My hats off to Denny for putting this together. When you try to assemble a larger group, it's like herding turtles. (A job he's highly qualified to do)
He was busy arranging a shuttle up until 10 minutes before he went to bed.

Denny's on a mission to complete the entire Tonto Trail. With this section, I've completed the Tanner to Hermit portion with him.

We started on the New Hance Trail at 8am on a chilly morning. It didn't take long to warm up though. New Hance is one steep uneven mutha. My knees were barking up a storm. I would have lost the bet if someone would have told me that you actually gain 400' of AEG while going down this one. Staying upright and taking in the views while hiking, becomes tough on this one.
This section was slower going than we expected. It was 7 miles to the river.
https://youtu.be/o8 ... 8bIU

We ate lunch at the New Hance Rapids in front of a clear flowing Colorado River.
https://youtube.com ... 2eDI

Next we were on the Tonto Trail, We'd be on this for 10 miles. It got a little warm on a short portion by the river, but then the clouds and breeze came back and it was perfect. I really enjoyed this section of the Tonto.
We all topped off our water at New Hance Creek for the slog out.

Now on Grandview Trail, the fun begins. It was slow going for me. I was gassed. I had about an hour with the headlamp on to finish.

Denny, thanks for setting this up, driving and arranging for perfect weather.
Good hiking with Dave and Preston again.
Great meeting Hippy's Friend Frank.
We had some interesting conversations.

Fresh off our first trip into the canyon last fall- my friends and I could not resist the urge to plan another! This time BJ, Shep, and I descended the New Hance trail- a painful knee-buster! We ran into a couple large groups at Hance Rapids where we spent our first night and witnessed kayaks running the rapids. Beautiful beach-side spot to appreciate the river in all it's glory. The next day it was on to the Tonto heading west, where we ran into our first bout of rain. Sporadic at first and windy, it didn't bother us much. Second night was also busy at Hance Creek. Plenty of water and a great side excursion up the canyon. The wind that night was intense, knocking our tents around, but not too much rain. On our third day we made our way around to the beautiful Page Spring and loaded up on water for the excruciating trek upwards to our last camp on Horseshoe Mesa. After setting up amidst bouts of rain, we headed off to Cave of the Domes. What an adventure exploring a real cave for the first time! On the way back the real rain hit, and throughout the evening all night... Grandview Trail up the next day to our bike-shuttle.

Wonderful journey. The magic of the canyon once again cannot be described in words. The intense weather only added to the mystique- views of cloud formations and rain constantly filtering our views and perception of light, shadow, contrast, color, and depth. Cannot wait until we are lucky enough again to immerse ourselves in this world.

Wildflowers
beautiful and constant display of many wildflowers.

Down New Hance, up Grandview in a dayhike following http://hikearizona.com/gps=7037 route. Spectacular if strenuous, daylight is the biggest issue -- try to get past Horseshoe Mesa and onto Grandview Trail by dusk, the rest of the climb is straightforward and can be done with a good light after dusk. Trailfinding is generally not a problem, cairns help a lot, but a couple of spots require close attention. Manage your water carefully -- there is none on the entire Grandview ascend.

Foliage
Mostly around creeks and bottoms of tributary canyons.

Wildflowers
Very few this time of year, making the ones spotted more precious still.

Kidnapped my buddy Taylor to go on this trip with me, he'd never camped at the river before.

I prefer hiking down Grandview and I remember New Hance was SUPER easy hiking down, knew this trip would be cake!!

We left at 7am due to our ride to Grandview sleeping in, oops.got to the TH round 730,
The hike down GV was cake, made it to Horseshoe Mesa in just over an hour. Stopped to visit the cookhouse and explore the mines then we cruised...more like slid, down the Page Spring trail and took a short break at Hance Creek.

It was already hotter than hades down there by 10am when we cruised the Tonto. We had a mile left to the river when I realized it was Noon on the Tonto in June... "Who does that!?"we said in unison at one point.

It was deadly hot but we had hats, tons of water, at least 3L each plus an extra nalgene (topped off a half liter or so at Hance creek) and we both wore moisture wicking long sleeved shirts. We were both down to half a liter of water by the time we reached Hance Rapids, which is, I think, perfect!

Reached the river well before one in the afternoon, we crushed that trail pretty nicely considering the heat! Spent about 12 hours at the river, we'd picked out a great camp spot about 25ft from the river and a little shallow backeddy, about 2ft deep, just enough to wallow in!
We'd planned to actually camp overnight but the Canyon had other plans!!

