Man Plans Length of Canyon hike--NO experience or knowledge

[azbackpackr]

Hahahahaha! This seems to be a combination of outrageous arrogance, along with somewhat ridiculous levels of stupidity, naïveté and ignorance. How much do you want to bet the Park won't even issue him a permit, let alone the Havasupais. I really hope we hear more about this...

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_19748002

[chumley]

Not to contradict the whole group, but if human ingenuity and determination didn't beat out human stupidity more than half the time, there'd be no human race left on earth. I'm not sure the odds against his success are as uneven as you may think.

I don't disagree with your sentiment, but I do question how much ingenuity he's got going for him. Determination, maybe? but perhaps not so much ingenuity.

Who knows though? We are all basing our opinions on a brief news article that may have been written by the worst reporter in history, who may have ignored a bunch of facts, left out volumes of relevant information, and highlighted quotes in improper context. On the surface however, with the information that we have been given, it seems to be an unwise venture to embark upon at this time.

Then again, throughout history, think of the explorers who ventured to all corners of the earth who with our knowledge and understanding we would have considered foolish, but in hindsight are famous for their accomplishments. Amundsen, Columbus, Vespucci, etc.

Dare to dream.

[azbackpackr]

Hmmm. I don't see any comparison between your three examples and our neophyte from Whittier. Columbus was a great sea captain, long before he set sail for the Indies by heading west. He just didn't know for sure what was out there, but he for sure knew how to get there. Roald Amundsen came from a long line of sea captains. He may not have known precisely what he would find, but he had tremendous expertise. Amerigo Vespucci was actually a contractor, merchant and businessman, and trustee of a fortune which built ships for exploration. He went on several voyages as an observer. He eventually learned to pilot ships, and was also a mapmaker.

To compare Mr. Ruiz with any of these three incredible men is, if you''ll excuse me for being blunt, kind of laughable.

There is a flaw of personality in many people which causes them to not know or acknowledge that they are inexperienced, nor to have an ability to recognize when others have more experience than they do, that they might learn from them. Colin Fletcher understood that. He consulted Harvey Butchart before his Canyon hike. Fletcher had a lot of desert hiking experience, but for information about Grand Canyon he didn't just fly by the seat of his pants, he consulted the man who knew it best, Dr. Butchart. Fletcher knew what he knew and, more importantly, he knew what he didn't know.

[kingsnake]

Also, most explorers tend to die horrible deaths. (Or at least they did before the advent of SAR ...) ;)

[azbackpackr]

Also, most explorers tend to die horrible deaths. (Or at least they did before the advent of SAR ...) ;)

Amundsen did disappear. Sir John Franklin. George Mallory. Amelia Earhart.

[paulhubbard]

he knew what he didn't know.

That's what gets a lot of people in trouble, and not just in the sense of hiking. If you don't know what you don't know, you'll go off thinking you know "enough."

I hope it's not a fatal lack of knowledge for Mr. Ruiz. I hope it's more horrible reporting than his complete lack of judgement. Points in the story aren't right... If he's going to hike the length of the canyon, why would he leave his car somewhere in the middle of the route?

[hippiepunkpirate]

If he's going to hike the length of the canyon, why would he leave his car somewhere in the middle of the route?

I think he's going off his single source of information, Fletcher's "The Man Who Walked Through Time". Fletcher's route spanned (roughly) the length of the boundaries for Grand Canyon National Park, which at the time only stretched from Havasu Canyon to Marble Canyon. Of course, your typical reporter isn't going to pick up on these nuances...

[hippiepunkpirate]

Here is why his trip is not going to happen:

This guy obviously goes about his life on a whim, so do you really think he's going to apply for a 17 day overnight permit? I think he's just going to drive out to Havasu and start hiking whenever he feels like it. But NPS obviously has heard by now about the guy's plan, and will undoubtedly be watching his actions. They can't stop him at the trailhead, but as he pitches a tent for the night without an overnight permit, he'll be camping illegally and NPS will pull him the hell out of there. Or maybe it won't even go that far. I'm sure NPS will contact the guy and tell him that his planned itinerary is not approved, and he won't even go for it, knowing he is under their watchful eye.

