Grand Canyon- Rim to Rim

I've wanted to hike the Grand Canyon for a long time.  The biggest problem with planning this is Logistics.  It's a point to point hike (because we are not crazy enough to do R3) and those points are a 4 hour drive apart.  I hear a lot of people say it's better to start on the North but there's very few options for lodging on the north side and we needed to start this hike very early in the morning.  To drive over from Kanab is an hour or more. Ultimately what we decided was to park our car on the north rim (this is the least amount of driving we can do) and take the shuttle over to the south side.  Stay the night on the south side in a hotel right by the trailhead (because shuttles to the trailhead are another logistical problem) and hike bright and early.  I actually wanted to hike south kaibab instead of bright angel.  I heard it was better and I think a little shorter.  But the shuttles to take us over there didn't start running as early as we wanted.

We drove to Kanab on a Thursday and had a hotel there.  We had a hotel Friday night on the south rim.  And we toyed with the idea of hiking on Friday from the north rim because in all of our planning people had started to convince us that the north was better to start from.  But we decided to stick with our original plan and give ourselves one day of mental preparation before jumping right into it.  Because of that I hadn't yet booked our shuttle from north to south.  I didn't think it would be a problem because it looked like there was usually plenty of room.  But when I got online to book it for the next day, it wouldn't let me because it was within 24 hours.  I started freaking out.  We had ZERO other options.  I called the office and nobody answered so I started calling in the morning and finally got someone who told me they couldn't book me a spot but we could ask the bus driver when we got there.  I asked if it usually has space and she said yes.  She told me there were like 20 spots left for the one we wanted.  So I wasn't too worried.

We left with plenty of time and stopped at Jacob's Lake to get some cookies because my friend Layla told me they were the best cookies she ever had.  Then we got our first views of the Grand Canyon!  Sherri had never been before. 

We explored the gift shop and sat around and I found one bus driver but it was a smaller sprinter van, not a huge tour bus.  He didn't really have any information for me but I told him that I was definitely first in line if spots were limited.  Long story short, spots were limited.  They usually have the big bus but it was having problems so they only had two sprinter vans.  The lady in charge told me there were only two spots left... But there were three of us!  I had literally been praying so hard that this would work out so here is my testimony that prayers are answered.  Earlier when I had been talking to the other driver that was clueless, a group of people asked me if I was looking for a seat and said they had an extra because one of their friends had bailed.  At the time I didn't think I would have a problem getting seats, but when the lady told me there were only two left, I was like ok!  We will take them!  So I quickly venmoed a girl from this other group securing our spot on her ticket and called the office to pay by phone for the other two spots.  Then we had to request the three of us be together because I didn't really want to ride for 4 hours without my friends.  In the end it worked out.  And our driver was actually really fast and got us there faster than expected.  Goodness!  That was stressful!

Another part of dropping a car and taking the shuttle is that you have to pack everything for overnight in the same pack you will be hiking with.  Sherri and I decided to wear clothing we no longer wanted and just leave it in the hotel to hopefully make it's way to a donation.  We looked pretty cute, lol.  Julie wore her hiking shorts and I think donated her shirt.

I ended up with my own room and Julie and Sherri shared.  We had dinner at the resort and tried to get to bed early.  Here is all the food I packed for the hike.  My theory is I can move my body for as long as needed as long as I have food and water.  I will say, I probably didn't touch 85% of this stuff.  But its better to be prepared than not.

We went back and forth on what time we should start.  I didn't want to hike in the dark because the whole point of hiking the canyon is to see the views.  But it was unseasonably hot still and we were getting nervous so we decided to start before sunrise.  I think we planned to start at 4, but Julie did not have a good night (I think she was up puking all night? Maybe nerves?  I don't remember) and we had to fill our packs with ice and water and we didn't actually start until 4:30.  It was definitely dark.  I didn't bring a headlamp because I hadn't thought we would start in the dark.  I had my little zapper, tazer?  And it has a flashlight on it so I used that.  Starting downhill is great.  Everything seems easy and fun.