We settled in, under the stars, on top of s tarp and super lightweight blanket...then the wind picked up (as usual) and the roar of the rapids all but ceased! I went to add a nalgene to our water container corral in the back eddy, the water had dropped a good 9 inches...ugh. No cold water for our hike out...

Wind got stronger. A tree actually snapped in half, huge clouds of sand and leaves flew from every direction. We wrapped bandanas around our faces and hastily turned my tarp into a tent with rocks, shoelaces, paracord and trekking poles.

Then we squeezed in tight, back to back careful not to hit the rocks that held the trekking poles upright in the sand.
The wind lulled us to sleep alongside the muted groan that was Hance Rapids and 45 minutes later I awoke...

With a burning hot, icy cold, stinging, tingling, numb sensation on my left wrist...

You've gotta be kidding me was my first thought. I just got stung 3 times by a little bark scorpion. Really??!! Being awakened by a scorpion in your bed at 1am isn't the greatest wakeup call but whatevs .

We shook everything out, packed up, dunked my arm in the river then hiked out, leaving our riverside campsite around 2am.

New Hance is easy going up. The trail, for me, was pretty tame, obvious to follow in the dark. The longest most annoying part (or so it seemed, could've been lack of sleep) was above the Red wall, the Supai layer felt like it took hours!! (In reality we were moving up the trail for 3 1/2 hours) we stopped at the camp above the red wall and slept for a good 45min then continued on. We made it to the TH at sunrise. Perfect timing!

New Hance was an easy hike but I can imagine hiking out in the heat of the sun in June would not be pleasant!

We then thumbed a ride back to the village from the first car that we saw, score! The drive was a nurse and insisted I let her take us to the clinic for my scorpion stings haha

Despite all the random mishaps the trip was great, red canyon is stunning as always and I discovered I'd rather hike DOWN GV and UP NH from now on!
Haven't tried it? Do it! Its worth it.

-
Deliver to Captain John Hance, Grand Canyon, AZ
Captain Hance, today I embark on another journey. My first trek down your most recent trail aptly named New Hance. I must point out one thing. Peter Barry has an amazing parking area at the trailhead of his Grandview Trail, your trail deserves better than a "No Parking" sign and a ditch to prevent vehicles from parking in the dirt.
Thanks for your time,
Hippy
-

To John Hance,
Mister Hance, your trail is spectacular, the views are stunning and the trail itself is in great condition, it is much easier than many have previously stated. I am very impressed. I cannot say the same for my hiking companions, they seem to be having a hard time staying on their feet as the trail is a bit steep in places. Have you seen the stromatolites along the creek in Red Canyon?! I haven't but I heard they're there, I'll have to take another trip out there and find out. Speaking of, the water in Red Canyon was a salty sweet, probably not best for drinking but my innards haven't thrown a fit yet.
One of my companions decided to abandon trail just before the red wall break, it was wonderful having him along I do hope to hike with him again sometime soon!
Yours truly,
H
-

Dear John,
Hi again, I just wanted to tell you that your Rapid, Hance Rapids is THE most beautiful site, with the diabase dike in the hakatai shale at the head of the rapid, John I think I love you! You, your stories, your trail, your rapids. Yes, this might be my favorite adventure thus far!
I only hope you had next to nothing to do with the Tonto trail out to Hance Creek, the trail went wonky all over the place at some points and in others it was built up onto giant boulders causing little tiny me to do some climbing up on top of them. Although we both know I loved it!
We saw a beautiful double rainbow along the tonto heading for the creek in your name, we got rained on and hailed on and almost had to bivvy up under the tapeats overhang but the day was young and beautiful and we pressed on.
Camping at Hance Creek was superb, the wind was atrocious but extravagant at the same time! It made for quite a fun evening wrestling with tent ties and poles and wrapping our food up in my rain jacket and stuffing it in the ratsack, it worked quite nicely actually.
This will be my last letter to you...for now. Look into some trail head parking areas, ok?
Love always.
Hippy
-

Dearest Peter Barry,
I know we haven't spoken in some time but I thought I'd drop a hello. I hiked up to Page Spring the other day with my dear friend John, don't be jealous, I will always love you and your trail. I do wonder though, who had the grand idea to make it such a steep ascent to Horseshoe Mesa? Did you put your mules through that hell? I might have to speak with you about animal cruelty laws nowadays because honestly I'd never allow my mules to go up that trail. I on the other hand thoroughly enjoyed it, steep as it was! Page Spring was dripping nicely and the pool was a beautiful Chrystal clear green. We explored two or three of your mine shafts on our way up, the trail is quite straightforward and I thank you for your foresight on such matters.
All my love
Hippy
-

