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| Backpack | 9.60 Miles |
4,390 AEG |
| | Backpack | 9.60 Miles | 2 Days | | |
| 4,390 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Continuing the New Year's hike...
Jan 1
With some members of our group nursing hang-overs related to last night's celebration, we didn't get started hiking until well after noon. We only needed to hike from Bright Angel to Indian Garden, though, so time wasn't a big issue. Even better, the delay allowed me to enjoy the unusual experience of snow in Bright Angel campground before it melted. 
After crossing the Silver Bridge, the River Trail usually feels like a slog through the sand, but the pleasant temperature and interesting clouds made it far more enjoyable than previous trips. The snow had melted off down low, but as we climbed the Devil's Corkscrew, snow became our trail-side companion again. The portion of the trail following Garden Creek had great icicles hanging from the ledges and I fell way behind everyone else just enjoying the play of light on the snow and ice and rock.
The positioning of Indian Garden just below a major break in the cliffs makes it a cooler oasis during warm weather, but also makes it colder during winter. Brrr! Plenty of hot drinks to go around, and then we got in our warm bags nice and early. Important - if you use the hot water bottle method to warm your feet, make sure the bottle is very securely closed before putting it in your sleeping bag. One of our companions was not careful, but thankfully only spilled a very small amount, not enough to be a problem. Instead, I wore my down booties, which proved well worth the bit of weight to carry down, as my toes were toasty.
Jan 2
It was a cold morning and hard to get moving. The good news was that we had hot pancakes to start the morning right. After chatting with a man and his grandson who had broken trail across the Tonto the previous day (and giving them some delicious pancakes), we packed and headed up. The ascent went more slowly than usual, but that seemed due to our inexperience hiking on snow-packed trails.
At 3 mile rest house, we pulled on our traction and left it on. It wouldn't have been strictly necessary as no part of the trail was truly icy, but it was nice to enjoy the view instead of having to carefully consider each and every step. And, the views were simply spectacular.
A perfect start to 2015 |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Isolated
Some cottonwoods at both Bright Angel and Indian Garden still had fall leaves. |
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| "Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go" |
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