Jim vs. The Grand Canyon

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I believe that sometimes you have to step outside of your comfort zone. It is healthy and necessary. Some of my friends are into hiking and take occasional hiking trips to the Grand Canyon. I feel I've become somewhat stagnant in the last couple of years so I expressed interest in joining the next Grand Canyon adventure which was lined up for this summer. At the time there were no spots available as there is limited space for cabin room. But my buddy Steve who arranged the whole trip kept me in the loop and notified me that a spot did actually come available. So I jumped in with both feet and committed to joining the trip. The kicker was that this trip they were planning on hiking 'Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim'. If you're not familiar, this means hiking from the South Rim of the Canyon to the North rim, then hiking back from the North Rim to the South Rim. Did I mention that I've never really hiked before?? I did some research apparently this type of hike is highly discouraged and is typically reserved for seasoned hikers in extremely good condition. Eh, I am a novice hiker at best, and at the time I was not in very good shape. Well, how steep is the Canyon really anyway. Oh, did I also mention that I've never actually been to the Grand Canyon before either??

From the south to north rim going down South Kaibab trail it is over 21 miles and would take somewhere between 8 and 12 hours depending on your pace. On the way back from the north rim to the south rim taking Bright Angel trail up to the top (less steep route) it is more like 24 miles. The plan was to rest a day in between hikes to recover. Once Steve told me I was 'in', he proceeded to advise me on how to train for this endeavor. It was described to me how punishing this hike was. This motivated me to make a full commitment to preparing for this extreme hike. I only had about six weeks to get ready. Would it be enough time?? I would find out shortly. I quit drinking, I ate healthy and I hit the gym hard like an NFL linebacker. Mostly leg work (squats, leg presses, lunges) and cardio (elliptical machine and quarters a.k.a. suicides). In my six weeks of training I lost about 12 pounds; which was part of my goal. Twelve less pounds I'd have to haul across the Canyon. I invested in some decent hiking equipment and made a point to do at least one or two good hikes a week. I got in better shape and I noticed that it made a huge difference of some of my more strenuous hikes. But I still wasn't sure how it was going to play out on the long trek across the huge crater. Time would tell.

South to North Rim
We drove up to the south rim on Thursday and stayed at the Maswick lodge. I had never seen the Grand Canyon before in person. So after dinner we took a little walk over to the observation area so I could see the Canyon. We tried to hit the rack early because we were waking up at 3:00am to get out on the trail early to beat the heat. But I don't think anybody slept very well that night. We were too wired up for the hike. The moment finally arrived the next morning when our wake up calls blew up at the crack of 3am. We were up, packed and ready for the hike before long. We were on the shuttle over to the South Kaibab trail. I can't lie - I was terrified on the inside. Never having even seen the Canyon before, this whole thing was more than intimidating. Especially for a rookie like me. On the shuttle ride to the trail head I had a very anxious feeling I haven't felt since I was on a cattle car on the way to get dropped off in basic training when I was in the military. You knew the pain was coming. But once we got to the trail head and filed out of the shuttle it was all business. Outside of the fact that there was an Elvis sighting at the trail head (literally!). When we started hiking down the trail and we settled into a reasonable pace I felt more comfortable. Before long we were a reasonable ways down the Canyon. The sun started to come up and it gorgeous. I took plenty of pictures. We got down the canyon in less than three hours. We rested at Phantom Ranch (beyond the Colorado river) for a bit and started through 'The Box'. The Box is what is commonly referred to as the trail between the south and north rim - because of it's nature of being lodged in between steep Canyon walls and giving it a boxy effect. We were blessed with phenomenal weather. This was a huge relief considering I was prepared for the worst. The weather in The Box can get well into triple digits as it is the same elevation as Phoenix. The long trip across the bottom of the Canyon was definitely lengthy, but manageable considering the great weather we had. By the time we got to the next resting point (Cottonwood) we were about 2/3 of the way complete, and it wasn't even 11:00 yet. I was happy with this. However, I knew the toughest leg of the hike was yet to come... the North Rim. This is what gave me nightmares for my entire training period. This is what caused me to do that extra set of leg presses. This is what forced me to do extra cardio work. This is what got me out of bed at 4:00 before work to hike Camelback. The stretch from Cottonwood to the Roaring Springs Falls was gradual to not so gradual assention. Once I crossed the bridge after Roaring Springs, it was on. This is what they told me about. Switchbacks and steep. The last 4 miles or so was quite brutal as advertised. The fact that I already hiked over 17 miles down and through the Canyon made it tough. The elevation is a killer. The North Rim is actually about 1,000 ft higher than the South rim. It just keeps going. You seem to keep hiking and the top of the Canyon doesn't seem to get any closer. After some time my legs were quite fatigued and they started to cramp a bit. But I made it to the next water point which was about two miles from the top. It wasn't a comforting sign to see a girl nearly passed out next to me and a mountain rescue team on the way down to drag her out of the Canyon. But I topped off my Camelback with water, had a Powerbar and pressed on knowing that I was only a couple miles from the top of the rim. I started the rest of the treacherous hike. My cardio was holding up very well, but my legs were completely spent. I had to take a few short breaks just to keep my legs from completely seizing up. It seemed like forever, but after some time I looked up and I saw a truck. And a road. And I realized I was finally at the top! That was one of the sweetest sights I have ever seen. I'll never forget it.