[outdoor_lover]

I'm not sure the odds against his success are as uneven as you may think.

What scares me about that possibility is that somehow, through some ridiculously easy way, doing some kind of cheating about it, he does pull it off. He will be a rich man and I feel he will not have earned it, but the press won't care. Just the publicity alone of attempting it, is going to bring him in more money for talk shows and a circuit then I probably make in a decade..... And he'll probably get sponsors for all of the gear he needs, so he won't have to actually earn a living so that he can afford to do it. All because he decides to pick the Grandest Hike of all as his first hike and he's been successful in some of his other whims of fancy....

[azbackpackr]

I know for a fact that the park already knows about it.

And, there is no easy route he´s going to find. Doesn´t exist. Of course, he might lie about it...

[hippiepunkpirate]

Of course, he might lie about it...

I agree that he's getting in over his head, but the guy just sounds like a young kid looking for grand, far out of the ordinary or off the beaten path experiences...I wouldn't assume him to be a liar

[mikehikes]

IF the dude should apply for a <series of> permit<s> for such a trip the permit office will want to see proof of his
Grand Canyon hiking experience. IF he just drops down the trail to Supai Village there will be no NPS people to question him. (It's on the rez folks.) IF he should happen to have enough route finding ability to get started his first night will be ALONE out on the Esplanade. IF he should make it to South Bass without freezing or starving guess what..... he will have used up his alloted 'vacation' time. So, no. Don't even think about this guy becoming a statistic. Heck. He will probably run out of gas for his clunker before he gets to Peach Springs!

Mike Coltrin
Lees Ferry

[writelots]

He will be a rich man and I feel he will not have earned it, but the press won't care. Just the publicity alone of attempting it, is going to bring him in more money for talk shows and a circuit then I probably make in a decade..... And he'll probably get sponsors for all of the gear he needs, so he won't have to actually earn a living so that he can afford to do it.

I doubt he'd get much more than his 15 minutes of fame off just one stunt. I mean, heck - who outside of the travel-lust community even knows who Fletcher is? Nah - he'll get a few interviews and then spend the rest of his life trying to one-up himself...

Of course, there are those who have proven me wrong on this point, too - but they usually do something even more 'spectacular', like cutting one's own arm off or dying alone in a bus in Alaska. High price to pay for fame.

[azbackpackr]

I think, though, that the point is that Mr. Ruiz, simply put, is not going to do the hike as described in the article. It is just simply not possible, given his time frame, even if he were quite familiar with the terrain, with backpacking, etc. It isn't going to happen.

[mikehikes]

As others have said, this is just another case of lazy news reporting.

Mike

[kingsnake]

Actually, it's not even news. It's "human interest". Every day continues to prove Paddy Chayefsky prescient ... ;)

[azbackpackr]

Actually, it's not even news. It's "human interest". Every day continues to prove Paddy Chayefsky prescient ... ;)

Sure miss Wikipedia, (blacked out for their 24 hour protest) since I have never heard of that person. But there were other places to find out.

[kingsnake]

He wrote "Network" : http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074958/

[azbackpackr]

Ok. Still doesn't ring a bell. I suppose I should watch more movies and TV and keep up with things. However, I just don't make time for them.

[Vaporman]

Yea, sounds pretty crazy... But then again I've been floating the Colorado River in a $20 pool toy.

[sirena]

Saw this on the Grand Canyon Hikers Yahoo group:

Well, after my daughter posted a comment to the original article about how crazy this endeavor was, she received a note from Chris' father asking what gave her the right to comment etc. That argument may, or may not, be valid, but then she followed back to the father's FaceBook page and found this posting:

"Carlos Ruiz After a long time talking with him and his Brother it is best that he does not make this trip at this time due to the weather coming over Sunday thru Monday Rain and snow .. and now DAD can rest.... for now at least but with Christopher one never knows whats next but I'M still Proud that he wanted to do this Hike where he would have been the 3rd person to do this 277 mile hike .... LOVE ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS"