Stage 3: Into the Canyon

I got up to cook breakfast and pack my things up. I tried to be strategic knowing I'd be attaching my bike to my bag shortly. I killed the partial butane I had started with and broke out my brand new can, one less thing to carry through the canyon. I ate with the rim hikers I had met the night before.

I got to the permit office just a few minutes before 8. They phoned the South Rim and were able to get me a permit at the group spot in Bright Angel which was ideal. That meant I would hike the 7 miles down and 7 miles across today and save the 7 miles up for the next day. I donated my left over shower quarters to the NPS to not carry a bunch of extra metal across the canyon.

A few hundred feet in

Bike Disassembly

Once at the trail there was a small sign that said "No Bicycles". It took me about 40 minutes to pack my bike up. The weather was overcast and drizzling which was ideal. The bike felt heavy but manageable. I was very glad to have a proper bag to keep the weight stable and hiking poles. I made decent time to Cottonwood Camp and had minimal questions along the way. I even got some hikers to take my photo. I think I only took my pack off once at the Manzanita Ranger Station along the way. There was a bunch of cowboys riding horses stopped at Cottonwood.

Cowboys at Cottonwood

Rear View

I stopped to fill up my water and eat a backpacker meal from my stove. The ranger stopped there was trying to convince me to take side trips while in the canyon and to add a night at Indian Garden CG.

The stretch from Cottonwood to Phantom Ranch was long! I stopped a few times and took off my pack. I made it to Phantom Ranch in time to get a New Belgium Fat Tire and mail Erin a post card.

It was a short walk from Phantom to Bright Angel. I was the only one in the group site they had set aside for AZT through hikers.

I cooked another backpacker meal and started unpacking, I had to fully unstrap my bike to get my stuff out. I looked over at the table and what looked like a racoon was on the table eying my food. I realized it was a ring tailed cat and when I said "Hey!" it took off and ran straight up a vertical cliff. It was quite warm in the canyon and really nice to stare at the stars as I went to sleep on my 3rd picnic bench of the trip. My muscles were all so tight and my legs we're having constant spasms with them twitching in an alternating fashion. I knew I had a tough day ahead of me to just get out of the canyon with my 70lb pack.

There was a constant stream of headlamps on the trail all night.

Stats: 13:20 moving time 2.5 Miles riding 14 miles hiking 6,025ft descent

Comments

Stage 4: Out of the Canyon

I woke up quite sore from the day before. I took quite awhile to get my bike strapped back onto my bag. I decided today warranted 2 pouches of oatmeal. I quickly crossed the bridge across the Colorado River and through the tunnel. I ran into a group familiar with the race and they got some great photos of me and gave great words of encouragement. The day was a blur but here's some of the things people said: Canyon Views "I've seen plenty of men ride bicycles, but I've never seen a bicycle ride a man" -Mule train cowboy(w/Pit Vipers) "Oh is there good trails at the bottom, no? And you found out the hard way" "You must have really wanted a bicycle at the bottom" "I bet you had a blast riding that thing down" "So will you bring your bike to a shop to be reassembled when you get out?" In the end hiking out was just as difficult as down & across. Huge props to the bikepacking lunatics who do the whole thing in a day! I...

Stage 2: North Rim

First View of The Canyon First Metal Sign I got going from Jacobs Lake and quite enjoyed the trail. Lots of great scenery and buff trail. Some great views once I got to the Eastern Rim. The day flew by and I got to the North Rim just before dark, I found the backcountry permit office to have closed at 5 despite it having said 6 online. They reopened at 8 AM though. I went down the the campground and was happy to meet another South Bound rider. Chad was scheduled to take the shuttle around the canyon the next morning at 7 but warned me of forecasted overnight rain. He had bought a $6 tarp from the general store there and it was huge so he offered me to cut half of it off. I did and rigged it to some trees and anchored the bottom with my bike. It ended up raining gently for most of the morning so I was very glad to have it. I also met a group of very nice hikers who were doing a 4 day rim to rim to rim. First "No Moto" sign in GCNP I found t...

Stage 1: Jacobs Lake

Sunrise in Big Water I woke up at sun rise and go to work pedaling to the start. A ton of empty pick up trucks passed me and I hap hazardly stuck out a thumb hoping someone would give me a ride so I could get on singletrack. There was a surprising amount of traffic once I turned onto dirt of people going to assorted trail heads. I got to state line campground around 11:20 and did some stretching and ate a little in the shade. At the Northern Terminus I started up the first hill and it was tough! It was 86* with no shade and a ton of elevation to be gained. I saw a through hiker about to finish only about a mile from the trail head which was a cool way to start. It was interesting I felt like I was on New Mexico style desert, looking at big red rock Utah style desert and marching towards Arizona style terrain. Once up top in the woods the trail became more enjoyable. I was making great progress but right before dark I started to feel weak. I deci...

AZTR Enduro

Search This Blog