It was about 32 degrees out when we set out. We were dressed accordingly.
On the South Rim, 6:30am Gwen, Panthea, me, Stephen, Kelley and Marshal |
The South Kaibab Trail drops sharply into the Canyon. At times the trail is runnable, at other times it turns into roughly hewn stairs created with logs and/or rocks. In fact, along the entire course, there are rocks and log in the trail itself, designed to keep rain water from washing the trail away. Jumping over those water barriers is easy enough early in the day, but gets harder as the miles go on.
Descending the South Rim |
Kelley and Me Descending the South Rim |
Stephen and his Goodr sunglasses South Rim Descent |
The South Kaibab Trail descends over 4,000 feet in about six miles before reaching a tunnel that leads to the bridge over the Colorado River. It was much warmer when we reached the bottom, even though it was still early.
Bridge over the Colorado River |
After the Phantom Ranch, the trail winds into a narrow canyon and begins to climb, slowly at first, but then more and more steeply.
In the Canyon |
In the Canyon |
But the water was on at both Cottonwood and Manzanita. That's the third time in a row the Ranger has said faucets would be off, but in fact some or all were on. I suspect that the Rangers don't want people to feel too confident. Similarly, there are few signs giving distances between locations, presumably because this could be misleading given the terrain. Yes, it may be just five miles to the top of the South Rim, for example, but it is a very steep five miles. In any event, there was plenty of unexpected water along the route, and no need for purification tablets.
The climb up the North Rim starts in earnest after Manzanita. The North Rim is over 1,000 feet higher than the South, yet the climb is less severe. There is a good deal of runnable ground, not to mention some amazing views.
Climbing the North Rim |
Climbing the North Rim
I ran with Stephen for the first nine miles, then slowly moved ahead. About half way up the North Rim, I caught up to Gwen. Marshall and Kelley were ahead of me the whole day. I only saw them once, while I was finishing my climb of the North Rim and they were descending.
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Gwen Climbing the North Rim |
Near the North Rim |
Me
North Rim |
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In the Canyon, heading back to the South Rim |
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Bridge over the Colorado River Afternoon, looking towards the South Rim
I felt strong on the final climb up the South Rim, and caught up to Gwen again about a third of the way up. We worked together the final four miles to finish in 12:15, a respectable time. We made it to the top at 6:45pm, well before sunset and did not need to use our headlamps. Kelley finished in 11:15, and Marshall was somewhere in between us.
Stephen, by far the least experienced of the five of us who attempted R2R2R that day, finished his second ultra ever in a very respectable 16 hours. He was alone most of the day, and hiked much of the South Rim in the dark. Well done, Stephen.
Running across the Grand Canyon in a single day is, in many senses, an extreme thing to do. But I am lucky enough to be in good enough health to take it on. More importantly, I have a great group of friends who are supportive, capable, experienced and calm. As a result, running R2R2R seemed like no big deal. But I know that it is, and I am grateful for being able to do it at all.
My first experience at R2R2R, several years ago, was very different. It was my first ultra and, despite being in excellent condition and having plenty of running experience, I did not know what to expect. As it turned out, I did just fine, but one of the other runners in our group was not. He "bonked" badly, and I had to half-carry him up the South Rim in the dark. But that's another story, for another time.
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Finally, a few more pictures, just because I can:
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