Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon 2008

Destination: Grand Canyon Hike – The north rim, up and down in 1 day
Location: Grand Canyon, Arizona
Duration: 3-4 hours down, 4-6 hours up.
Rating / 10: 10
Extreme factor: high
Cost Factor: $1200
In Attendance: 75
Group recommendation: 2 or more
Description:

Day 1: the trip started off early as our flight left Vancouver Airport at 7:30am. Over 60 of us boarded from West Vancouver, White Rock and Kitsilano Innovative Fitness Locations. 8 Coaches were leading the way for the trip, including Team Average Jo Members, Curtis, Isabelle, and myself (Justine). Poles and hiking boots are packed and before long we were up in the sky on our way to Arizona. This time tomorrow and we will be hiking one of the Natural Wonders of the World! Arriving in Pheonix we meet up with a Group from Calgary, headed up by another Team Average Jo member; Stan Peake. Now there are 75 of us, and we are all shuttled onto a coach bus and on our way.. almost.. First things first – Food and Shopping! Taking advantage of being in Scottsdale, Arizona, and that we have several hours of free time we head to an outdoor mall for a pre hike warm up (aka powershop and carbo-load!). Pasta for lunch and a few stores hit before we are back on the bus and heading to Grand Canyon Village – a 4 hour bus ride. Movies, sleep, and chatting ensued – followed by Joshy J interviewing hikers with the video camera. Lots of nervous faces – did I mention we are planning on hiking down and up in one day – this is not going to be a walk in the park! A quick stop at a grocery store to get supplies for tomorrow – energy bars, Gatorade, fruit, trail mix – lots of high energy food to keep us fueled for the hike. And before long we arrived at our hotel. A quick prep for the hike tomorrow by getting our packs ready – Thank you to Ogio who supplied everyone on the trip with a great hydration pack - And we’re off to bed early tonight as we’ll need all the energy we can for tomorrow!






Day 2: We wake up to clear skies and perfect weather for the adventure we’re about to ensue. On the bus by 7am, all 75 of us are on our way to the Kaibob trail – we will be hiking the north rim today. All the way down to the Colorado River and all the way back up. We are warned that there are signs posted that strongly caution against heading to the bottom and up in one day. But we don’t expect any problems from this group – we’re a tough bunch and are up for the challenge! As we turn the corner and catch view of the canyon there are gasps of awe around the bus. Pictures do not do justice for what we are about to do. It is one of the most incredible sites I’ve ever seen. It really is a sight to be gasping at. After departing off of the bus we take a few group pictures on the edge, and with poles in hand and Ogio packs on our backs, we start making our way down. The trail makes switchbacks down and you can only follow the trail with you eyes for so long before it disappears from sight – a reminder of the magnitude of our hike. The group quickly gets split up as people pause to take pictures at different points and stop to rest and fuel. The top of the rim is lined with snow and the air is chilled, but we all know before long we will be in the Arizona heat as we come down in elevation. Before long the half way point passes, then we can view the river, and then it’s only 20 or so minutes and we will be there. We are constantly reminded with warnings of making the full trek in one day by several signs, and several hikers we come across think we are crazy to be attempting this. But since signing up for the hike several months ago we’ve all been training and preparing ourselves for this so we are ready. It’s not going to be easy, and we’ve just begun but before the day is up we will have completed it!





At the bottom we all enjoy a packed lunch, and a bit of rest and shade. Looking up we see the top of the rim and now all we have to do is hike all the way back up – no problem, right! Many head over to the shore of the Colorado River to dip their legs in the icy water in order to get the muscles prepared for the hike up. Soon we all depart. I wait at the bottom for everyone to leave as the plan is sweep and hike with the last person to ensure everyone gets out safely. Three of us have radios and we are in constant contact in case anything goes wrong. I plan on waiting about an hour before starting to run up – I will eventually run into the last hiker and hike up with them. I spend that time exploring around the bottom and chatting with several other hikers. Many I meet can’t believe that there are 75 of us our doing this today – they are amazed and awed at the group’s ability to take this on! Many admit that they can’t see themselves doing what we are today. I tell them it’s only mind over matter and yes they can, because we all can and we are no different. Before long I am off and I start running up the trail. Constantly looking down and seeing the progress I’m making, I’m sure we were all realizing at this point, how small we really are – it really is a very humbling experience. I’m able to take it all in and am still in awe every time I pause and look out. I can not even begin to explain how incredible it feels to be here.



Running up is started to get tiring and I’m beginning to think maybe I waited too long at the bottom to start running – but alas, here is the last group of hikers. Happy to now have company, we make the rest of the trek up together. Constantly encouraging each other we make our way out. Cheers and hugs at the top – this is no easy feat – we celebrate with all the others who hiked with us today.

For those that were doubting themselves and nervous for the hike, they are now filled with a new confidence after coming to terms with what they accomplished today– no it’s not easy (would it be rewarding if it was?), but they kept telling themselves that they can and will do this. One foot in front of the other, and that’s all you can do. For some, if you asked them 6 months ago if they could complete this challenge they would not have been able to tell you yes, now they are filled with a new sense of success and belief in themselves - and ready to take on the next adventure. There is nothing special about any of us that completed this today. We took on the challenge, and went through our adversities (including a few who were not feeling well, ran out of water, or not sure if they were going to make it). We all have our own success story for today –we are all just ordinary people who wanted to take on an extraordinary challenge. Congratulations to everyone who completed the hike – you are all inspiring many others who are wanting to do similar things – included many we met on the trails who looked at us with doubt when we told them what we were doing.

Back in Scottsdale we spent the evening eating good food and celebrating with each other. Tomorrow we have a bit of time for shopping and then we are back on the plane heading back to Vancouver. Not bad for a weekend – hike the Grand Canyon – who says you can’t?




Next Stop: Vancouver Sun Run