Day of Rest
We rented a couple of cabins on the north rim and stayed the night. We all got showers, cooked up some brats, drank beer and celebrated our victorious journey to the North Rim. It was a well deserved celebration. We were all spent from the hike. Our legs were stiff, we were sore and chaffed all over and we could barely walk. But it was a satisfying feeling knowing that we accomplished such a feat. We ended up crashing out early and getting some rest. The next day we took it easy. Just hung out and got some food. Did some more drinking. Enjoyed the cool weather. Soaked up the scenery. I took lots of pictures. That night we ended up hitting the rack relatively early again. We need to hit the trail early once more for the hike back to the South rim to avoid as much of the sun as possible.

North to South Rim
We got on the trail head about 4:30am. Boy, I tell you the trip down the North Rim is a much different experience than hiking up! We made it two miles down to the first water point very quickly. We didn't take much time there; just topped off our water and cranked down to Cottonwood relatively quickly. It was still early and we were in good shape. We zipped across The Box back to Phantom Ranch with no problem. We took a short break at Phantom Ranch to grab some food and water and rest our legs for a bit. We were getting ready for the last leg of the hike - the climb back up out of the Canyon. We were taking the Bright Angel trail back up to the South rim instead of South Kaibab because of the steepness factor; although Kaibab is short as the crow flies. A few of the advanced hikers decided to hike up South Kaibab, but from what I gathered that made it a very rough climb. I'm glad we stuck with our original plan and took Bright Angel out. It got a bit warm starting on the ascent up. But we powered through to Indian Gardens where there was more water. After a short break there, I took off for the last 4.7 mile leg of the hike. After getting started I caught a miraculous second wind. I got into a really good groove and actually passed up the last two water stops. I don't know if I was just anxious to be done or what my deal was. But I made the last 4.7 miles without stopping except for one brief water fill (probably less than a minute). Before I knew it I was at the top. My journey was over! And I actually felt pretty good. My knees got the worst of if anything. They were extremely sore from all the repetition. That was an amazing feeling of accomplishment.

Overall I would say the hike was one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had. Partly because I've never seen the Grand Canyon before. But also due to the fact that we were so up close and personal. It was a whole different experience from what most people probably encounter when they see the Canyon for the first time. I'm not gonna lie, there were times when the hike was brutal and unforgiving. But as punishing and strenuous as it was, it was equally as rewarding. Some of the most scenic views I have ever seen in my life. And going from almost no hiking experience, to hike ready in six weeks where I can say that I did a hike that only elite hikers from around the world have accomplished, I can say that I am happy with what I was able to accomplish. I could see myself doing some more hiking in the Grand Canyon in the future! Maybe next time I'll introduce a couple rookies to the experience. Any takers???

-Jim