Will Cobb and Family: Grand Canyon Hike with Blake and Eric

My brother-in-law, Blake, called me about six months ago and asked if I wanted to hike the Grand Canyon with him and my uncle Eric in March. My response was, "Heck Yea!" The trip was set to hike down on March 4th on the Kaibab Trail, spend one night at Phantom Ranch, then walk out on the Bright Angel trail on the 5th.

This would be my tenth canyon hike, but my first time to Phantom Ranch. I have never hiked on the Kaibab at all and had only been to Indian Gardens on the Bright Angel. I was so excited to explore this portion of the canyon and to have a light pack for once. :)

The trip meant more than just hiking the canyon. Each team member has had a different health problem to deal with in the last few years. Blake, my brother-in-law, had a damaged Mitral Valve in his heart which required repair. He had his surgery several years ago and is doing very well. Eric was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocitic Leukemia. He finished his chemotherapy almost a year ago and is now in remission. I was exactly one year post ACL tear and four months post Bankhart Fracture repair. We were quite the group.

Blake and Eric picked me up early on the 4th, and we drove up to the park.

Blake's new rig. It's big, it's diesel, it's good.

View from the canyon's rim.

We arrived at the Bright Angel Lodge at 7:30am and promptly went to breakfast. Blake chose the "Bright Angel Lodge" breakfast which was essentially eggs and toast. Eric and I chose the breakfast skillet. Just the fact that the word "skillet" was in the title should have steered us away from it. This dish had two eggs, cheese, potatoes, corned beef hash, and two slices of toast. We should have known better. The good news was that we were both full and really did not need to consume one more calorie to complete the hike.

We hopped on the 9am shuttle from the Bright Angel Lodge to the Kaibab Trailhead. At the trailhead, we put on our Yak Traks, extended the trekking poles, and launched what would be a fantastic hike.

Blake donning his Yak Traks.

Eric's smile shows how much he was loving that skillet!

The first mile and a half was very icy and quite slick. Even with my Yak Traks on, I still slipped once or twice. Once we passed through the ice and snow, we started making good time. Before we knew it, we were at Skeleton Point and nearly halfway to the river.

Team skillet (Eric and I) on the way down.

Eric and Blake enjoying the walk to the river.

As we headed down we shedded layers and really enjoyed the walk. Before we knew it we were at the river.

The Black Bridge over the Colorado.

Blake at the short tunnel that leads to the Black Bridge.

There are two bridges over the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. The Black Bridge, which is at the bottom of the South Kaibab Trail, and the Silver Bridge that sits at the bottom of the Bright Angel. The Black Bridge was completed in 1928 and is situated 65 feet above the river. (Give or take a few feet depending on water level.) All of the materials for the bridge were carried from the rim down to the construction site either on mules or on the backs of men. The 550 foot long cables that form the suspension portion of the bridge were carried by 42 Havasupi tribesmen who walked single file from the rim to the river. The bridge is an impressive feat of engineering and effort.

After crossing the Black Bridge, we walked the flat half mile up a side canyon to Phantom Ranch. We took four hours to walk to the river at what we felt was an easy pace. Blake got us checked in, we all enjoyed a hot shower, and then we relaxed until dinner. Amazingly, none of us had a blister or even a hot spot on our feet. We were, however, quite happy to be done going down.

Blake settling in at the ranch.

Eric representing the Red Raiders while in the Canyon.

While waiting for dinner, which was at 6:30pm, I snuck out to look around and take a few pictures.

Zoroaster Temple in the evening light. Going to have to head back and climb this one soon.

Looking up stream at the Black Bridge from the Silver Bridge.

Looking down river from the Silver Bridge.

The mules. Cute but also stinky!

Dinner was great. Stew, salad, and chocolate cake. It was tough to beat. We went back to the bunk house and went to bed. (It was all of 7:45pm when I hit the pillow.)

The next day started early. Breakfast of eggs, bacon, and pancakes at 7:00am. We started hiking out on the Bright Angel Trail at 8:00am.

Eric and Blake crushing it on the way up.

The Bright Angel Trail, interestingly enough, was built by the railroad as a tourist attraction. It is one of the longer south rim trails and for the first mile or so walks next to the river. It then takes an abrupt left turn and starts climbing through the geologic rock layers to Indian Gardens, the halfway point, and eventually to the rim. Our group climbed quickly and comfortably out of the canyon's inner gorge and up to the small canyon that houses Indian Gardens.

We stopped at Indian Gardens to take a short rest, have a drink, and eat a snack. It was a perfect 50 degrees with a light occasional breeze. We were really enjoying the walk to the rim, but we knew that the steepest climbing was about to start.

Shortly after leaving Indian Gardens, we made our only mistake of the trip. We allowed a mule train to pass us. At the moment, it seemed like the logical thing to let them go by because when the mules were walking they actually go pretty fast. What we didn't realize was that this particular mule train was being captained by the most talkative driver in the canyon. He liked to stop his mule train every 15 minutes or so and talk at length about the trail, the mules, and himself. We were less than impressed to say the least. It is nearly impossible to pass a mule train, so we resigned ourselves to the "South end of a North bound Mule". Just to let you know, it doesn't always smell so great on the south end.

Eventually we stopped for a break to put some distance between us and the mule train. I was able to snap a couple more pictures.

Looking back at the inner gorge.

After a break for water, a quick snack, and to put on our Yak Traks, the hiking began again. It was still winter in the higher canyon elevations and more than just the trail was icy.