Grand Canyon National Park - Phantom Ranch - December 9, 2002 - Member Trip Report
| Hike Name: | Grand Canyon National Park - Phantom Ranch |
|---|---|
| Country: | United States |
| State: | Arizona |
| Trip Rating: |  |
| Trip Date: | December 9, 2002 |
| Duration: | 2 days |
| Trail Conditions: | Excellent |
| Trail Traffic: | Heavy |
| Trip Weather: | Sunny, Partly Sunny |
| Trip Winds: | Light |
| Trip Precipitation: | None |
| Trip Temperature: | High: 61-70, Low: 21-30 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Trip Report: | 12/09/02 (Monday) – The Operator and I had an 8:45am flight to Phoenix, and the airport was especially packed this morning with business travelers. It took a long time to get through security, and I only made it to the gate with 20 minutes to spare. The flight had open seats in the middle (for the most part) and went fairly quickly. Enterprise upgraded us from an intermediate to a SUV for an additional $25, and we hit the road for the Grand Canyon. We climbed in elevation to the South Rim, and the temps dropped significantly on the way. Went straight to the backcountry permit office and changed our permit to leave and exit a day earlier than we had originally scheduled. The initial plan was to ski on Tuesday, but the Arizona resort near Springdale has not yet opened for the season (despite the fact that it has plenty of snow.) Now we plan to hike into the canyon tomorrow and stay along the Colorado River. Checked into the Maswik Lodge after we got our permit. It is the slow season here right now, and rooms were only $66. The Operator and I dumped our gear, bought some groceries and fuel at the village store (which was a mega-store down the road) then finished packing for the hike. There was a bar at the Lodge that showed the Monday night football game tonight, and they had free food and prizes during the commercials. The Operator and I got dinner at the nearby cafeteria, then had a number of beers at the bar. By 11pm, the place cleared out pretty quickly, however, since most of the patrons worked at the park and couldn’t stay out late. The Operator and I headed back to the room and crashed by midnight. 12/10/02 (Tuesday) – We had breakfast at the Maswik Lodge this morning, then headed to the backcountry office and waited for the 10am bus to take us to the South Kaibab trailhead. It was a twenty-minute ride, and there was snow at the rim when we got there. I snapped some photos, and we started the hike down into the canyon by 10:45am. We made good time on the South Kaibab Trail, and stopped for a short break at Cedar Ridge. Passed a number of mule trains headed out of the canyon south of here (most likely with trash from the Phantom Ranch), then we finally got a look at the Colorado River around the Tipoff. It was still a ways below us, and we took a lengthy lunch break here with a raven and a squirrel as dinner guests. Both were looking for handouts and the squirrel was especially aggressive. A large group of hikers caught up with us during the break, but we got ahead of them on the descent to the eastern bridge across the Colorado and beat them to the Ranch. A tunnel is blasted into the rock near the bridge, and we snapped some cool pics in the area. There’s an ancient Indian settlement on the northern side of the Colorado River and we walked right by it on the way to Phantom Ranch. Both The Operator and I were pretty beat by the time we made it to the Bright Angel Campground (only a few hundred yards south of Phantom Ranch.) We hiked 7.3 miles and dropped 4800 feet today and my legs were shaking slightly by the time we reached the river around 3:00pm. We picked a spot (campsite #3) near the northern bridge along Bright Angel Creek and set up camp after a brief food break. The campsite was only about ¼ full this evening, and the sun dropped behind the canyon walls within an hour of our arrival. The Operator and I had about thirty minutes to visit the Canteen (since it closed down for dinner at 4pm) and we had a quick beer before setting up camp this evening. Played some checkers as the sunset, and it got cold quickly once the sun fell behind the surrounding cliffs. Cooked dinner around 6pm, cleaned up, then played checkers and craps until 8pm when the Canteen opened back up. The place was packed tonight with campers escaping the 30 degree temps, and the Ranch guests looking for some cold beers. Played more craps with The Operator, and hung out until the Canteen closed around 10pm. Headed back to the campground by 10:15pm and crashed for the night. |
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