But the sun eventually came up and we were still smiling and having a great time!  There are bathroom stops like every 1.5 miles on this part of the trail.  We stopped at the 3 mile one and came across a young guy who had done rim to rim to rim and was not in good shape.  His legs were barely working and he told us that he had spent the night there because his body gave out and a ranger or medic or whoever had given him an IV.  We just looked at each other like, who would want to do that?

The views really were epic.  Pictures don't do it justice.

Love the sign of this guy puking, telling people it's a bad idea to try and do this all in one day.  Oops.

Cool view!!

Julie was making fun of me for trying to rest my lower back.  These packs are heavy and it was a log day so I was just giving my back a break but she thought it was funny that I looked tired.

We made it down to the river!  Despite the fact that we were hiking next to a weirdo for awhile.  At one point he pointed at a spot off the trail and said, "that's where I camped before" or something like that.  Sherri was like, no we don't want to go see your secret hiding spot.  There's definitely bodies there.  He stopped at the same bathroom as us and we hurried off trying to lose him.  But I think he was stopping at the river.  A lot of people stopped at the river and went back up.

After the river is was a little further (kind of a lot further considering we thought it was close) to Phantom Ranch.  We got in line for lemonade before the line was very long.  It was really nice having an ice cold lemonade in the middle of our hike!

Phantom Ranch felt like a halfway point.  It wasn't.  I mean, maybe it's close but we still had a LOOOONG way to go.  And it wasn't as pretty.  

We are pretty sure this is what they call "The Box".  For us it was shady and felt nice and the views were cool.  But I guess later in the day the heat gets trapped in there and it can get dangerously hot.  We were still sitting pretty here.

We have heard that we should take advantage of all the water so we spent some time in this little stream.

That's about the point it started going downhill.  The views were no longer pretty.  There was hardly any shade.  Sherri named it Arco because it was just open, hot, gross landscape.  Julie was not feeling great and Sherri convinced her to take a gel.  Julie doesn't usually do gels because she doesn't like the texture.  She gagged multiple times trying to get this one down, lol.  And her gagging is really loud!  At least that had us laughing.  Honestly we continued to make each other laugh right up to the last 3 miles.  I'll get to that.

Before this point there had been water and bathroom stations every couple of miles at least.  But for whatever reason there was at least 6 miles between stations during this section.  We had our umbrellas out, which maybe looked stupid but they really did help protect us from the sun and heat.  My water was basically gone and I was starting to feel like I was getting dehydrated.  At some point we came to a small water crossing and everyone was getting their clothes wet and stuff but I was like, I need actual drinking water!  It was really crowded there too.  If had been thinking clearly I would've pulled out my filter and got some water then.  But in my mind the campground with water was just around the corner.

I ended up leaving my friends by that water and continuing on.  I waited until I could see them coming and then I started climbing this little section.  They called me the lady in white that they could just see in the distance (because of my white shorts and silver umbrella I guess).  I got to the campground and it was very crowded too with a line for water so I got right in line.  It's funny because my friends got there a few minutes later and were looking for me and some strangers pointed in my direction.  I'm still not sure if they were pointing towards the water or if they recognized us from some point.

We filled up and sat and drank.  We snacked.  I ate my sugar babies and used some liquid IV.  We sat there until we finished our full water packs and then filled up again.  It took some time.  We thought we were about to start climbing but there was another bathroom stop about 1.5 miles later and that is where the climbing actually started.  My watch was being very generous with the mileage so I thought we only had like 6 miles left.  That was not the case.

We were happy again, enjoying the views, taking breaks every so often, listening to Taylor Swift (because that's what I have downloaded on my phone- no service).  We literally thought we were about to be done and we were trying to hurry because the sun was getting low and we wanted a "finish" picture when it was still light.  And we came up to another arch.  There was a girl standing there looking at it and she said, "three more miles, right?"  At this point my watch was saying 26 miles or something and it's only supposed to be 24.  I was like, no way.  But on the other side of the arch there was another bathroom stop and I realized there wouldn't be a stop if we were at the top.  I think that's when all of us got a little dejected.

