March 9 to 13, 2014, I hiked in the Grand Canyon with my daughter Nataly and her husband Josh. It was Josh’s first time in the Canyon and we introduced him to it by hiking into Phantom Ranch. We also took day hikes to Santa Maria Springs, Horseshoe Mesa, and Plateau Point.
Selected Photos from our hikes. Some of the photos are courtesy of Josh Jennings, who added an artistic touch to these memories.
March 9, 2014—Bright Angel
We arrived in Tusayan late in the evening of Saturday, March 8 and at 6:45am Sunday morning I was at the Bright Angel Lodge to get our names on the waiting list. I did not expect to get openings on that first day but that is exactly what happened. I returned to Tusayan, we loaded up our day packs and set out on the Bright Angel around 9:00. Josh and Nataly did great hiking down the Bright Angel and we arrived at Phantom Ranch around 3:00 and were rewarded with the traditional Tecate.
March 10, 2014—Kaibab
Our intention was to stay and extra night and I was quite certain we could do it as there didn’t seem to be a lot of traffic in the canyon. However, to our disappointment we could not stay an additional night and had to hike out Monday morning after breakfast. The hike out was on the Kaibab Trail and that is always a challenge. We arrived topside around 4:00.
March 11, 2014—Hermit
The following day we took the shuttle bus to Hermits Rest and hiked down to Santa Maria Springs. This is a tough day hike even though it is only 5 miles. The climb out is a stiff one. For that matter, the climb down is a stiff one. The climbing out part is the exact hike Vivian (my oldest daughter) and I did one year earlier when we misjudged our time and found ourselves hiking out in the dark for about 40 minutes.
March 13, 2014—Grandview
Wednesday, Josh and I hiked to Horseshoe Mesa. This was a beautiful day and the hike went very well. The Grandview Trail is rugged and steep with many interesting views. This was about an 8 mile hike as we walked out to the furthest point on the Western arm of Horseshoe Mesa. Unfortunately I was unable to get photos of the Horseshoe Mesa or the Plateau Point hike because of issues with my camera.
March 15, 2014—Bright Angel
Our final day hike was Friday. We hiked to Plateau Point. This is a 12 mile hike and it is a tough one. On my first visit to the Grand Canyon, July 23, 1993, I walked out of the Bright Angel Lodge to their view area and was amazed at what I saw. I took my first photo of the Grand Canyon (right). I was looking down Bright Angel Trail to Plateau Point and decided I wanted to walk down to it. I made it to the mile and a half water stop and that is far as I got. But the image of Plateau Point had set in my mind and I vowed to come back at some point and hike to the Colorado. In June of 2002 my youngest daughter Sophi and I hiked to Phantom Ranch. I was hooked on the Grand Canyon and it all started with my view of Plateau Point.
I found it took a full week to recover back in San Antonio. Afternoons at work I would tend to drift a bit. This is normal for me after these major hike events-it takes about a week for my body to normalize once I return. Next year, I am hoping to do the Escalante Loop. My intention was to do this loop last year but Vivian (oldest daughter) and I could not get the permits and settled for a Boucher Trail hike. I shared with Josh and Nataly that I have just a few loose ends to tie up in the Grand Canyon to complete hiking all the trails on the South Rim. The Escalante Loop is one and the Tanto trail between Horseshoe Mesa and the South Kaibob is the other.
This was a memorable experience for me, hiking with Nataly and Josh. They are great trail companions. I am very lucky to have a family who will step in, when needed, and partner up with me for these adventures.
