Kansas City Wedding Photography | Allison Marie Photography

Have you ever done something when immediately afterwards you said, “I will NEVER do that ever again!!”…but then find yourself thinking only a few days later, “oh, it wasn’t really that bad…I could do that again”?  That’s exactly how I feel after my adventure last week! My dad and I flew to Flagstaff, Arizona and drove and hour and a half to the breathtaking Grand Canyon. An extremely beautiful, “words-just-can’t-even-begin-to-express” sight. Even simply standing at the top of the Canyon, I felt so small because of its enormity. We spent the evening enjoying the beauty at the south rim of the canyon, and then got up early the next morning to begin our backpacking trip to Phantom Ranch, the bottom of the canyon!!! It took us 6 hours (including breaks) to hike to the bottom. What an incredible feeling to backpack to the depths of the canyon! It’s a feeling words can’t express. At every curve, I had to pause for the breathtaking WOW that stood in front of me. We arrived at the bottom and nearly every part of my body ached…my shoulders and back from a heavy backpack, my hands and arms from the hiking poles, my neck from a sunburn, my calves from all those steep steps, and my feet from huge blisters! Here are some photos from our journey to the bottom:

Some fun colors on the cabins at the top of the Canyon.

The view from the top at sunset.

Our tent! Yes, I do believe that was a one-person tent…or as my dad said, “it’s a great tent for a husband and wife, but a bit snug for Dad and daughter!” It was cozy for sure!

We hiked down the Bright Angel Trail, which is 9.5 miles to the very bottom.

All geared up and ready to start our descent!

See that patch of green trees way down there? That’s not even half way to the bottom!!

This was a (imagine me singing) “HA-le-lu-jah!!!” moment, as there are way too few restrooms with as much water as we have to drink!!

This was at the half-way point to the bottom…it was HOT!! I loved the sign underneath the thermometer!

Check out this incredible bridge! What a beauty! It goes over the Colorado River, which was chocolate brown when we were there! Right after we passed over the bridge, we finally reached our destination: Phantom Ranch! While I was walking across it, I couldn’t help but remember the 35W  bridge collapse in the Twin Cities a couple years ago. Scary!

So, the rest of the pictures are from the hike up, which unfortunately, I was not in a state of feeling eager to take photos! After my Dad and I arrived at the bottom, I began to have a  terrible stomach ache. Well, without telling you all the details (you’re welcome!), I ended up sick all night. What a terrible memory of the bottom of the Grand Canyon! That was not in my plan!!!! We got up early the next morning to start our journey up the canyon, and of course my body was extremely weak and dehydrated. It was a very very very challenging hike up to the top (at many different points, I really didn’t think I would make it out alive! ha!), because I had such little strength. But…we made it! It was a bummer of a night at the bottom, but I survived!

My dad and I took a long break under the shade of a tree before made the final ascent to the top. As we were resting, this photo below shows what was ahead of us to endure! I counted TEN switchbacks that looked incredibly steep (this pic is taken from above, once I had made it half way up), and to show you perspective, I circled the person in the photo. Talk about steep and long! When we made it to the top, I had tears in my eyes because I couldn’t believe I made it!! Wow, what a huge sense of accomplishment!

And, for the final photo…here is our “tent” for the last night! Yes, we slept in our car the last 2 nights because we were way too tired to put up the tent! And oh boy, did a hot shower at the top of the Canyon after a few days without a shower feel AH-mazing!!

As I look back, would I backback the Grand Canyon again?? Welll….yes, maybe! It was more pain than I had ever been in, but it was SO worth it! If any of you blog readers desire to do it, maybe we can plan a trip next fall…I’ll just make sure I don’t get sick at the bottom! ;o)

OH and I almost forgot…maybe you’ve noticed that I have been really bad about continuing my 1001 in 101 goal list! Well, this trip checks off three of my goals in one! #31, go camping – Check!   #33, hike the Grand Canyon with my Dad – Check! And #35, sleep under the stars – Check! (I slept in a hammock at the bottom of the Canyon!)