Grand Canyon Hiking Marathon

The adventure really starts Monday after I got done with work. Jen met me at El Tovar and we booked it over to the Backcountry Permit Office to get our permit to stay overnight at Indian Gardens. We then rushed over to the General Store and bought food and socks and I got some hiking shoes. That night, I went to bed early and Jen woke me up for the meteor shower. We went outside to watch it in a little dirt patch near my room. Back to bed, and then I got up at a nice and early 5:30 for work. Naturally I brought all the gear I would require with me, since we were leaving immediately after I was finished with work. After working a nice full 8 hour day, Jen met me at work and we changed, got some more water and a hiking stick, and set off down the trail!

   

As you might imagine, going down was fairly easy. Nice views and spots to rest all over the Bright Angel Trail!

        

And it didn't take long at all to get to Indian Gardens. Really it was only about 3 to 3 and 1/2 hours of hiking to get down that 5 miles.

 

Once we found an empty campground, we set it all up as the sun set. Unfortunately, since we were trying to avoid heavy packs, we only brought a sheet and some extra shirts. Not comfortable. In addition to that, we spent the night surrounded by all sorts of critters, including a few deer that decided to chow down on a bush right by our heads.  After a total of about 4 hours of sleep (give or take), we were back up at 4 am and ready to go. Hiking in the dark, that's interesting. You can hear things moving around you but can't see what they are... at the same time though, it's nice and cool, and of course the sunrise over the canyon was great. But you can't have it all, right? Immediately following the sunrise, it got intensely hot. The views were still great because it is so different once you're actually DOWN there. It's a lot greener than it looks, and there are little creeks and waterfalls along and across the trail. The trail itself is rocky, and tricky at parts, with very little shade to offer during the day. We came across a lot of lizards and squirrels. Then, as we were getting close to a spot between Indian Gardens and the river called Devil's Corkscrew, one particularly cute lizard scurried across the trail. I being in the lead felt obligated to acknowledge it, and just as I did and stepped around it, I heard the most ungodly rattling sound. Immediately to the right of my foot lay a nice sized Grand Canyon Rattler. According to Jen, it actually lunged at me before I saw it recoiling just inches away and turned to sprint about 5 feet ahead. She thought it was cool, but she didn't almost die via rattle snake.

 

Heading down Devil's Corkscrew and along the bottom of the canyon, we finally made it to the Colorado River! 

Now I know they always talk about how hot it is down there, but by the river there's a breeze and the water is so nice and cold. We didn't swim in it, don't worry, just dipped our feet in the water lapping up on Pipe Creek beach and climbed the rocks next to Pipe Creek Rapid.

  

As we rested there, the sun rose higher through the two rims of the canyon and it was just perfect.

    

We then headed back up a bit to a little pool and soaked our legs in the water there to get somewhat refreshed before the very long ascent back to the top of Bright Angel Trail 5,000 feet above us and an 8-9 mile hike away. This is when we stopped taking pictures and started truly believing we were in hell. The hike up is long, hard, steep and completely exhausting. After backtracking those first 3 miles of Tuesday morning back up to Indian Gardens (Devil's Corkscrew is named for the Devil for a reason), we slept at picnic tables for an hour and a half. To follow our schedule, we had to get up and start hiking again at 1 pm, which by the way, I would not recommend. They say not to hike between 10 am and 4 pm and they are absolutely right. It is hot. There was very little talking on our two and a half mile trek back to the three mile rest house, and very little shade. During a short rest under one lucky tree we found, Jen actually asked me if we were going to die. Of course I said no, but in my head I thought back to the horror stories I had heard about people losing hope in the canyon and slowly dying of dehydration. I was at least determined to make it to the next water stop. After a very long hike up to the three mile rest house, we practically bathed under the water spout, soaking all of our clothes and nursing sore legs and feet. Back on the trail, it took us two hour and ten minutes to get up the next mile and a half. Let me explain for a moment, what it feels like to hike a constant downhill slope for 3 miles and then constant uphill for 7 miles immediately after. At first you feel a slow burn in your calves and thighs, as if you ran on a treadmill for 20 minutes. Not long after though, there is an added ache. Then the burning intensifies to the point where it's going even after you sit down to rest, and spreads up your body through your legs and into your abs and back. By the time you get to the mile and a half house, you feel like your body is on fire and your head is going to explode because it's pounding so hard. You've had so much beef jerky that you feel ill but you still have to eat it because you need the salt and protein. You keep going up the steep inclines and stair step rocks and eventually you can hardly move your feet. You forget how to walk and find yourself shuffling and stumbling and in your head all you can think is, I feel worse than death itself, this torture never ends. That's about how I was at that last rest house, and still with a mile and half to go up to the rim, through countless switchbacks along those giant cliffs that never seemed to get any closer. But finally, after hiking from 4 am almost continuously until 7:30 pm, we made it to the top. It's hard to describe the feeling, because you hate the trail and the hike and you hate yourself for doing it voluntarily, but there is something that you're just so proud of too. Not that you're awesome, but just that you're alive, that you survived such brutal conditions and saw such amazing things and experienced what few people do, even if it wasn't all fun. If someday, you decide to hike the Grand Canyon, I have some advice for you. Bring lots of water, lots of food (with lots of variety! a mistake we made), something comfortable to sleep on, pain killers, and be sure to give yourself enough time to rest as much as you would need to in the absolute worst situation. Odds are, it will be harder than you thought.