Dear Petey B,
Apparently your trail along Horseshoe Mesa is not as simple and straightforward as previously thought, a family lost their 17 year old son on the mesa, John and I thought nothing of it until I spotted the boy heading out on the east arm of the mesa, so of course I hefted off my pack and tracked him down and reunited him with his family. I must say he was rather baffled when I ran up to him, he pulled off his hat and brushed his hands through his hair and stuttered through his words and attempted to convince me that he was not lost. Boys...
John and I tailed him up the trail briefly when we discovered the reason for his becoming "lost", this explains the goofy grin on his face! The boy was 9Ling like a fool!!
I absolutely LOVE heading up Grandview Trail! Thank you Petey for this lovely historic jaunt through the grandest geology we have to play with!
Love always
Hippy
-

Peter Barry,
Listen, I know we've have our ups and down, mostly downs but today I'm heading UP and I MUST protest, my love! Cobblestones?! Two foot tall stepping stairs?! Peter, darling, I might be stubborn but with my short legs and tiny feet I am no mule! Please my love, reconsider this madness! Cobblestones!! Good grief man!!
Hippy
-

Dear Peter Barry,
I'll take crazy John Hance and his lack of trail head parking anytime, go yourself.
Love,
Hippy
-

I met up with Hippy for a fun backpack in our favorite Canyon. I departed Phoenix right after work on Thursday night and drove up to the Canyon. We left bright and early on Friday and met up with Niko. He offered to shuttle us from Grandview and would hike the first few miles with us. We started hiking a little before 9am.

Right from the start New Hance aggressively descends through the Kaibab, Toroweap and Coconino layers. The going is a little rough but fine. I did this backpack last year and remember it being very hard on the body especially my knees and ankle. This trip would prove to be much easier. We made quick work of the top three layers and then things level off a bit. We cruised on down and took our first break at the top of the Redwall. The views are just stunning into Red Canyon and the North Rim. From there we began the traverse along the Supai. I remember this section being a little rough last year but it was cake this go around. I don’t know if the trail is easier or if I’m just more experienced. Regardless we cruised to the Redwall break.

Once at the Redwall break Niko waved goodbye and started his return to the rim. Thanks again Niko! Hippy and I continued down the break and then proceeded to Red Canyon. We both felt great and started joking about hiking all the way to Hance Creek. We continued on and passed a couple of hikers on their way out. They said there were two groups below and one was camped out by the river. I said to Hippy we’re continuing on if a group is camped at the Mesquite Tree site. She was game! The rest of the hike to the rapid was uneventful. The only things worth mentioning is we blasted by a group of six guys taking a breather and there was some salty water in the bed of Red Canyon.

We arrived at Hance Rapid around 12:30pm and both of us felt great. We saw the group at the Mesquite Tree and decided to continue to Hance Creek after taking a long break and enjoying the rapid. We enjoyed lunch and relaxed at a fantastic spot nestled above the rapid. After getting some cartwheel pics we continued west on the Tonto. As we proceeded some storm clouds moved in and it started to drizzle. We continued hiking and passed through Mineral Canyon and made our way to an overhang along the Tonto. We took another break here and it was perfect timing. The skies opened and a moderate rain fell followed by hail and lightning. We were both fairly protected and hung out here for a good hour as the storm passed. After we felt it was safe we continued and then saw a fantastic double rainbow. I joked about the Double Rainbow Youtube video and we took some silly pics. From there we continued on and reached Hance Creek as dusk set in.

Once at camp we got the tent set up and started making dinner as darkness set in. It was beautiful out as we boiled water and began eating. While eating another storm rapidly moved in and it brought strong wind and rain. We moved everything into the tent but as we did the wind blew my tent down. I had it set up as a Fastpitch and the wind blew my tent poles down. Hippy said to secure the guy lines on my tent. I quickly secured them to some large rocks and that did the trick because the tent was stable after that. We enjoyed our dinner and then turned in for the night.

We woke on our second day and took our time having breakfast and tearing down camp. From there we made the long and slow hike out the Grandview trail. Our bodies were very sore and achy after the big first day. Along the hike out we spoke glowingly of John Hance and Peter Berry for their wonderful trail construction. Hippy especially loves the cobblestone work along the Grandview Trail.

This was a really great trip and New Hance is one of my favorite trails in the Canyon. It was much easier compared to last year. Definitely add this loop to your list when you’re ready to get off the corridor and want a fun challenge. Route finding is very straightforward along this loop.

On the previous day I did the standard SK-BA loop and wanted another moderate hike before heading back to Phoenix. I chose the Grandview Trail because I wanted to complete the section of Tonto that makes a half loop around Horseshoe Mesa. I was on the east side near Hance Creek a month ago and decided I wanted to continue hiking from that point.

