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It got as cold as 46 degrees in my tent, and that was without
Ben in it (he opted for the car). Brr. But my sleeping bag was
good enough. Still, I got up a bit after 6am and felt like I wanted
to take a walk -- partly because I wanted to see the trail, and
partly because I wanted to stay warm.
Our campsite in the North Rim Campground.
So I started hiking on the Transept Trail.
View of the canyon after sunrise
After breaking camp, we drove to Cape Royal Road. Ben dropped
us off and we hiked the Ken Patrick Trail from Cape Royal Road to Point Imperial.
After that hike, we made the drive along Cape Royal Road to Walhalla
Overlook and walked the Cape Royal Trail.
After enjoying the views, we started our long, 5 hour drive back
to Las Vegas. Along the way we stopped at Nedra's Cafe (Highway
89A, Fredonia, AZ, 520-643-7591) for lunch.
Parting Thoughts
Each park has its own unique characteristics. I would have to
say I like Zion the best, however. It's large enough and diverse
enough that it merits at least another trip. I'd like to hike
the Narrows sometime -- they were too cold, deep, and swift to
hike at this time. And hikes to Angels Landing, the Kolob Arch
and Cable Mountain would be nice. I especially liked hiking and
camping out on the East Rim, where there was a great sense of
remoteness.
Bryce Canyon is fascinating to look at, but it's a very small
park and I feel like I've seen almost all there is to see there
-- in just over a day. I had this sense like I was walking around
in a museum -- nice to visit, but once is probably enough. There
are so many other parks to visit. On the other hand, I did enjoy
staying in the Bryce Canyon Lodge, and I can imagine just staying
there and telecommuting would be cool. =)
I saw so little of Grand Canyon that it's hard to form an opinion
about it. I would definitely like to hike to the bottom sometime,
perhaps from rim to rim along the North and South Kaibab trails.
I'm sure the park offers more than what I saw, but I have to admit
that I was a bit disappointed. I guess my expectations were too
high.
I also learned a fair amount about hiking and camping in particular.
Useful things, like always bring more hiking socks than you think
you'll need (Ben will appreciate that). Always wear a hat at high
elevation. Keep your DEET securely packaged. etc., etc.
As I write this almost two weeks after returning, I have to say
I miss it. Once you get drawn into the experience, you just want
to be out there more.
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