Bucket List: A Winter Hike of the Grand Canyon

    Over the last two four decades  I have been a teacher in a traditional classroom school with a floor, walls, ceiling, duties and a rigid calendar.   Though I had taken dozens of summer hikes of the Grand Canyon I had never hiked the in the winter.  Over decades I pondered the challenge and the beauty that a winter hike would offer but I never was able to break away from the demands to take the journey.  Things have changed so it was time to do that winter hike I always wanted to!

     My adult son Luke came with me for that winter hike in January 2019.  I am so glad he did. My survival depended on his youth and strength.

Luke and Tim January 12, 2019 the day before.

       The first day we arrived is was beautiful.  Blue skies, sunny and cool but not windy.  We toured the rim taking in the beauty.  That evening we camped at Mather Campground.  It was not busy and all the sites were snow covered.  We slept in the car that night.  
       The next morning we made it in time for Mass at the only Catholic Parish in the National Park System.  Fr Father Rafael L. Bercasio approached me (as we were there early) and asked that I do the first Reading which was from Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7....the words that meant something special to me were:

       "Faithfully he presents fair judgement; he will not grow faint, he will not be crushed until he has established fair judgement on earth, and the coasts and islands are waiting for his instruction.  I, Yahweh, have called you in saving justice, I have grasped you by the hand and shaped you; I have made you a covenant of the people and light to the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from prison, and those who live in darkness from the dungeon."

    The reading almost brought me to tears given all that I have been through in the previous two years.  It truly was an emotional moment for me.  Faithfully presenting fair judgement, not being crushed despite the attempts, then being personally called to saving justice, having the Lord grasp my hand and shape me and he has called me to free captives from prison and those who live in the dungeon.  If you know me then you know these words touched me.  Somehow being in the place I love, surrounded by God's beauty, supported by my healthy and strong son and facing a challenge was the therapy I needed.  I am blessed by a wife and family who love me and encourage me to continue doing this sort of crazy thing.

     There was some snow on the ground though so as a precaution we purchased "tiger claws" (crampons) for our hiking boots.  These give you a grip on ice patches that would otherwise lead to a nasty fall.  Buying the last two at the Village Plaza on January 12, 2019 was the best decision we made on the entire trip.

The last two tiger claws (clampons) at Canyon Village on January 12, 2019.

Views as we went down the Kaibab Trail.

     The government was shut down the entire time of the scheduled trip but unlike previous shutdowns there were no rangers guarding the trails and preventing you from taking a wilderness hike.  If you had a permit then you were allowed to go but no changes or new permits would be issued!  That was awesome!

     The trip down the Kaibab on January 13 (2019) was spectacular, comfortable and the temperature went from the 40's (we started about 8 AM) and was in the high 60's upon arrival at Bright Angel Campground.  Unlike summer hikes where you are in a hurry to beat the heat there is no  such rush in the winter.  Surprisingly neither Luke nor I were sore.  It may be that in addition to the relaxed pace you are more likely to set your heels with the "tiger claws".  There was snow on top of ice covering much of the trail on the way down.  So careful stepping may have helped reduce that Kaibab shuffle we usually get when take that hike in a hurry.  No need to beat the 10 AM sun in the winter!  

       After setting up camp we traversed to Phantom Ranch for our Steak Dinner.  It was (as always) fabulous and we met rafters, other hikers and mule passengers.  Winter clearly brings an older crowd but all young in heart.  I ran into hikers who used a cell phone successfully for GPS device on the Tonto Trail between Indian Gardens and Hermits Rest.  That was cool to hear and see how they used it.  I plan to get a cell phone like that some day.  I hope prior to my next trip with a real barometer, real compass and high GPS sensitivity.

Luke under load was the perfect hiking companion.

It was a fabulous trip down. The snow receded as we went lower in elevation.

