Grand Canyon Overview

Before I start on my day to day description of my backpacking trip, I just felt like blathering a bit on a couple of things. I would like to send out a BIG kudos to the National Park Service - Of all the times I have been at the Canyon, I have yet to meet a ranger or any of the staff be anything but completely pleasant and helpful. They truly hire the best for the Canyon! There is one intrepretive ranger (Pam Cox) in particular who works out of Phantom Ranch, who is remarkably friendly and professional and whose presentational style can make the most mundane topics absolutely riveting. They also deserve credit for making the best of the relatively little funding that they get from the government.

I also wanted to comment on one of the most interesting aspects that I always find about hiking in the Grand Canyon (or any quiet area, really). There were several times during this hike when I was by myself that the silence around me was really noticeable. Well, not the silence, really, and that was what was remarkable. During our noisy, daily lives, we usually completely miss the subtleties around us. While walking in comparative silence, though, I began to notice things that I normally wouldn't. A fly buzzes lazily in the distance. A lizard overturns a small rock someplace near the trail. A Canyon Wren calls from a nearby bush. These are sounds that I cherish in retrospect to returning to the noise of the "real" world. When I feel rushed or harried by some artificial deadline, my thoughts return to these things and I find solace and perspective.

Anyway, enough of all that! I was going to post some pictures today, but Photobucket seems to be resisting all attempts to post anything for today, at least. I will try again tomorrow.