The call it "topping out" when you reach the top of the Grand Canyon (much like they call it "summitting" when you reach the peak of a mountain). On day 3, we began our hike to the top of the Canyon from Indian Gardens.
It was hard. Very hard. Fortunately, the weather had warmed appreciably, so the snow was mostly melted on the way out. But that didn't make it easier. It was 4 1/2 miles walking and 3000 feet of elevation. As you can see, that's a pretty steep climb.
The trip is nicely divided into 3 parts, with rest stops at the 3 mile mark (that is 3 miles from the end) and at the 1 1/2 mile mark. We slogged our way up the trail. I confess that this was much harder than I had anticipated. I think I was not in as good a shape as I had been when climbing in Peru and I was carrying quite a bit of pack weight. With just a mile or so to go, I "bonked." Actually felt light headed and out of breath. I sat down for a recovery, and that helped alot, but oh my.
What made matters worse is that we were passed on the route by one of the park rangers -- the same one who had done the lecture the night before. She started 2 hours after us and passed us, like nobody's business, going up at full steam. I wish I were younger.
On the other hand, nothing beats the feeling of accomplishment at the end of a difficult adventure. We reached the top after 5 hours -- just in time for lunch and a beer. The beer had never tasted so good.It was the adventure of a life time. The Rosenzweig Brothers Conquer the Canyon, or some such. I'll be bragging on it the rest of my life. Indeed, as I get older, the trip seems to have gotten easier -- now as I recall I ran barefoot; scaled the rock walls without ropes and caught a mountain lion with my bare hands. Or something like that.
No comments:
Post a Comment