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| Hiking | 21.00 Miles |
6,200 AEG |
| | Hiking | 21.00 Miles | 6 Hrs 28 Mns | | 3.25 mph |
| 6,200 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | 1st Day of back-to-back R2R Trip. My wife and I had originally signed up to go with a group of family and friends who planned to hike R2R from North to South on Saturday (9/29). But then I found out that a handful of the group was going up a day early and hiking South to North before joining the rest of the group. I decided . . . what the heck, I'll go both ways! This would allow me to get my adrenaline junkie rush by pushing the pace (for me, anyway) on day one, then returning at my wife's more leisurely pace on the way back. Worked out great.
So, 5 of us drove up from Phx on Thurs afternoon and checked in at Maswick Lodge for the night. We were greeted in the parking lot by 5 elk who were double parked in the handicapped spots. After dinner at the Lodge cafeteria and scouting out the location of the South Kaibab shuttle bus pick up (at the backcountry office), we hit the hay.
Alarm went off at 4:15 and we packed up and headed to the shuttle pick up. The shuttle arrived at 5 a.m. and after making another stop or two, the bus was nearly full of hikers headed to the SK trailhead.
We hit the trail at 5:30 and hiked with headlamps for the first 30-45 min. or so. The forecast was for 37 degrees, but I doubt it was below 40. I wore short sleeves and was quite comfortable. I was surprised at how "rough" the SK trail was, compared to the "groomed" Bright Angel trail, and expended a lot of energy trying to make good time down the trail.
After leaving the pack at the trailhead, I only saw two other people on the way down to river. The solitude was great. The sun peaked over the horizon when I was a little below Skeleton Point and the view was stunning! Despite trying to make good time, I was compelled to stop frequently and try to capture a slice of the canyon beauty in pictures. The pics are great but simply cannot compare to seeing the views in person.
I was so excited to see the black bridge and know that the pounding, joint-jarring, descent was essentially over. Hit Phantom Ranch at 7:30; it was closed and the only people I saw were a couple of wranglers grooming a mule team.
Headed up through the Box, which was beautiful and very pleasant, weather-wise, in the shade of the morning. I could see, however, how it would definitely turn in to an oven when exposed to the full sun.
For me, the section from the end of the Box to Cottonwood Campground was the most blase section of the trail. To be clear, I think ALL of the canyon is beautiful, but this seemed slightly less so, by comparison. The one exception--and it's a big one--is Ribbon Falls, though I did not take the time to make the side trip to see it up close until on the way back, the following day.
Took my one bathroom stop at Cottonwood Campground, which surprisingly, did not have any TP.  Thankfully, I had packed my own. At this point (14 miles in), I still had only come across about 15 other people on the trail.
Roaring Springs took me by surprise. I was blown away at how cool the falls were.
I also loved the beauty of the North Rim generally. At 1400 feet higher than the south, the vegetation was a bit different, with lots of the trees near the top changing colors, etc. The Redwall Bridge and Supai Tunnel were fun landmarks that helped establish how much further I needed to go (though I must admit it was a bit disheartening to have to hike DOWN to the Redwall Bridge, only to have to re-gain that elevation on the other side!).
Having never hiked out North Kaibab, I didn't know that you literally don't know where the top is until you make a last turn and see the trailhead 100 feet in front of you. I knew I was realatively close and I was inching closer to 6.5 hours on my overall time, so I pushed hard the last mile or so. Just when I thought I was going to pass the 6.5 hr. mark, I turned that last corner and ended up finishing just before noon in 6 hrs. 28 min. 
Took a short break, stretched, admired the thick layer of dirt I had accumulated on my legs, and chatted with the ranger and a few others who were emerging from or getting ready to head down the trail.
The rest of our group (who were driving to the North Rim for the Sat. R2R) were still a few hours away, so my options were to hitch hike the 1.7 mi. to the lodge, or just hike the bridle trail. I opted for the latter, enjoyed the leisurely stroll through the pines and golden aspens, and celebrated with a large cup of chocolate ice cream at the little deli shop. Then, I crashed on the couches in the lodge overlook while waiting for the rest of our group to arrive.
The group arrived around 3:30 and the 40 of us enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Lodge and a comfortable night's sleep in the cabins before getting up to tackle the return trip the next morning via North Kaibab to Bright Angel.
Good times!! 
(FYI: GPS kept losing reception near the north rim, so not sure how accurate the stats are . . .) |
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