South Kaibab Trail Head down to Phantom Ranch and back up to Bright Angel Trail Head [Pictures]
Distance: 19 Miles
Elevation Changes: 7,260 - 2,480 - 6,860
After our hike up to Yosemite's Half Dome in October, my wife and I tackled one more hike for the year in November 2007: a trip to the floor of the Grand Canyon and back up. The Grand Canyon was our first stop during our summer road trip, but because we had Sam (our faithful Terrier) along with us we could not descend below the rim. We had talked about hiking down to the floor of the Grand Canyon and back up for some time, and decided that November was as good as a time as any.
Our plan was to:
- Drive from San Diego to the south rim of the Grand Canyon on a Friday,
- Camp in the Mather campground Friday night
- Start our hike from the South Kaibab trail head around 6:30 AM
- Reach Phantom Ranch at the floor of the canyon around 12:00 PM
- Return to the south rim via the Bright Angel Trail around 6:00 PM
- Camp Saturday night in the Mather campground
- Drive back to San Diego on Sunday
We arrived at the Grand Canyon National Park around 5:00 PM, close to sunset. We secured our campsite, pitched our tent, and were in bed by 8:00 PM with the alarm set for 5:00 AM. We ended up making good time after waking up and, after catching the shuttle to the South Kaibab trail head, started hiking a tad before 6:00 AM. It was still dark out and we had to use our headlamps for the first 45 minutes, or so.
The National Park Service strongly discourages hiking from the rim to the canyon floor and back up again in one day, especially during the summer months. Around 250 people per year require rescuing when hiking these trails because of dehydration or overexertion. There is very little shade throughout the trail, few water sources, and in the summer temperatures can easily eclipse 110 degrees. Plus, many people underestimate the difficulty and time needed to hike from the canyon floor up to the rim. A good rule of thumb is to budget twice the time to go down as you expect to go up. The signs posted near the rim trail heads express it eloquently: "Going down is optional; coming up is mandatory."
The temperature for us, however, was never an issue due to the fact that we struck out on this trail in November and most of the afternoon was overcast. The temperature ranged from near freezing at the rim to a shade below 80 degrees at the bottom around noontime. Except for the early morning and high afternoon, the temperature fluctuated between 60 and 70 degrees.
The South Kaibab Trail is much steeper than the Bright Angel Trail, which is how we returned to the canyon rim. The Kaibob trail descends roughly 4,900 ft. in 8 miles, whereas the Bright Angel Trail rises 4,600 feet in 11 miles. This was our motivation behind descending from Kaibab and ascending on Bright Angel. Also, Bright Angel has more plentiful water sources, making it a safer trail during the summer months. Of course, going down is not a walk in the park. It's hard on the knees and back. But it requires far less physical exertion than going up.
Here is a picture of some of the many, many switchbacks on the Kaibab Trail.
We reached the canyon floor around 10:00 AM, ahead of schedule, and crossed the Colorado River via Black Bridge.
The South Kaibab and Bright Angel Trails both terminate at the Bright Angel River delta, which is a lush stretch of land formed by the Bright Angel River, one of the many tributaries of the Colorado River. This delta is home to many trees, deer, and bugs, and offers a stark contrast to the otherwise barren and dusty wasteland that we had experienced up until this point. The delta is home to a rather large camping area; it is also the home of Phantom Ranch, a ranch/resort and a popular destination (and starting point) for mule tours.
After a stop by Phantom Ranch for an ice-cold glass of lemonade, we were ready for our ascent to the south rim via the Bright Angel Trail. We started by returning to the south side of the Colorado River via Silver Bridge. Here is a striking view of the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River. This picture was taken looking east from Silver Bridge; Black Bridge is visible in the distance.
After many miles and many thousands of vertical feet, we neared the top. Looking back you can see a portion of the Bright Angel Trail far below.
The best view of the switchbacks of the Bright Angel Trail, however, is shown below. This picture was taken back in May when we visited the Grand Canyon on our road trip, and was taken while hiking along the South Rim with Sam. As with any picture of the Grand Canyon, it's hard to grasp the immensity of scale. To give you a sense of the scale, the thin ribbon of trail below compromises nearly 4.5 miles and 3,000 vertical feet!
We made it back to the South Rim a little after 4:00 PM, tired and sore. We rode the shuttle back to our campsite, took a shower, and ate at one of the restaurants in the park before falling asleep around 9:00 PM. We hit the road the next day around 7:00 AM and drove back to San Diego.
All in all, it was a fun and very tiring trip. I did not enjoy the scenery nearly as much as the High Sierra scenery, but the Grand Canyon is an amazing piece of natural art and is a natural wonder everyone should experience. Standing at the rim and peering out into the vast space that is the canyon is amazing and awe inspiring. Walking down into that void offers a more intimate and detailed sense of the Grand Canyon's enormity and the raw power of nature.
