Grand Canyon Memories – Yesterdays and Today
For the last forty years Grand Canyon has played a pivotal role in my life. It’s a special place that can’t be appreciated in photography or works of art or even by description of the written word.
I read once that the average time a visitor to Grand Canyon National Park is ten minutes at the South Rim overlook and twenty minutes in the gift shop. I’ve been lucky. That’s not been my experience.
Since 1982, I have hiked various trails nine times, five times staying overnight at Phantom Ranch or the adjacent campground. My most recent adventure was just prior to my seventieth birthday and was meant to be my last.
Reading the news this morning that a monsoon had wreaked havoc on this magnificent place stunned me. I’ve spent the morning looking through pictures and written memories, grateful I had the opportunity to experience this place and hoping that somehow some part of Phantom Ranch and adjacent campgrounds may be restored.
In 2013, Kay and I hiked “Rim to Rim.” A day hiking down in the heat from the North Rim, two days recovering and relaxing at Phantom Ranch, and then back via the Bright Angel Trail. We’re not speedy hikers so we planned to start our hike out that morning before sunrise. During the night we heard thunder and saw flashes of lightning but knew we had to leave. After crossing the bridge to the Bright Angel Trail, we became aware we weren’t crossing paths with descending hikers. The trails were flooded and every so often we extended our hiking sticks to help one another forge ahead. By the time we reached the more or less halfway point of the Indian Wells campground, rangers were ordering everyone to evacuate as soon as possible for fear of rockslides.
Trudging on, we passed under heavy orange tinted water flows from the switchbacks above and we could hear the echo of a nearby jackhammer working to avoid precarious rocks loosened by the rain.
We made it safely to the South Rim and were met by a ranger who said because of danger the park was closing the trail due to the monsoon.
We were lucky. We were tired. We were dirty (I still have the once white hiking shirt hanging in my closet, now permanently pink) and starving (we filled our cafeteria trays twice before going back to our room for the night and a long, long shower.)
Grand Canyon will always be there, but our ability to experience its wonders may be limited for years.
If you have a “spot,” a special place that means the world to you, don’t wait. Create lifelong memories.