Thrice Solo Below the Rim

April 2-9, 2002

Normally I plan months in advance for my trips, but the airfares were too low to pass up.  One thing lead to another and I decided to head back to the canyon.  I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to get an itinerary, but I lucked out and was able to get 3 nights between Horseshoe Mesa and Cottonwood Creek.  Hotels seemed to work out the same way.   I was able to grab openings on various nights as cancellations became available.  I was able to grab Maswick, Bright Angel Lodge, Bright Angel Lodge cabin, and one night at Phantom Ranch.  I would continue to play a shell game with both my itinerary and the hotels on a daily basis, tweaking my trip as I went along.

 It turned out that my first two days would be down South Kaibab, night at Phantom Ranch, then up Bright Angel.  I was able to stay at a Bright Angel Lodge Cabin.  I would go down Grandview and stay just the one night on Horseshoe Mesa then leave the next day instead and stay again at Maswick Lodge.  I changed the itinerary and found an opening at Indian Gardens and did considerable day hiking in the area.  I had an assortment of trails, campgrounds, and hotels.  It would turn out to be a great trip.  It allowed me to visit areas that I noticed and wanted to explore from my first visit to the canyon.