Grand Canyon - Plateau Point - Hiking Day 4

The third day's hike brought us up from the Colorado River to Indian Garden Camp. We made our way up through a series of switch backs known as the Devil's Cork Screw which was most pleasant than the name implies. What amazed me is the number of small springs and streams along the way that gave way to lush vegetation. Wherever water flowed there was an abundance of life which was juxtaposed to the relative desolation that surrounded it.

 After making camp, we hiked the 1.5 miles to Plateau Point in time to see the sun set. This spot is not to be missed and I felt bad for the hikers who had to make it back to the south rim and miss this point.

 Every ten minutes was a new spectacle as the setting sun would adjust the colors of the surrounding rock walls. Maria and I stayed back behind the group to catch in the last rays and then used our headlamps to make it back to camp. I personally didn't sleep well that night - ground was too hard and the relatively small campsite made it easy to hear any noise. Sometime around midnight the wind picked up and I could hear the trees swaying vigorously to them. This had the sedating effect I need to catch some rest.

We woke up early the next morning and hit the trail as early as possible. The last mile brought us to the very wall of the south rim and then the switch backs came in earnest. There are two places along the way at the 3 mile and the 1.5 mile mark. It was strange that in a matter of only 4 days our bodies had become so accustomed to traveling with large backpacks. It was not as difficult as I had thought it had been. When we made it to the top we could see all the other tourists with their small day packs passing us. The custom is to let the uphill people pass you if you are heading down. It was nice to see people moving aside to let us lumber past. We got in a few pictures from the top and made it to the Canyon Lodge to get in some coffee before we made our way back to Flagstaff and then on to Sedona. 

Grand Canyon - Hiking Day 3

Walking along the canyon floor with a twisted ankle was a real pain. I felt really sorry for anyone who had this happen to them, especially if they were all alone and in a remote part of the canyon. There was a book called "Death in the Grand Canyon" that I saw in Phantom Ranch - and it wasn't exactly a small one. It documented how people die in the canyon on a regular basis from anything from dehydration, to falling, to snake bites, and rafting mishaps. 

That said, we were able to make it into camp at a reasonable time and even had time to down a few beers at the ranch. From my memories of Death Valley - where a beer was $10, I was surprised to see that this place was reasonably priced. Phantom ranch is also the destination of hikers who come down from the south ridge and stay for a night and then go back to the south rim then next day.

We crossed the Colorado River the next morning. However before we left, we managed to see a med-evac helicopter come down to take out a hiker that had destroyed her knee the night before.  Poor thing.

The path brought us to a small clearing where one could go and sit by the river. This was the lowest point in the canyon. The water was relatively calm here. Of course, after this the up hill began.

From the river, we started heading up through a portion of the canyon known as the devil's corkscrew. A bunch of switchbacks in a narrower portion of the climb where it seemed as if the canyon was closing in on you.

 Overall, the climb got easier after that. We managed to get into Indian Garden campsite relatively early and managed to set up camp and just relax for a while. I think if we were not carrying so much equipment, we could have made an attempt to get to the south rim. However we would have missed plateau point - which I'll add an entry for next time.