Hiking Grand Canyon - Day Two

Bright Angel Canyon & South Rim

Grand Canyon National Park

We left Cottonwood Campground about 9am for a leisurely hike through Bright Angel Canyon.

Ribbon Falls
Took a one mile (1.6 km) side trip to Ribbon Falls where a huge mound of travertine is built up.

Monkeyflower
North Kaibab Trail parallels the riparian area along Bright Angel Creek which offers a diversity of life.

American Dipper
And a tempting place for a snack.

Bee in Grizzly Bear Cactus

Grand Canyon Lodge on North Rim
I was really surprised to be able to see the Lodge over 5500 feet (1676 m) above.

Desert Spiny Lizard

Entering the Box of Bright Angel Canyon
My favorite part of the trail is a narrow gorge1200 feet (366 m) deep. Another hiker and I were almost run over by a charging Mountain Sheep and didn’t have the presence of mind to take a picture.

Quartz and Mica in the Vishnu Schist
Here we walked past the oldest rock in the canyon, about 1,800 million years old.

Whipsnake
Saturday, day two, we walked 7.9 miles (12.7 km) in six hours and lost another 1534 feet (468 m).

Phantom Ranch Canteen
After a shower we went to the Canteen for a cold beer and chocolate. I sent a couple postcards that are stamped on the back “Delivered by Mule.”

That night our boss and her sister made us spaghetti dinner where we stayed in the Park Service bunkhouse, complete with bunk beds that were a bit better than the hard ground the night before.

The South Rim from the bunkhouse
So now we’d made it to the bottom of the canyon, but it’s still a long way back up. I’ll try to post day-three tomorrow, my day off.

Hiking the Grand Canyon - Part One

North Rim Park Rangers
We started at the North Kaibab Trailhead, 8,250 feet (2,515 m) about 10am.

North Kaibab Trail Roaring Springs Canyon
It’s about two miles (3.2 km) down to Supai Tunnel where there’s water and compost toilets.

Plateau Lizard
By then it was hot enough to sun on a rock, or at least reduce a layer of clothing.

North Kaibab Trail
We’d also walked past four rock layers representing about 100 million years of sedimentary deposits.

Agave
I’m so amazed by the variety of plant life.

Western Redbud

Roaring Springs
Roaring Springs pours out from the bottom of the Redwall Limestone and provides all water needs for both North and South Rims.

Bright Angel Canyon north
From here we turned south to follow Bright Angel Canyon and Creek.

Bright Angel Creek

Prickly Pear Cactus along Bright Angel Creek
We got into the campground about 4pm. Our first day 6.8 miles (11 km) and about a 4,000 foot (1,270 m) drop.

Cottonwood Campground
I was feeling fine, ate tuna and crackers for dinner. All were in sleeping bags under the stars by 9pm. It just barely sprinkled but not enough to bother. Unfortunately, the cheap sleeping pad I bought is useless so only slept on and off.

This is just day one of four days hiking. I just got back to the North Rim last night and worked today on getting the visitor center ready for opening on May 15th. Work again tomorrow, so hopefully will get to Part Two of the hike.

Sky Watch Friday - Grand Canyon National Park

View east from Plateau Point Trail

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