Hiking the Grand Canyon - What Goes Down Must Come Up

 

I awoke at 5 AM - well before my alarm and 90 minutes before the motel breakfast buffet opened - the morning of my hike down the Bright Angel trail into the bowels of the Grand Canyon. I showered and debated what to wear. It was 24 degrees, but by 11 am it would be 60 degrees. Shorts or jeans? I decided on shorts. Better to be comfortable hiking OUT of the Canyon than hiking in.

I filled my Camelback with 80 ounces of water and a weeks worth of snacks. The guide to hiking the Canyon actually said junk food is a good way to replace the salt and calories expended when hiking the canyon. By 8:15 am I was at the Bright Angel trailhead with Joe and Terry, my Australian travel companions. Terry had invited a solo hiker she had met the day before to join us. We met Nurit, a Trans-Hebrew linguist from Washington, D.C., at 8:20. Nurit had skipped breakfast and was carrying only a couple of small bottles of water and a couple of energy bars. I, on the other hand, had eaten a BIG breakfast and was carrying 10 pounds of water and snacks.

Nurit, Terry & Joe at the Bright Angel Trailhead

The elevation at the Bright Angel trailhead is 6,860 feet. My minimum goal was to make it to the 1 1/2 mile rest area, 5,720 feet above sea level. That would make for a 3 mile hike, a distance I walk nearly every day minus the drastic change in elevation. The next rest area was 3 miles down into the Canyon with another 800 foot drop in elevation. That would be a 6 mile hike, the last 3 climbing nearly 2000 feet. My ultimate goal was to reach Indian Gardens, once an Indian oasis, just a small sliver of green when viewed from the Canyon rim. Indian Gardens is 4.6 miles and 3060 feet below the south rim.

Clad in hiking shorts, black Nike socks (My wife: You're wearing BLACK socks?), a short-sleeve t-shirt, a long-sleeve t-shirt and a thin, but insulated, windbreaker, we started down the trail. I alone was carrying a walking stick. It was 8:30 AM. Nurit had to be back to the rim no later than 3:30 pm to catch a bus back to Phoenix. She would, she announced, turn back at 10:30 AM regardless of where she was.

From the first step the view was stunning. I was euphoric. The combination of the beauty of God's handiwork in the Grand Canyon, my love of hiking, and the thrill of giving my 64-year-old legs, heart and respiratory system a stiff test had me walking on air (not literally) for the first few switchbacks. Though there are narrow spots on the trail, for the most part it is wide enough for those hiking down and those hiking up to easily pass. When it's not, the right-of-way goes in the following order:

1. Mules, no matter which way they are going; then

2. Hikers coming out of the canyon; then

3. Hikers going into the canyon.

One other advantage the mules have is that they don't have to "hold it" until they reach a rest area. This required some hiking multi-tasking, which I prioritized as follows:

1. Savor the beauty; but

2. Don't trip and fall over the edge; AND

3. Try to avoid dropkicking any fresh mule turds.

Before we reached the 1 1/2 mile rest area we began to pass heavily-laden campers slogging back to the rim. Their exuberance level was much lower than mine. At 9:15, a mere 45 minutes after we started, we reached the first potential turnaround point: the 1 1/2 mile rest area. We were way ahead of schedule. All four of us used the restroom. The only drinking water available was what we carried. Elated and relieved, we continued down the trail. Since restrooms are 1 1/2 miles apart, I was thankful that the previous days exotic Indian buffet was having no negative effect on my digestive tract.

Between the 1 1/2 mile rest area and the 3 mile rest area, a string of mules passed us headed to the rim. A cowboy in front, followed by six riderless mules with empty supply bags, with another cowboy bringing up the rear. We waited beside the trail as they passed. When the cowboy in the rear came even with us, I made eye contact. "You've got the best job in the world!" I said. A slight smile came to his lips. "Some days" he replied.

As we continued our descent, Nurit kept pace despite pausing to take pictures. "Do you work out?" I asked. "Not for a few months" she answered.

We arrived at the 3 mile rest house at 9:50 am, a mere 80 minutes after we began. Since the rule of thumb is to allow twice as much time to hike up as it took to hike down, we were still well within Norit's timeframe for returning to the top by 3:30. Next stop - Indian Garden. Off we went with Norit leading the way. Invigorated, in only 35 minutes we were standing in front of a sign welcoming us to Indian Gardens - 4.6 miles and 3060 feet from the rim. Norit’s Blackberry suddenly beeped that she had mail, and then beeped again. I’m not sure who her cell service was with but the fact that it tracked her down inside the Grand Canyon is a pretty good advertisement.

Taking off my backpack, I smiled, sat down on a rock, and unwrapped a king-size Payday candy bar. Payday's are a tasty mix of peanuts and caramel that deliver a whopping 440 calories and a cardiologists nightmare of salt and sugar. "Want one?" I asked Nurit. After initially looking at it like I was holding up a dead mouse, she reluctantly accepted it. "This is good!" she said with approximately the same degree of surprise my grandson had last summer when I introduced him to fried pickles. Nurit's body would use every single one of those calories getting out of the canyon.

After a 15 minute rest, we started back to the rim. The next 4.6 miles would be the equivalent of climbing to the top of the Empire State Building.

Twice.

Plus another 20 stories or so, just for good measure.

Nurit's body would burn everyone of those 440 calories (and then some) before she reached the top.

Tomorrow - Journey From (what seemed like) the Center of the Earth





       Nurit, Terry and Doug at Indian Gardens