Here we are ready to roll! I have no idea why I am bent down, I am 4'10 for heaven's sake! Also, you really cannot see Ken, but he is the one with the insanely bright light. Nice Ken. Tell me about your headlamp. :)
The first few hours you spending hiking in complete darkness. The trail is a little on the steep side going down, so I personally like it being dark.
One of our first stops to potty
Yes, I just posted this, on the internet. In his defense, it is very dusty when we are hiking down. One of our hikers last year ended up getting a fungus infection in her lung.
One of the drop off areas
Katie hiking along. You can see the sun is starting to creep up. This is probably around 4:30.
Stopping for a snack. We are about three miles from Phantom Ranch.
This is my favorite part of the trail. You are still going down, but it is very gradual. The views of the canyon with the sun creeping up are unbelievable. You also can start to hear the river and you know Phantom Ranch is just around the corner.
We look a little more awake in this picture than our first one we took at 2:15 am. :)
Katie looking oh so bright and cheery. You could not miss her on the trail. :)
It would be a crime to hike the Grand Canyon and not get a photo of Ken and his signature pose.
Poor Ken. He was completely out numbered by women during our hike. Out of 16 hikers, there were only four guys. Ken was a trooper and hung up with us girls most of the time. He was trying to take a picture of us hiking, and Katie and I were trying to look all natural hiking and swinging our arms.
Now we are being super silly. You have to entertain yourself when you are hiking 21 miles thru the Grand Canyon.
There's the Colorado River! We have almost reached the bottom of the canyon!
After Phantom Ranch, Aaron, Maddie and I separated from the group. This was both Aaron and Maddie's first time to hike. They were wanting to go a little faster, so of course, I volunteered to stick with them to make sure they made it out safely. I was their resident cheerleader. I am pretty sure there was a time when they both wanted to toss me off the trail. I kept telling them that every land mark was just around the corner. Yep, just around the corner.
Pardon my boob shot. :) Here I am with my hiking buddies. I tried to keep them entertained during the rough patches. I volunteered to sing giving the choice of Baby Got Back, Gangster's Paradise, and Ice Ice Baby, but they were not interested.
Stopping for a picture break
You can see the trail along the cliff and Amy and Anna making their way along the trail.
Ken is finished!
Maddie and me. I was so proud of her, she was such a trooper. The poor girl starting having hip flexer trouble on the way out of the canyon. My favorite thing she said the entire day was when I asked her if she was going to have cake with dinner. Her response was "I have no effing idea!" It was so fun. I wanted to make sure she was okay and not over heated, so I kept talking to her and asking her random questions. I am sure I was not annoying with my peppiness. :)
South to North Rim hike was a success!!
Checked into our cabin and ready to shower and relax! For those of you that think there is camping involved on this trip, you are sadly mistaken. :) Up next, a very much deserved day of rest and then the North to South Rim hike. Did Ken end up hiking North to South???
1 comment:
That looks like such a GREAT trip!!
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