Grand Canyon 2015
I hadn't been there since I was a kid. I don't remember much of the previous trip. I know we hiked down to Horseshoe Mesa - camping down there before coming back up. I vaguely recall an old mine in the area.
So... this was almost new to me. And the initial view is... impressive. I can see how some initial explorers would have seen that and declared it nothing but a huge, desolate hold in the ground. I can see how scientists, especially geologists, it's an incredibly fascinating source of information. And I can see how artists are drawn to the grand views and colors and the interplay of those amazing colors and shadow of clouds above.
I wasn't exactly "roughing it" as much as I might have planned for (yay, overpacking!). My dad and stepmom were set up in their trailer, fully hooked up, with AC and a small shower, and the restroom nearby. I slept in my tent, but ended up not needing to do any cooking myself. We had pizza in the Grand Canyon Village one night and ate at the nice (and pricey) El Tovar another. And while their setup as volunteer campground hosts might have made things easier, there were pay showers and other options for food as well as busses running along near most of the South Rim sites. It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's not exactly untamed wilderness as far as camping goes.
Monday, I showed up and we went to the visitor center and such and got settled in.
Tuesday, we did a lot of hiking along the rim, seeing various sites and dined at the El Tovar (mmm, steak). I also failed a little with the sunscreen and minorly burned the backs of my knees - oops.
Wednesday, they had to work, so amidst their odd schedule I set out down the Bright Angel Trail a ways myself. I walked somewhere between two and three miles along the trail (past the two-mile turn but not to the three-mile rest house) before turning back around. And while that three-mile point was tempting, it's probably just as well I did set back. Unlike hiking up a mountain, the return trip is the hard part, especially with the day heating up quick - I set out a little before 8 am and got back to the top right around 11 after shade-hopping most of the way. Direct sun is brutal midday this time of year, though we did end up getting a relatively brief evening downpour that helped cool things off. My dad and I also went out to a small geology museum.
And Thursday, after their morning rounds, I finished packing with folding up the tent (after letting the edges dry out) and set off on the return trip - about 6 hours from Desert View, though more like 7 from the campground we were at.
I saw a fair bit of wildlife: deer, elk, squirrels, chipmunks, and several birds. And oh, the ravens. They rule the campground in my mind - strutting around as often as flying, ready to pick apart any vulnerable foodstuffs of paper anyone leaves around just like the little tricksters they're said to be! ;)
So I return, a little sunburnt, fuzzy from a few days of not shaving, calves sore from hiking, but generally feeling pretty good.
So... this was almost new to me. And the initial view is... impressive. I can see how some initial explorers would have seen that and declared it nothing but a huge, desolate hold in the ground. I can see how scientists, especially geologists, it's an incredibly fascinating source of information. And I can see how artists are drawn to the grand views and colors and the interplay of those amazing colors and shadow of clouds above.
I wasn't exactly "roughing it" as much as I might have planned for (yay, overpacking!). My dad and stepmom were set up in their trailer, fully hooked up, with AC and a small shower, and the restroom nearby. I slept in my tent, but ended up not needing to do any cooking myself. We had pizza in the Grand Canyon Village one night and ate at the nice (and pricey) El Tovar another. And while their setup as volunteer campground hosts might have made things easier, there were pay showers and other options for food as well as busses running along near most of the South Rim sites. It may be the middle of nowhere, but it's not exactly untamed wilderness as far as camping goes.
Monday, I showed up and we went to the visitor center and such and got settled in.
Tuesday, we did a lot of hiking along the rim, seeing various sites and dined at the El Tovar (mmm, steak). I also failed a little with the sunscreen and minorly burned the backs of my knees - oops.
Wednesday, they had to work, so amidst their odd schedule I set out down the Bright Angel Trail a ways myself. I walked somewhere between two and three miles along the trail (past the two-mile turn but not to the three-mile rest house) before turning back around. And while that three-mile point was tempting, it's probably just as well I did set back. Unlike hiking up a mountain, the return trip is the hard part, especially with the day heating up quick - I set out a little before 8 am and got back to the top right around 11 after shade-hopping most of the way. Direct sun is brutal midday this time of year, though we did end up getting a relatively brief evening downpour that helped cool things off. My dad and I also went out to a small geology museum.
And Thursday, after their morning rounds, I finished packing with folding up the tent (after letting the edges dry out) and set off on the return trip - about 6 hours from Desert View, though more like 7 from the campground we were at.
I saw a fair bit of wildlife: deer, elk, squirrels, chipmunks, and several birds. And oh, the ravens. They rule the campground in my mind - strutting around as often as flying, ready to pick apart any vulnerable foodstuffs of paper anyone leaves around just like the little tricksters they're said to be! ;)
So I return, a little sunburnt, fuzzy from a few days of not shaving, calves sore from hiking, but generally feeling pretty good.
I've never visited the place, but my earliest memories of the place come from the first episode of the Attenborough "Life on Earth" series, where he takes a mule train down to demonstrate the age of life on earth. Also more recently the MST3K movie. "Haven't they filled that in yet?" In any case, I haz an envious.
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