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| Backpack | 21.30 Miles |
6,700 AEG |
| | Backpack | 21.30 Miles | 3 Days | | |
| 6,700 ft AEG | | 45 LBS Pack | | |
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| Partners |
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[ show ]
| partners | | Friday, October 26:
John, Jason and I leave Prescott Valley, bound for the Grand Canyon. Following a late start, we slowly make our way first down the Hermit Trail, then the Tonto, arriving at Monument Creek at dusk. We settle on a campsite, set up our tents, and eat dinner. John and Jason retire early, while I stay up, photographing the Canyon walls bathed in moonlight before going to bed.
Saturday, October 27:
I reluctantly crawl out of my sleeping bag into the cold morning, the sun still far from rising over the canyon walls. Hot oatmeal helps greatly, and I pass the time by reading "Sunk Without A Sound", a book about Glen and Bessie Hyde.
By late morning the sunlight has arrived and I shed layers. The ledge campsite is now available, so we grab our gear, hoist our tents over our heads, and relocate. I scramble down to the slickrock area of Monument Creek to pump water and decide to climb into one of the pools of surprisingly warm water worn into the black Vishnu Schist. A good choice.
Back at camp, John and I don daypacks and head down Monument Creek to Granite Rapids, where John gets to see the Colorado River in person for the first time. The afternoon is spent by the river, watching occasional rafters come through the rapids. We meet an eccentric, older man named Doug who is canoeing his way down the Colorado.
With the afternoon growing late, John and I start back up the creek for camp. We soon meet Jason coming down. The three of us return to the Colorado for a bit before returning to camp.
Darkness having come early, John fired up his backpacking lantern, and we cook up the usual Mountain House dinners. I snuck away to my food sack and removed a plastic container I had kept hidden. Inside is a small birthday cake. I stuck a few candles into it, lit them, and brought the cake over to a surprised John. We enjoyed cake and finished off Jason's bottle of bourban around our sandstone slab table. After a relaxing evening in camp, it's time to sleep.
Sunday, October 28:
We're up at 5:30 am, making coffee and breakfast, and packing our gear before rolling out a couple of hours later. We are quite thankful that the sun hasn't risen over the canyon walls yet as we labor up the trail. I swear my pack felt 50 pounds heavier than on the way down.
Surmounting the Redwall, we take a welcome break, and notice for the first time heavy smoke billowing up from a prescribed fire on the North Rim. John's "getting home-itus" ("mule heading for the barn", I call it) sets in, and he is soon out of sight.
We regroup a bit later, and take one more break at Santa Maria Spring to refill on water. The sun was shining bright and warm from there on up, and every step was a severe beating. Soaked with sweat, we at last reached the rim of the Canyon and John's car. We hit the road and headed south, stopping in Williams for pizza and calzones at Pizza Factory. Delicious! I got dropped off in Prescott, while John and Jason continued back to Phoenix.
Another great trip with great memories made!  |
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| "…you never know when a hike might break out" -Jim Gaffigan |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
