Getting Crazy

Stairway to heaven?  I was warned that this trail, the Grandview, is steep.  Steep?  That does not begin to describe it! 

The weather finally cleared over northern AZ and I was able to spend a day at the south rim of the Grand Canyon.  This trail is east of the busy Village area, is less used and not maintained.  It begins at 7481' and after going about a mile on the steep switchbacks, I stopped at a little saddle at 6332'.  OK, I did the math!  That is a drop of 1149'.  This trail makes the S. Kaibab and Bright Angel look like cake walks.  Was it worth it?  Every step, every gasp for breath, every creak in the knees, without a doubt.  I could have gone another 2 miles to Horseshoe Mesa, which was my original goal.  I will save that for another day, when I can get an earlier start.  It was an excellent adventure!

These views of the canyon make it all worthwhile!

My trusty hiking pole shows the how narrow this trail is in some areas!

This is the outside edge of the trail, (looking up from a switchback below) showing how it is "supported" on the slope!  Probably a good thing I didn't see this before heading down.  Ha!  The remnants of a copper mine are at Horseshoe Mesa, and this trail is what the miners used.  Can't even imagine how they built this thing!

This is where I stopped and had my lunch before heading back up.  The most tragic part of this hike?  I stopped at a switchback to catch my breath, remembering that I had an apple in my pack.  I took it out, was zipping up my pack...and dropped my apple!  I watched in horror as it rolled a few feet and then...thunkthunkthunk as it went over the edge!  NOOO!  That was a yummy Honey Crisp, and now some critter will have an unexpected treat.  I did not mean to feed the wildlife...I meant to feed myself!