Rim to Rim. 23 miles. 14 down, 9 up. About 7,000' deep. Temps ranged from 55 with monsoon-like rain to 105, but sometimes with a breeze and it didn't feel that bad. I was surprised how much water and green is found along the trails. I sure wanted to spend more time in the water!
And the Colorado...incredible! I really wanted to stop there longer, climb down to a beach and stay for hours, but the whole ascent loomed before us and the day wasn't getting any cooler.
Later on it got cooler, though! When the downpour began. Before the rain, I was dunking my cap in the stream at every crossing and pouring cold water down my back. When it began above Indian Gardens, it felt refreshing. By the time we reached 3 mile House, we were well chilled and the place was packed tight by everyone who hadn't brought rain gear. We pulled ours out and headed up again.
What else? We found a scorpion in the sink of the Phantom Ranch ranger trail crew bunk house where we stayed (ahhh, connections!) and I scooped it into a jar and carried it out for Madison (who left before me) who collects bugs. She loved it! Even had a little alcohol vial ready to store it.
And I learned from a native - Rachael - that it's not "the" Grand Canyon, it's just Grand Canyon.
I used some of the hours on the trail to think some things over and change my mind. For example, I observed two of the main thoughts that define me: cheerful, determined optimism and the conviction that things just aren't going to work out and a sort of despair that accompanies that. The first used to rule while the second took a distant back seat, but after too many failures and disappointments, I realized that until I could figure a few things out and make some changes in my thinking, the conviction was right. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Other negative, limiting perceptions I've carried since the beginning were getting in the way of the successes I otherwise should have enjoyed.
Once an option becomes consciously visible, it becomes a choice, and I doggedly held onto the positive and put it back in the driver's seat. It was NOT easy while feeling so uncomfortable - hot and exhausted - near the end of the trail, but I did it anyway.
Thoughts like those negative convictions are a lot like Grand Canyon. They're deep. They've carved their way into your brain, and they're not easy to climb out of. But with determination and some know-how, it can be done.
And if you know the right way to do it, you don't simply shift your Colorado River to a new desert and begin carving out a new perspective. You actually fill the old one in so it can never come back. You change. Transform. Convert. You come home better than you left, even if a bit tired and sore for the effort. THAT is the one good thing about going down to the depths. That's what makes it all worthwhile.
Rim to Rim. 23 miles. 14 down, 9 up. About 7,000' deep. Temps ranged from 55 with monsoon-like rain to 105, but sometimes with a breeze and it didn't feel that bad. I was surprised how much water and green is found along the trails. I sure wanted to spend more time in the water!
And the Colorado...incredible! I really wanted to stop there longer, climb down to a beach and stay for hours, but the whole ascent loomed before us and the day wasn't getting any cooler.
Later on it got cooler, though! When the downpour began. Before the rain, I was dunking my cap in the stream at every crossing and pouring cold water down my back. When it began above Indian Gardens, it felt refreshing. By the time we reached 3 mile House, we were well chilled and the place was packed tight by everyone who hadn't brought rain gear. We pulled ours out and headed up again.
What else? We found a scorpion in the sink of the Phantom Ranch ranger trail crew bunk house where we stayed (ahhh, connections!) and I scooped it into a jar and carried it out for Madison (who left before me) who collects bugs. She loved it! Even had a little alcohol vial ready to store it.
And I learned from a native - Rachael - that it's not "the" Grand Canyon, it's just Grand Canyon.
I used some of the hours on the trail to think some things over and change my mind. For example, I observed two of the main thoughts that define me: cheerful, determined optimism and the conviction that things just aren't going to work out and a sort of despair that accompanies that. The first used to rule while the second took a distant back seat, but after too many failures and disappointments, I realized that until I could figure a few things out and make some changes in my thinking, the conviction was right. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Other negative, limiting perceptions I've carried since the beginning were getting in the way of the successes I otherwise should have enjoyed.
Once an option becomes consciously visible, it becomes a choice, and I doggedly held onto the positive and put it back in the driver's seat. It was NOT easy while feeling so uncomfortable - hot and exhausted - near the end of the trail, but I did it anyway.
Thoughts like those negative convictions are a lot like Grand Canyon. They're deep. They've carved their way into your brain, and they're not easy to climb out of. But with determination and some know-how, it can be done.
And if you know the right way to do it, you don't simply shift your Colorado River to a new desert and begin carving out a new perspective. You actually fill the old one in so it can never come back. You change. Transform. Convert. You come home better than you left, even if a bit tired and sore for the effort. THAT is the one good thing about going down to the depths. That's what makes it all worthwhile.
Grand Canyon is amazing. There are so many ways to describe it, and I could go on and on and on. I used to go back to visit my family. But now, my reasons for going back have changed. Now, I go back just to be in that place. I go back for comfort and peace and mostly healing. It’s true, the canyon heals, and I’m glad it revealed that side of itself to you.