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Anybody hike the Grand Canyon?

O

oboeguy

Diamond Member
We're off in a couple of days. A friend who is quite experienced at R2R hikes is doing a R2R2R at the moment ('tis the season, before it gets too hot) so I have nobody to ask a couple of lingering questions. So here I am at ATOT, not desperate but... 😀

So, has anybody done a R2R? I guess my two main questions are:

1) Where do I buy fuel for my JetBoil stove? We can't take a fuel cannister on airplanes.

2) Where do I get unambiguous info on water sources along the North Kaibab Trail? (aside from at the GC visitor center -- I'd like some advance info)

Otherwise I'd say we're pretty well prepared (and reasonably experienced at hiking, though not in the desert).
 
I would love to, one day 🙂

Plenty i want to do here in Aus first tho.




Also, this thread is begging for some kind of *rimshot* joke, but sadly i can't deliver 🙁
 
Originally posted by: dug777
Also, this thread is begging for some kind of *rimshot* joke, but sadly i can't deliver 🙁
Click to expand...

Don't worry, ATOT will come through. There's another "rim" kind of joke which I won't bother to encourage...
 
I have nothing valuable to contribute to this conversation, but I wanted to say good luck! I got back from the Grand Canyon about a month ago, and with even the little hiking we did I can't imagine doing an R2R (which I didn't know about until now).

:thumbsup:
 
Thanks! It's not that bad if you've hiked a few days in a row before, it seems. We're only hiking about ~7 miles per day! Sure, the descent in and the last part hiking out are going to be MFing steep, but compared to some of the rock scrambling we've done on the NY section of the AT (once with basically one arm -- other had sprained elbow) how bad can it be? I wouldn't dare attempt it in the middle of the summer, though. Way too hot!
 
I can't help much, but I did do a one day hike from (can't remember the trail) but it was one of the major ones to the river (but not to the cabin). We started at 6AM and it took 10hrs. I think we stopped for ~1hr at the bottom for lunch, took like 2-3hrs going down and 6-7hrs back up. Going back up was one of the most painful things I've ever done.

In hindsight it was awesome...but man I thought I was in good shape too at the time.
 
Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude
Are the other people you're doing the hike with also newbies? How many days?
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Other person is my wife. 😀 We always hike together.

Three days to do it: one to Bright Angel Campground, one from there to Cottonwood Campground and a final day up the brutal steepness to the North Rim (staying the night there). All permitted and ready to go, except for my two questions above...
 
It might still be pretty hot at the bottom. I took a mule ride at the north rim a couple years ago and there was at least a 25 degree temp difference on the way down.

Also I was in Moab, which is way north, exactly a year ago (I wanna go back! 🙁) and it was 95F and sunny. You'll need a LOT of water. On my 3 hour hike that day I went through my quart in a little over an hour. Yes I was rather thirsty by the time I finally made it back.

BTW you could call ahead and see about taking a mule up the north rim. I believe they will take empty mules down on the morning trip and then you can ride it back up in the afternoon.
 
We'll have at least 9 liters of water carrying capacity between us (multiple Camelbak bladders as well as Nalgene bottles). I've been dehydrated a couple of times (not from hiking) and don't plan to have that happen again!

Interesting idea about the mules for the way up as back-up. Thanks!
 
Damn, I'm jealous. The wife and I went to the Grand Canyon right at this time last year (honeymoon), and was completely underwhelmed at what was available to see. I guess I had visions in my head of different lookout points, but as it turns out, the Grand Canyon was much bigger than I anticipated 😀. I quickly learned that in order to see anything other than the great initial view on the South Rim, you had to hike.....something of which we weren't even remotely prepared to do, in equipment or time or knowledge.

I'd love to head back there someday to hike for a couple of days, but I seriously doubt the wife would want to do that, and I'd have to get into shape to even start thinking about it.
 
That's not really that much for two people for the desert...doubt it would last all day especially if it's hot. Definitely not on the way up. Just make sure there are enough water sources down there that you can make it from one to another. Should be fine. Remember you're at high elevation too.

