbon Falls with cliff dwellings from the Anasazi that lived in the region thousands of years ago. We followed the trail and after an hour of walking we found the falls and ruins. The ruins were stone warehouses for the Indians to store corn in. The cool vapor off the falls was very refreshing after hiking in the heat of the afternoon.

I had the bright idea of getting back to Phantom Ranch before it closed for dinner at 4:00 pm and grabbing something tall and cool to drink, so I almost ran. I arrived at 4:03 pm, so close yet no drinks for this sweaty hiker.

Feb 17th: We had a 15 mile hiking day planned for the 18th so today we would kind of kick back and enjoy the Bright Angel campground and beach. It was nice talking with different hikers and Uncle Dave met someone he knew from home.

Feb 18th: Today Mike, Cuz and myself would hike 15 miles to Monument camping area. Uncle Dave was going to stop at Indian Gardens and camp. Dave C. would walk up to Bright Angel Trailhead.

By 10:00 am we all walked into Indian Gardens and had a break with food and water. An older hiker was trying to impress his much younger wife by telling all of us he had walked this trail 11 times. I said, "12 times and you get a free set of steak knives!" Everybody thought it was funny, with his wife laughing the hardest except he didn't see the humor of it all. My group walked 10 miles towards Monument. The trail followed above the Colorado River. The weather held as we made our way through the small brush and cactus lined trail. By 4:00 pm we walked down into our camping area. From the heights above the drainage I could see a few tents scattered around the dry river bed.

The Presidents Day holiday was going to be on Monday so many more hikers were colliding with our trip. 22 boy scouts were camped all around our camping area. We met a few hikers that had their usual stories of problems along the trail. Some of them were probably true, as they see them. Hikers tales are like what Mark Twain said about statistics "You have liers, you have damn liers and you have statistics!" One of the biggest stories was the length of the last trail that would lead us out of the canyon, the Boucher Trail. Everybody and their dog thought we were out of our mind for walking out on a 12 mile trail that gained 4000 feet in elevation. "Man you are going to need two days to do that trail!" was the most common remark. Another total shocker for anybody we encountered was that we didn't filter our water. Our new critics would look at us like we didn't have a brain in our sun baked heads. I havn't filtered water for 20 years so I am used to the horror stories that are told. It always starts the same way, I have a friend, he didn't filter water and the rangers found his remains along the trail, they identified him through dental records!

Feb 19th: We had a 10 mile hike to Boucher camping area, which went fairly well, except for a few windy rain storms. One of the major storms involved me covering my self and pack with a ground cover and umbrella. We all sat under a small rock overhang, for about 30 minutes.

By 4;00pm we all walked down into the canyon and quickly set up our tents before the rain started pelting us again. That night because of the rain, sleeping was the coldest.

Feb 20th: We all walked down to the Boucher Rapids and had our lunch on a beach over looking the Colorado River. After lunch we walked back to our camp and met up with a college group from Illinois. The coed students were on a geology field trip, to examine new rock and each other. As our new neighbors set up their tents we hiked up the Boucher Creek to have a look see.

Feb 21st: This was going to be the big walking day with 12 mile and 4000 feet of gain without water along the trail. We hiked up hill for a hour just to get on Boucher trail. The first part of the trail involved a hand over fist type of trail with almost a 60 degree slope, covered with loose rocks, then the trail planed out along a plateau.Next, the trail had a sharp increase in ascent. As we came around a corner we came upon a dead Desert Big Horn Sheep that had fallen off a cliff above us. After lunch we had mostly a level walk with the sun beating down on our bodies. The last mile was a trail covered with rocks arranged to make a stone walkway to heaven.

As we got closer to the top of Hermit Rest trailhead, Uncle Dave was sitting along side the trail.

As Mike said the float trip on the Colorado River may be easier but walking along the Colordao River is the only way to really see the splenders of the canyon.

We all needed some R&R so lets drive south to Scottsdale Arizona and hang with the relatives. Plus the thought of warm sunny weather with our sore feet dangling in a heated pool sounded grand. The next morning we all headed to Camel Back Mtn and had a great hike to the top, with the scenery getting better at every foot of ascent.