BACKPACKING TO THE BOTTOM OF THE GRAND CANYON

Here's a good recipe for walking like a geriatric for a week: Hike 7 miles down into the Grand Canyon with a backpack full of stuff, sleep, then hike 7 miles out the next morning. The North Kaibab trail decends 4255 feet from the north rim visitor center in a series of never-ending switchbacks that eventually lead to the Cottonwood Campground. Once at the bottom, hikers are met by a wall of heat with temperatures hovering right around 100 degrees. We found respite in the nearby Bright Angel Creek that ran fresh snow-melt from the nearby mountains. The irony of a creek in the scorching desert that was uncomfortably cold to swim in was not lost on me. The bottom of the canyon is a lonely place, and spending time there you can't help but feel like an unwelcome guest.  The campsite had only 11 spots that are booked years in advance by swarms of bucket-list wielding 50 somethings. We lucked out and got a last minute cancellation pass even without a detailed life wish list. All in all we packed well for a spontaneous backpacking expedition. Julie did however carry a large cucumber down and back up that we never even considered eating.