I arrived at Grandview around 7am and was off on the hike. I made relatively quick time down the Grandview Trail and then proceeded towards Page Spring to the east. I chatted it up with a few different backpacking groups along my hike to the Tonto. Once I hit the Tonto it was a bit eery how quiet it was. There were literally hundreds of people on the corridor trails the day before. I did not see a soul along this portion of the Tonto.

The hiking along this section of Tonto makes for quick travel. You hike along the top of the Tapeats on relatively flat trail. The route is very well traveled and easy to follow. I wanted to detour to some viewpoints over the river but I was running low on energy and wanted to save it for the hike out Grandview.

I continued on the loop and arrived at Cottonwood Camp. There was a good amount of water flowing and lots of nice campsites to choose from. I am going to return here in the near future. From there I started making my way back up to Horseshoe Mesa. My pace slowed but I made it back to the Mesa without too much struggle. Once I was back on Horseshoe Mesa I took a short lunch break and then grinded out the rest of the trail back to the rim.

This was my third trip to the canyon in five weeks and I have a feeling I am going to be back soon. The Grand Canyon is such a magical place and I just can't get enough. I'm obsessed! I have a problem and I'm not going to get help!

Calling this a trail is a little misleading. Its pretty much just you scrambling down from the rim through brush and scree to get to Hance Creek. There are a few faint sections of trail in the upper level and a few random cairns but that's about it. I set up a few more cairns but it seemed pointless after a while as there are so many different routes to take (I used 4 rocks instead of 3 so you'll know it may not be the official Hance trail if you're trying to stay historic).

I started from the Grandview TH and walked about 5 miles along the rim road to the OG Hance TH. The Trailhead starts on HW64, just west of MP256. It's across from a fire road that starts out with pavement. The canyon is narrow at the top so if you just head straight down, within a minute or so you'll come across the faint trail. Follow this for a few minutes until it disappears and then, the best advice I can give, stay to the east side of the canyon after the Coconino. This worked out well for me. There are a few minor (miner if your name is Cap'n Hance) downclimbs along the way. I got cliffed out a few times but all were easily by-passed. When you get to the top of the Redwall, again stay east as there is major pour-off on the west side. Once you get past the broken-down Redwall, you'll be in the bed of Hance Creek and the rest of the hike is typical GC creek boulder hopping all the way to the Tonto Trail where it crosses Hance Creek (You'll come to a spring about half way between the Redwall break and the Tonto). From here I picked up the Tonto and followed it west up to Horseshoe Mesa and The Grandview Trail.

My GPS track was all over the place due to the narrow canyon so I didn't bother to post it. I would definitely do this hike again if anyone is interested. There are a few things I missed so I need to go back. Off-trail in the canyon is way more fun than I thought it would be and this one isn't terribly difficult!

Left Phoenix before the sunrise and was parked near the New Hance Trailhead by 11:00 am. Proceeded west along 180 5.6 miles to the Grandview Trailhead, where I headed down towards Horseshoe Mesa, making a point of checking out the 4th switchback down where the guy fell 200 feet about a week ago. Had lunch at the awesome backrest rock at the saddle - PB+J on a burrito shell before continuing down to an empty camp. I set up and headed off to the western arm (passing some Desert Hares who let me get within 8 feet) where I cooked dinner (Mountain House Lasagna-Yum) and settled in for the sunset. Incredible 270 degree views of both sunset and full moon rise, warm with just enough breeze to keep the bugs off. An increasingly brave mouse was rewarded with a tiny piece of dropped lasagna and made his video debut as well. Walked back the easy sections by moonlight. Perfection. 11 miles total, 2125 feet elevation down.
Day two began with a hike down the vertiginous Miners Spring Trail, where I drank 48 oz's while UV sterilizing another 130 oz's for the pack. The 7.9 miles and 2370 elevation down to Hance Rapids was mostly in full sun, and I burned through every drop of water before enjoying the Colorado's cold embrace. The entire area is sand, which may be soft to sleep on, but the numerous bumps I now have would seem to indicate sand fleas. At least they don't itch. Another evening show of sunset and moonrise over the rim (I planned the trip based on this) could not have been scripted better.
Day three started with a breakfast of granola cereal with water and vanilla protein powder as a milk substitute. Hot oatmeal may be nice when your cold, but in warm weather the ease of preparation cannot be beat. The sun had not yet risen as I headed up Red Canyon on the New Hance for the easy first 2 miles. As soon as I left the streambed and headed up the slope I could tell this was not well traveled. Sections were overgrown and faint, with rockslides taking out other sections entirely. The color of Red Canyon is an amazing intense red, and once again I was blown away with the many faces of Grand Canyon geology. The section that zig-zags up throught the Redwall is steep, loose, and not lacking exposure. There a few nice camps when you reach the plateau, with great views and some O.K. shade, before you head back into Red Canyons bottom again, now heavily wooded, slow going, but nicely shaded. The last section up to the rim is really steep; I'm really glad I chose to loop in the direction that I did, as looking down where I had just hiked up did not look inviting in the least.
Going up the New Hance (7 miles of mostly rough trail and 4500 feet gain - didn't see a soul all day)is a workout. It would have been easier in cooler weather, as I drank all 160 oz's of my water (including 64 oz's of my Cytomax/Gatorade/Whey Protein blend), and was still thirsty for another 24 hours.
I was back to my truck 8 1/2 hours after leaving the river, headed to Camper Services for the best $2 shower in the world, and then sitting in my Zero-gravity lounger on a ledge at Yavapai Point sipping a 2011 Red Diamond Malbec out of a protein shake container listening to all of the different languages around me express the universal wonder of this place.
I does not get any better.

