Rim to Rim to Rim

For those who have no idea what the title of this blog means; let me explain... Last weekend my friend Brittney and I decided to take the challenge of a lifetime and backpack the Grand Canyon from South Rim to North and back. Let me just say; they don't call it the GRAND canyon for nothing'.

This trip was replete with interesting terrain and breathtaking views. I took about 200 pictures because it was so incredible and I wanted to remember every bit of it. The pictures I have attached are cool but there is no way you could possibly get the full impact of what it looks like without being there. If you really want to enjoy the majestic nature of this wonder of the world you have to get in the middle of it.

The trip began with a stop at Casa Bonita in Flagstaff for fish tacos, which I have been craving since October when I last had them. Well, I was a bit disappointed, they were good but not the same Tacos I had in October. Apparently they have a new chef who must have come equipped with his own fish taco recipe.

After the Tacos we made an emergency run to Wal mart before we left civilization. I forgot my fleece and so had to buy a jacket at Wal mart. Let me say it got a lot of attention. The only thing they had was a jogging jacket in bright orange. The best thing about it (other than keeping me from freezing to death) was the price, I only had to pay $5 for the beauty.

When we finally reached the Grand Canyon late that night (Thursday) we set up our tent and hustled to get as much sleep as possible, knowing we would need all the energy we could muster for the next two days. It was really cold and I had a hard time getting any sleep, so finally at 4:15am I got up and started getting my gear ready to hit the trail. I woke Britt up at daylight, we loaded everything and started down the South Kaibab at 6 am. You might think downhill is easy, think again. This trail was terribly steep and with the momentum of a thirty pound back pack behind you, well needless to say it was slow and tricky and we had more than one slip and fall. We finally descended the 14 miles to the bottom of the canyon and reached Phantom ranch at 10:30 am. We had a nice rest and ate some lunch while visiting with campers and hikers who were camping there for the night. After about a 30 minute break it was time to get back on the trail. We still had 9 miles to go and these were the tough miles, all up hill.

As we traversed these last miles the exhilaration of rounding each corner to a fantastic new view kept me pushing forward. We seemed to be making good time and were really proud of ourselves. Our calculations reflected that we might make to the North Rim in a record time of about 11 hours. This was phenomenal considering we were carrying heavy packs, well would have been phenomenal had we made it that fast. We drastically underestimated the time it would take to ascend the last three VERY steep miles of switch backs. After some grueling final hours and a bout with light headedness and weakness I finally reached my destination about 15 minutes after Brittney in 13 hours time.

We found a campsite and set up our tent filled our water reserves made dinner on our coke can stove (This is a really cool ultralight backpackers way to make a stove.) and went straight to bed so we could get up at dawn and do it all over again. the wind whipped like crazy all night but I still stayed warm and slept relatively well. As I awoke the next morning I felt like my body had recovered well and I was anxious to get on the trail and begin the next 24 mile trek.

We started off the North Rim as the sun was rising over the edge of the Canyon. Words are not sufficient to describe the view we had as we began descending into this multi-colored gorge. I have never seen anything like it.

This time we reached Phantom Ranch at about 1pm where it was a whopping 110 degrees. We were drained from the heat and our feet were beginning to blister and Brittney was having trouble with her hips tightening up. This was going to be a long last 10 miles ahead of us. When we reached the river we hiked down to it and got in the frigid water for some physical therapy and refreshment. We sat in the river and ate our lunch so our aching feet and legs and backs could soak. I had felt something on my heels but to this point had not wanted to look at them so I would not focus on the pain. when i took my shoes off to soak in the river I saw the biggest blisters I have ever seen, one on each heel. After soaking I doctored and protected them as best I could and then we got back on the trail. These next miles were arduous and even tortuous at times. The heat was draining and the pain of blisters and sore muscles did not make it any easier.

We finally made it to Indian Gardens which is just 5 miles from the top of the South Rim. I felt renewed and I was ready for the challenge. That lasted for about the next 3 miles. As we got to the 1 1/2 mile mark we stopped to refill our water, knowing this would be the worst of the climb, and then started these final steps. I was doing really well for about a half mile and then the light headness and weakness started creeping up on me again. I just pushed through and kept willing myself to keep going. I was telling myself "you can do this" "you are almost there" you know all the self encouraging words we use to endure. finally it go to the point I had to stop my body was shutting down. I thought if I sat down for a bit and maybe took a few bites of a cliff bar my energy would be renewed and I would be able to make it to the top. I gave Brittney my car keys and told her to keep going so she could catch the shuttle we were worried about missing in order to pick up our car.

She went on and I rested for a few minutes until I felt like I could continue. I started once again, but this time my body was fighting against me. I just focused on putting one foot in front of the other. "Come on" I would tell myself, "you are almost there". I was stumbling and shaky and having some serious nausea. As I stumbles along, this lovely couple came up behind me and asked if I was okay. when the man put his hand on my should after I did not respond I just about fell over and hand to grab the canyon wall to stabilize myself. I told them I was just fatigued and maybe having some altitude sickness but I would be fine. Against my urgings to go on they insisted on staying with me during my final ascent. They were wonderful! They kept encouraging me and the man even offered to take my pack. I told him I couldn't quit now, I had to finish carrying my own pack or it would not be the same. Finally, they said "just one more switchback" I was so thrilled, but could still barely put one foot in front of the other. By this time I was about to collapse and I was not sure how much longer I could go before I started vomiting.

I have never been so glad to get to the end of a trail before. As soon as I rounded the corner I felt such a relief. However, this did not alleviate my symptoms. I got to the lodge as quick as I could and layed down on a bench in the lobby where I was trembling uncontrollably and I was terribly sick. The problem was Brittney was no where in sight and hse did not know where I was. By this time it was completely dark and I was not sure how I would find her. I definitely did not feel like getting up and walking around to see where she might return with the car. I borrowed another kind gentleman's phone, because mine was dead, and called Christi to see if she could track down Brittney's phone number for me. As always she came through and called me back, I was able to reach Brittney and we finally got our car and then started home. After about an hour and more importantly a huge bottle of Gatorade I finally started to recover.

Apparently, I did not have altitude sickness, I had not had enough calories and although I was drinking A LOT of water I was not replensihing electrolytes so my blood got too thin and thus the horrible symptoms. I am so glad this happened because I learned exactly what I need to do so that when we go on our real journey I will not get in this shape to begin with.

Overall it was awesome and it felt great to accomplish 46 miles in 2 days!