More fun at the canyon.
Although I prefer to stay out in the backcountry for several
days straight, this trip actually worked out quite well. I was able to see and explore a number of areas that I
noticed from my first trip to the canyon.
Although the trip turned out to be a bit more expensive due
to the extra days on the rim, I was quite content with the whole
trip.
I did notice that I made
excellent time on the trail (except Grandview).
The factors here were primarily I was hauling less gear than
my first trip. Also and more importantly, my feet remained in excellent
condition. On my first
trip to the canyon I shredded my feet on the first day, which would
hamper me for the rest of the trip.
This trip I had no such blisters due to good preventative
measures. I will
continue to advocate the use of cloth duct tape.
April
is a good month to go hiking the canyon; the temperatures are
manageable. Although,
they did have a unusually warm week while I was there, the
temperatures from rim to river were in the acceptable range.
I was actually glad that they had the warmer weather.
As a result I did not require the use of crampons.
Hiking down Grandview with ice would have been undesirable to
say the least.