That night we slept well. Temperatures were in the forties at Bright Angel that night.
My son and I felt good the next morning and did a day hike up Clear Creek Trail. We sat in the famous stone sofa built by the depression era workers with nothing to do. The couch like arrangement of flat stones form a perfect seat and backrest. The stones use no cement or adhesive. They are just fitted in a way that is fully secure. 9 decades later the bench is still there smoothed by all the people who have sat in it. It is a rather incredible work!

Luke tries out that famous stone bench.

    We had a Stew Dinner the next night at Phantom Ranch.  I like it better than the steak! It is a much better deal that meets your need for fluids and nutrients.

     The next night was drizzling and in the 40's F.  We slept in the group campsite which was right next to our campsite.  The group site was empty, has a roof and there were no rangers to enforce the permits any way. We did not bring a tent and had planned to use the tarp but the empty sheltered site was luxurious with a strong sturdy water tight roof.    I slept on the stone seat under the roof sheltered from the rain.   Other campers joined us while we slept and I woke up to 7 additional hikers sleeping  under the shelter roof. They were on the ground but also under the roof.

Signs that there was a storm coming.

    We took our time the next morning and left in the afternoon.  We should have left much earlier. 

      On the way (January 15) out there was a snow storm dumping 8 inches of snow at the rim where we planned to end our hike.  We did not hit snow or discomfort (beyond the drizzle) until we entered the clouds at about 4000 feet.  The temperature then dropped rapidly.  By the end of the hike the temperature got to 20 F.   The wind gusted to 30 mph.     
     The snow also limited visibility and the only view was of the immediate snowy surroundings.  Below the snow on the steep trail there was an inch of solid ice so the "tiger claws" (crampons) we wore were absolutely a fabulous buy and prevented us from sliding too much on the steep Kaibab Trail.   The trail became faint to the eye in this darkened snowy condition. 

      Both Luke and I were totally covered with snow except for our eyes and mouth.  We were very much slowed in our ascent and made it to the Kaibab Trail head in the dark.  All the buses had stopped running.   We were very very cold and exhausted. I had water repellent outer linings on my gloves and jacket.  I had two pairs of pants that were both polyester.  So it was tolerable for me.  My son had not pampered himself with these luxuries.  So as the snow caked up on his cotton clothes his body heat melted the snow into his backpack and clothing.  They became wet and heavy. When we arrived at Cedar Point Luke put on warmer and dryer clothes though everything was damp.

It was getting colder and harder.  This is the last camera shot as we had to race out  or get snowed in..

      Finally we left Luke's heavy pack at a rest house near the the road not far from the Kaibab Trail Head.  Then we went on a search for our small subcompact car.   

     We had to hike another mile and a half to get to the car which was off the road in a parking lot.  It was very dark, snowing heavily with a wind.  The snow fall obscured our view beyond 50 yards.  Our small car was hidden in a snow drift and we had trouble finding it as we had no working GPS (my cellphone was not waterproof and packed always).  Finally I saw the outhouse and a bump half way from the road to  the outhouse in the snow.  The "bump" was our car!  I dug out the snow at the air intake and at the exhaust pipe.  We got in the car and started it up.  We let it idle.  We really needed a warm car right then.  My son fell asleep quickly. 

     I then walked a mile down the unplowed road to where the road closure gate was strapped to a Ranger truck that had lights flashing, motor running, doors locked and was empty.  I looked in the back of truck and there was a shovel!  I returned to the car with the shovel. So Luke and I spent the next 3.5 hours shoveling the car out, chipping at ice and were able to finally drive the car over the 4.5" of unplowed snow to road closure gate.  We parked next to the Ranger truck.  We unlatched the gate from the truck, push the gate open, moved the "pylons" out of the way and drove our car out of the closed road onto a road with only 2 inches of snow.  We were so giddy!  Then we closed the gate, re-strapped the gate to the truck, replaced they pylons and put the shovel back in the ranger truck and headed home.  It was about 2 AM.  We were laughing possibly due to the cold but also the whole idea that we had to move a gate to get off of a closed road.

     So I got my wish.  A true winter storm.  It was really fun and I can assure you I will not do it again!