Saturday, January 25, 2014

Start: Grand Canyon NP - Phantom Ranch
Finish: Williams, AZ

Breakfast at 5 and on the South Kaibab trail by 6 AM. The first hour of hiking was in the dark which allowed for some early light in the canyon.

Dawn


Trail Up


Lunch buddy


Not much to report along the trail. This trail provides nice views of the canyon. It is an 8 mile hike straight up from Phantom Ranch. I was surprised at how much easier it was going up than down. The temperate weather continued to make hiking delightful. I had expected to be more out of breath as I climbed up and up, however the slow, steady pace kept the oxygen level in balance. Left at 6 AM and reached the trailhead on the rim at 12:30 and the temperature on the rim was mid-50s! Usual temperatures in January on the South Rim are in the 30s.

Success


Arrangements had been for my husband to park the van at the Visitor Center and text me the location so he could go to the village for passport stamps and smashed pennies. We had no idea when I would arrive. We met back up and were on the road by 1:30. A quick stop for a hamburger and fries on the way through Tusayan. We continued down US 180 to AZ 64 to Williams, AZ. We decided to call it a day there, I needed a good soak in a tub!

We enjoyed dinner at Route 66 Italian Bistro. They had two IPAs on tap; British IPA and Rye IPA. We go for the hops, so we enjoyed a pint of Rye IPA. Their wood-fired pizza was excellent, along with a tasty kale salad.

Then back to the room for a good night's sleep!

Smashed pennies
Grand Canyon NP - Bright Angel Lodge gift shop

Passport Stamps
Desert View, AZ
Tusayan Ruins, AZ
Grand Canyon, AZ
Grand Canyon Visitor Center
Verkamp's
Kolb Studio
Yavapai Geology Museum
Yavapai Point, AZ

Wildlife Sightings

Common Raven
Great-tailed grackle
Red-tailed Hawk
Gray Jay
Stellar Jay
(too tired to look!)