Friday, January 1, 2010

Grand Canyon

So then...I have a backcountry permit for the Grand Canyon National Park. 2 people, 1 night at Bright Angel Campground, at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Now... how did we get there?

Day 1: South Kaibab Trail
Rim (7260 ft) to Cedar Ridge (6120 ft) - 1.5 mi
Cedar Ridge (6120 ft) to Skeleton Point (5220 ft) - 1.5 mi
Skeleton Point (5220 ft) to Tipoff (4000 ft) - 1.4 mi
Tipoff (4000 ft) to Bright Angel Campground (2480 ft) - 2.6 mi

Total 7.0 miles, 4780 ft of elevation change.

Day 2: Bright Angel Trail
Bright Angel Campground (2480 ft) to River Resthouse (2480 ft) - 1.5 mi
River Resthouse (2480 ft) to Indian Garden (3800 ft) - 3.2 mi
Indian Garden (3800 ft) to Three-Mile Resthouse (4748 ft) - 1.7 mi
Three-Mile Resthouse (4748 ft) to Mile-and-a-Half Resthouse (5729 ft) - 1.5 mi
Mile-and-a-Half Resthouse (5729 ft) to Rim (6860 ft) 1.6 mi

Total 9.5 miles, 4380 ft of elevation change.

For a grand total of 16.5 miles and 9160 ft of elevation change over 2 days.

Both days ended after dark, knife edge trails, miles of packed snow and ice, amazing views, fresh powder, freezing weather and wind blown trails with a 1000 ft drop inches from the trail. It was an awesome trip and we got some great pictures.