A Club Fat Ass Adventure to the Grand Canyon featured in Breathe Magazine. See the original article at: http://www.breathemag.ca/news/news.php?recordID=23
It was 10:15 and raining out side when I saw the minivan pull around the corner. I grabbed my bags and raced out to the van to start our mad dash to the Grand Canyon. For the next 30 hours we would switch off drivers only stopping for food and gas. The clock was ticking on our quest to conquer the Grand Canyon's Rim to Rim to Rim. A double crossing of the Canyon in one day covering a distance of 50 miles and 15,000ft of gain.
As the sun came up some where past 20 hours the sky had cleared, and out the window it was starting to look more like the Wild West. In just a few hours and we would reach the canyons edge, that is if we could keep Ean, the current driver, from stopping at every view point along the way.
After finding our campsite we just couldn't wait to get the legs moving so we headed out on a pre run scouting mission. All lacking sleep, our proposed shortcut to the South Kaibab trail head lead us on a hilarious misadventure through scrub brush and non existent trails, ending up along the side of the road. After running the road back to the camp we all agreed to follow the well marked paved path to the trail head in the morning.
Before the sun set for the night we took in one last look across the canyon to the North rim, over twenty miles away. Looking down you could just barely make out Phantom ranch at the bottom and the Colorado river carving it's way deeper into the earth. Though the distance is not anything new to this seasoned group of Ultra runners, the vast depth and space of the canyon definitely makes us all consider the amount of effort the traverse would require. We feasted on our last meal at the bar in the lodge and then headed back to camp to prepare for the next day's journey.
4:00am and slowly but surely I started to see the headlamps click on one by one. We packed up the van and ran from the campsite to the canyons edge, following the agreed upon path to the trail head. Back at the campsite the brisk morning air was calm but on the canyons edge it was anything but. We took a group picture, all hoping it was not our last.
After leaving the trail head and rounding the first switchback the wind tried violently to blow us in to the darkness below. Thankfully as we descended down into the canyon (and through time and history) the wind calmed down and the temperature rose. The Journey we came all this way for was now under our feet.
Half way down the canyon an orange glow of the sunrise filled the sky. We hadn't come to set any records so we all stopped to take in the amazing sight of the canyon coming to life in the early morning. We turned off our headlamps and careened down the trail like a group of kids. Only running fifteen minutes from the last stop, we stopped again before the next set of switch backs to do a head count. "Four, Five - ? We're missing someone". It's Rick. We looked back up the trail and saw no one. A few minutes passed and still no Rick? Finally after starting to walk back up the trail we saw a small figure in the distance running down the trail. He had just missed seeing us drop over a set of switch backs and had turned around and ran back up the trail. Now all together we finish the decent to the bottom and raced across the suspension bridge that spans the Colorado river.
Just after crossing the bridge we ran into the park ranger out on morning patrol. He gave us a stern warning to give hikers the right of way on the trail... like we had already done something wrong. "These two weeks are the busiest weeks for rim crossings and there's a dozen people already in front of you."
We made our way through Phantom Ranch trying to avoid the smells of morning breakfast. The next six miles were just amazing. The trail winds its way back and forth over countless foot bridges and along a raging creek. The temperature in the canyon must have been around eighty most of the day. Just perfect considering how hot it can get down there. We hiked it up to the north rim but only stayed for a sort time due to the bugs that were trying to eat us. We were now half way!
After the 8,000 climb to the North Rim we were all grateful to be heading back down. Everyone was feeling good at this point so we stretched our legs and flew down the trail. As I came flying around the corner I saw Ean and some hikers standing along side the trail looking at something. "Oh! There's a three foot coral snake in the middle of the trail." We took some pictures and left the hikers to fend for them selves.
The stretch back to phantom ranch seemed to go on just a little longer than remembered, though in the end it had to be some of the best running of the trip. When we arrived at phantom ranch we found no one manning the store. Disappointed that we couldn't enjoy a cold coke we carried on and made do with water. At the water stop I looked over and saw Colin looking a little burned up. Little did I know that soon I too would be looking and feeling the same. Only taking one water bottle full of water I headed on again feeling great. In fact as soon as we crossed the river and headed up the canyon I was feeling super and took the lead. It's just one last climb. Well after running out of water at about three miles up I wasn't feeling so super. I had thought that we were going to hit water sooner but I was wrong. So I just walked it the next few miles.
"Water!" We had made it to the small camp of Indian Garden. We all filled up and regrouped for the real climb ahead. After my little bout of dehydration I got my energy back and was on the attack again. The sun set quick and in the dark canyon you could see the twinkle of flashlights zig-zaging back and forth, far above on the switch backs ahead. As I caught up with the rest of the group I passed Colin, not looking much better than before. We all stopped at the next water fill up and gave him a good look over. Still far from the top we decided to lighten his load and do our best to keep him moving. Only a few miles to the top but still a few thousand to climb. The trail just never seemed to end as we climbed up and up. We passed hiker after hiker slowly trudging up the trail. I think we all felt a little for them as we knew we'd be up and out much sooner then they would be. Though it always feels long at the end we all made it out of the canyon in one piece. With the wind now blowing again and the air cold and crisp I yell out over and over "We did it!" We then made our way back to camp taking the bus instead of running. With no time to spare we piled back into the van and set off for home, only stopping for food, gas and a little sleep this time.
We had run the Grand canyon Rim to Rim to Rim in just 14 hours and 10 minutes. Not a record, but an unbelievable "weekend adventure". We had driven over 3,000 miles and from start to finish our trip took us 100 hours to complete. I had to laugh when later I received the email saying that the rental agency had to send the lot attendant back to check the odometer one more time. We definitely got the most out or our unlimited miles. I would like to say a big thank you to Geoff Palmer, Rick Arikado, Glenn Pace, Ean Jackson and Colin freeland for letting me tag along on this incredible journey and of course Vancouver BC's Club Fat Ass for supporting it all.
Thank you!
Daniel Probst
Photos: Club Fat Ass