So no, we didn't finish before the sun set.  We didn't get to see the views from up there.  There was a very popular lookout, Coconino we didn't get to see because it was dark.  We had to pull out our lights again, and Julie's phone was glitching and her light wasn't working well.  So I gave her my light and used my phone light.  But then my phone was dying.  I had a portable charger but it would be hard to plug it in and also carry it to use as light.  I did keep checking the trail to see how much further and it just didn't move very fast.  I was counting switchbacks and we were almost to the top when Sherri goes, "are we lost?  Like, did we take a wrong turn somewhere?"  But we were literally almost there when she said that. So I assured her I had been looking and we were going to make it.  

At the trailhead there were people with lights and ringing bells, which I thought was cute.  When I got up there people cheered and rang their bells and then tried to see who I was.  I was like, you're not here for me I promise.

For the last few miles of the hike, my brain had been going through our options because my car was not at the trailhead.  My car was 2 miles up the road at the big parking lot.  The plan was to take shuttle up there but this late at night I didn't think that would be an option.  So then I thought we could bum a ride, but we would have to find someone that could fit us all because it would be scary to go alone with strangers, especially if they were men.  So I was like, someone with room and/or women.  I was tired but I was like, I could walk the two miles if I have to.  I didn't want to just because that is also scary hiking up that windy road in the dark, but also because it would take some time and we all just wanted to get going.  Plus I was hoping to make it to Jacob's Lake before they closed to pick up cookies for my friend, and they have ice cream!  I thought if it were downhill I could absolutely run the two miles, but it was uphill.  

So once we finished, my phone was about dead so I pulled out my charger to get that started so we could figure out our options.  As I was sitting there a man came off the trail alone.  Everyone was cheering and ringing their bells but he was clearly not who they were looking for either.  He looked like he was struggling.  Another man said to him, are you Brian?  He nodded yes, and the guy goes, "I'm supposed to tell you there are two girls waiting for you in a van."  Immediately my ears perked up- girls? Van?  So I said, "hey Brian? Do you have room in that van to give us a ride?"  He was so out of it he didn't even really answer me.  His brain was not working.  But I was sure this was my chance.  He didn't say no, he just wasn't sure.  So I hopped up and started following him.  He clearly wasn't driving anyway, I was going to ask these girls waiting on him if they could drive us.  My friends were like, what are you doing?  I'm like, trust.  God put Brian here for us.

Brian, it turns out, really needed a bathroom.  The girls were concerned about him and his needs, which is totally great.  But they were happy to give me a ride.  I hopped in the back.  The bathrooms up by my car were much better than the pit toilets at the trailhead so they decided to take him up there and I got to ride along.  They asked me if I was okay and if I needed anything.  They were really sweet.  I was just like, I'm doing much better than Brian over there. Lol.  They even offered to drive the 50 yards in the parking lot to get me to my car but I said that wasn't necessary and I really appreciated their help.

So that worked out!!  And we did make it to Jacob's Lake for cookies but unfortunately they had closed down the ice cream machine already.  We made it back to Kanab and a sketchy hotel.  The girls showered first and by the time I was blow-drying my hair, they were both out cold.

It took us about 15 hours to hike this.  My watch gave us almost 30 miles, which is not real, I know.  But it FELT like 30 miles.  I think mentally you should prepare for 30 miles.  Looking back on the elevation chart, it makes sense why everyone says north to south is better.

When we got off that trail, I was thinking it was the stupidest thing we've ever done and I would not recommend it to anyone. Ever.

But of course time puts things into perspective and it wasn't long before I started thinking it would be more fun if we did north to south and I bet it would be much better...

We thought about planning another trip with our husbands and I think we might at some point.  But in 2025 a fire on the north rim burned everything!  So I'm not sure when that will be up and running again.  I can't imagine if we were down there hiking and found out the north rim was on fire and we would have to turn around and go back.  And our car was sitting there on the north rim.  Crazy!