I think you may have slightly misunderstood me about the mules. There aren't just random empty mules down there...it's not really a backup plan. You'd have to decide ahead of time you want to do it and pay for them to bring the mules down. Also if you're riding up absolutely make sure you bring a bandana or something to put over your nose and mouth. The north rim trail up that we took is extremely dusty and the mules kick it all up.
 
I know -- 9l could be like a on hour supply in super-hot desert conditions. Fortunately, that's not gonna be the case this time of year! I'm expecting we'll start very early each day and take a nap by the side of the trail during the midday heat.

As for the mules I did understand. I was thinking if we're screwed after a day we can call from the Ranch. Anyway, I don't expect it to be a problem.
 
Nope, but I'd like to someday. On a related note, my mom's coworker died hiking the Grand Canyon last week. :Q The terrain was so rough that they couldn't get her out of there until two days later. 🙁
 
Originally posted by: Bryophyte
Nope, but I'd like to someday. On a related note, my mom's coworker died hiking the Grand Canyon last week. :Q The terrain was so rough that they couldn't get her out of there until two days later. 🙁
Click to expand...

Whaaaaaaaa? You serious? Details!
 
Originally posted by: oboeguy
Originally posted by: Bryophyte
Nope, but I'd like to someday. On a related note, my mom's coworker died hiking the Grand Canyon last week. :Q The terrain was so rough that they couldn't get her out of there until two days later. 🙁
Click to expand...

Whaaaaaaaa? You serious? Details!
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm serious. I can't find anything online about it yet, but my mom said it made yesterday's local paper.
 
Originally posted by: oboeguy
Originally posted by: Bryophyte
Nope, but I'd like to someday. On a related note, my mom's coworker died hiking the Grand Canyon last week. :Q The terrain was so rough that they couldn't get her out of there until two days later. 🙁
Click to expand...

Whaaaaaaaa? You serious? Details!
Click to expand...

This happens all of the time in the Grand Canyon. They average 10 to 12 fatalities a year. Be very careful; it is not at all like hiking in other places. My wife and I (both experienced hikers) hiked 3 miles into the Canyon on the South Kaibab last October (6 miles round trip). We had plenty of water but my wife's electrolytes got screwed up and she ended up having to go to the doctor afterwards. 14 hours of vomiting and hallucinations later, she was OK.

As others have said, the temperature difference between the top and bottom can be 20 degrees or more. Also, the dry heat can be very deceptive to someone who is used to more humidity. My advice:

1) hike with a group
2) Try some shorter hikes in the Canyon before you try the big one.

Good luck! It's a very rewarding place to hike.

 
Yikes! Hyponatremia? Scary. I've got some electrolyte tablets (from long-distance cycling) to keep that at bay.
 
Heh I forgot about this but when I was at the south rim last summer I slipped on some gravel and came about 2 ft from falling off the edge. :Q

KoolAidKid was she drinking just plain water or Gatorade type stuff too and her electrolytes still got messed up?

And OP check out the national-park.com sites for trail info. http://www.grand.canyon.national-park.com/hike.htm. Check the safety page too.
 
Originally posted by: Sukhoi

KoolAidKid was she drinking just plain water or Gatorade type stuff too and her electrolytes still got messed up?
Click to expand...

We had water and a bunch of salty snacks with us. No gatorade.
 
Originally posted by: moshquerade
gonna check out the skywalk?
Click to expand...

I don't think it's worth the price for what you get....... like $75 each for 15 minute & no cameras or videos.

Cheers,
Aquaman
 
Did this with my dad when I was 11, although it was during the peak of summer. I remember we left during the day going down and I think I poured almost as much water on myself as I did drinking (we each carried 6 quarts or so). After that we stayed at Bright Angel overnight where we learned the way to go was to sleep on a pad on top of the tables as opposed to our make shift sauna (tent). Next day we left extremely early, like about 4am or so to get several miles under our belt before the sun came up.

My advice is this - drink early and often, do not ration your water
 
We're off tomorrow! I got the info I needed after calling the visitor's center a zillion times (many busy signals). I found via Google the story of the poster's mom's coworker. That group was hiking in a remote part of the GC -- we're hiking along the main corridor between North and South Rims.
 
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