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| Backpack | 33.07 Miles |
11,961 AEG |
| | Backpack | 33.07 Miles | 2 Days 6 Hrs 16 Mns | | |
| 11,961 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I have two friends who have never been to the Grand Canyon before. They wanted to go backpacking, so I put them on a six-person permit. Quite the intro to the Canyon and to backpacking... 
Day 1
We left Phoenix at 5:15am, hoping to beat spring break/holiday weekend traffic at the south rim entrance gate. Fail. There were long lines of traffic when we pulled up at 9. This, and a long line for the shuttle bus put us on the South Kaibab 10:45, which was much later than I felt comfortable starting. The group had no issues until the Utah Flats route. I must have not done a good enough job of mentally preparing everyone for the second half of their day because they were quite surprised with the elevation gain. Piano Alley was cool, and we experienced some minor route finding in the cactus maze on the plateau before finding the easy-to-follow trail. We arrived at the established campsite at Phantom Creek at 6:40pm. I ran over to the webbing anchor to verify that the rope was solid and the anchor was in good shape. Returning to camp, I realized that my hopes of exploring up-canyon would have to wait for a future trip. What a nice place to sleep! The sounds of flowing water are hard to beat when it comes to nighttime noises.
Day 2
We easily down-climbed the 20ft rope into Phantom Creek Canyon and enjoyed the next 4+ miles of enticing creek hiking. This section was by far the highlight of trip, with narrows sections, waterfalls, and waterslides. We had 3 mandatory swims, but keep in mind that Phantom Creek appeared to be flowing at a lower rate than in previous photos on HAZ. This is likely due to a low snowpack on the rim.
The confluence of Phantom Creek and Bright Angel is amazing because it is uncommon to see a true triangle confluence in small riparian areas. We proceeded up the Clear Creek Trail to a campsite below Sumner Butte. I expected this to be a mediocre dry camp after the previous night's perfect campsite. However, the views were stunning and it was fun to look around and identify all the different points and temples. After sunset, we had a light show as headlights were flashing all around the canyon. I was surprised to see two lights coming down the Brahma Saddle. I was curious about their itinerary, but mostly jealous. 
Day 3
It was an uneventful hike down to Phantom Ranch and out Bright Angel. We had three rangers stop and talk with us, asking if we approached Clear Creek trail from the Brahma Saddle side. I found this question a bit odd since approaching the Sumner Wash area from the north (departing from phantom creek canyon) would be a considerably difficult hike in one day. One of the rangers had talked with the two climbers who I saw the previous night, coming down from the Brahma Saddle. The ranger told me they were climbing Zoroaster, but in a single day from the SK. While I understand doing Brahma in a single day, the trad climbing up Zoroaster seems like a bit of an EXTRA long day... respect!
Overall, this trip had many high points and only one low point - I lost my sun hat. So if you see an Outdoor Research broad brim hat on the Clear Creek, let me know. ;)
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| - there's nothing like finding Water in the Desert - |
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