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A Big Hike with Big Rewards by Dan O'Connor - added June 3, 2006
How many times in life do we get to climb a mountain in reverse? This is what I was thinking as my girlfriend and I approached the south rim of the Grand Canyon. A mountain in reverse indeed. The south Kaibab trail starts at Yaqoui point and winds down close to five thousand vertical feet before bottoming out on the Colorado River, the floor of the Grand Canyon. On the way down, the trail crosses many different ecosystems. The top of the south rim is high alpine desert. At the river bottom it is only desert. Basically, it is cool at the top and hot at the bottom with a little bit of everything in between.
The Grand Canyon, because it is a major national park, is a regulated wilderness experience. Park rangers are not shy about telling people that they should not attempt to hike to the river and back in a day. An elderly female ranger informed me I might want to only hike the rim trail, a paved trail along the top of the canyon. She made it clear that a day hike to the river was not possible for the average human, and she kept telling me about her brother in law who rides five miles a day on his exercise bike and what a hard time he had with the hike blah blah. My girlfriend and I have both competed in the Pikes Peak marathon, which is 8000ft vertical up and down, so we felt fit enough for the task ahead. This ranger was dealing with a pair of determined people. After more prodding she gave up the necessary information.
To get to the bottom of the grand canyon there are two choices: take a shuttle bus from a designated point in the Grand Canyon village to a trailhead (there are two ways down from the south rim) or, if you want to end up back at your own vehicle, park in a legal roadside stop area just past the Yaqoui point entrance. Since we had cold sail ales waiting for us in the car after the hike we wanted to end up back at our vehicle and not wait for a shuttle bus to get us to our cold beer!
Even though my partner and I are fit, we did not want to underestimate something as immense as the Grand Canyon. We geared up very carefully. Both of us carried 100-ounce Camelbacks filled with water and a variety of snacks. We started the hike in lightweight tights and long sleeves. This was also insurance in case something happened and we had to hike out in the dark. Within an hour these layers were discarded. It was seven a.m. as we started down the south Kaibab trail. Only fourteen miles and ten thousand vertical feet to go!
One word describes the south Kaibab trail: Hot! The day we hiked was in early May, and temperatures were hovering around the eighty-degree mark at noon. There is very little shade on the trail and water is nonexistent until you hit the Colorado River. Basically, you need to carry a lot of water and sunscreen for a safe hike. The Grand Canyon is a very harsh environment in the best conditions. But what a hike!
The south Kaibab trail drops just under five thousand vertical feet in 7.1 miles. I was amazed at the quality of the trail for the entire hike. The Kaibab trail is extremely well-maintained, despite the fact it is also used by donkey teams which supply the Phantom Ranch, which is a guest bunkhouse located on the floor of the Grand Canyon. You can hike down to the ranch in shorts and a t-shirt and stay in a bunkhouse and have meals prepared for you. No heavy pack to carry in or out! That would be some fine living, but for today it was down to the river and back.
The trail is so scenic that it is really hard to do it justice with a few paragraphs and photos. The vegetation changed constantly with the descent. The changes were subtle in spots and blatant in others. One plateau at around 4oooft was completely abloom with yucca cactus spikes. We paced ourselves hiking down to ensure strength enough to get out of the canyon. Fast downhills can be very painful to the unsuspecting. As we hiked down we passed many people coming up. Some had stayed at the ranch the night before. Some had camped on the river. The south Kaibab trail does a steady business.
Our first good look at the Colorado River came near an area called Skeleton Point. At this point we were about 1000 vertical feet off the river. The image of blue water after hiking such a desert landscape was striking. I was psyched to get to the bottom. It would not disappoint. The bottom of the Grand Canyon is close to the altitude of Phoenix, Arizona, which is around 2400 ft. Huge flowering prickly pear cacti were everywhere. There were a few groups of river rafters parked along the riverbed as we toured the bottom of the canyon. I envied them, floating to their next location while my partner and I had five thousand vertical feet to hike up. I fantasized about riding my full suspension bike down and being rafted out. Then reality set in and it was time to get our feet out of the river and start hiking.
I don't have to tell you that the hike out was long and hot. We topped out at the trailhead, some four hours later. About an hour up my girlfriend discovered that I had left the rest of our snacks at the river. Both of us were tired and very hungry as we passed the south Kaibab trailhead sign where the day had begun. Tourists, fresh off a tour bus, crowded the railings along the canyon rim. They were happy just to glance over the edge. The Grand Canyon is rewarding on many levels.
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