Fantastic trip....Kyle and John's triplogs cover most of the physical hike details so I'll spare you those. Below are few unique things from my experience.

My three com-padres are solid, extremely competent backpackers. I suspected this from previously day-hiking with John and Kyle; was great meeting Chumley for the first time. It took a few hours to get to know him and appreciate his, ahem, eccentricity...but after while, I thoroughly enjoyed his wit and keen observations. Despite his age, I found Todd's eclectic music selections a bit "youthful"...

On every backpack trip, I gain camping wisdom from those I'm with; sometimes good, sometimes bad...here are a few lessons I learned this weekend:

John - gatorade trash yields great sandwich protection and party lights are NOT that heavy.
Kyle - climbing helmets can have value while hiking; steri-pens are just NOT for me.
Todd - pre-cooked bacon....

Day 1 - Down New Hance to River
New Hance is STEEP...'nuff said. Kudo's to those that have climbed up...

A significant part of our early afternoon was spent recovering from the New Hance "pumpkin"-whipping. Things got exciting when rafts arrived. John and Todd quickly searched out the XX chromosomes and laid on their boyish charm for free brewski's; however I remained reserved...(Is it just me or are a majority of river runners way too snobby (or busy) to give hikers the time of day? (I think I'm just jealous)) The other 10 or so rafters gave us nary a second look...in fact, one old geezer blessed me a Full Monty while peeing a mere 10 feet away from me...incredible...I was in plain site jacka$$!!

I'm convinced we found the best campsite at Hance Rapid. Just east of the creek, on top of a small shelf above the river rock, is a large Mesquite which provided four great tent-spots. Kyle and I made sure to drop enough food crumbs near John and Todd's tents to provide sufficient rodent entertainment and John's party lights produced great night-time atmosphere.

Day 2 - Hance Rapid to Hance Creek
I've hiked most of the Tonto, but the steep section from Hance Rapid to Mineral Canyon was very UN-Tontolike, and was probably a factor in our Sockdolager non-attempt. I'm looking forward to another trip with two nights at Hance Creek.

While hiking across, I was fortunate enough to see a California Kingsnake just off the trail between Red Canyon and Mineral. (see pics) The stretch along the east rim of Hance Canyon seems to take FOREVER, but at least it's easy hiking. We soon arrived at Hance creek and I happily filtered water w/o having to clean my cartridge every liter like I did in the muddy Colorado.

After a bit of a sprinkle, I wandered downstream, alone with my camera with no intention of going more than a couple of hundred yards (I was barefoot in my crocs)....however, the canyon fascination kept pulling me farther and farther (at least a mile or more) before I finally turned it around. I was on a mission to find that first (of three) "unclimbable" pour-off in Hance Canyon and thought it was just around each bend. Not so.

Day 3 - Hance Creek to Grandview TH
There was a young lady at Page Spring who seemed a bit improvised with her hike plan. She appeared lost already by thinking she was currently IN Hance Canyon (still several miles east) and had plans to simply get fresh water from (those nice) boaters on the River (even MORE miles east) then travel up Red Canyon for the night...hiking out New Hance in the morning. I think we all sort of held our tongues at her ambitious plan, but wished her well. I hope she is still alive.

Beside Kyle's test of stone vs. skull, the trip up Grandview was rather uneventful. Back at the truck, I downed my Orange Powerade that was ICE COLD from Todd's cooler. Was by far, the best beverage I've had in YEARS.

Was a fun weekend...many thanks to John for planning/leading...Todd for driving and Kyle for...for....being Kyle.