Saturday morning was spent packing. At first leisurely, then as the time grew nigh, more rapidly. Eric drove down Friday evening and stayed with us. We left for the Colorado Springs Airport at 11:00am, as planned, picking up Al enroute. It was still raining. The drive to the Springs took longer than expected due to several miles of stop and go on I-25 from I-470 to Surrey Ridge and many miles of "grooved" pavement. We got to the airport at 1:15pm for a 1:50 flight on Reno Air. I parked the car in the overflow long-term mud lot. It was a relief to be checked on to the flight. Norm and Jack had the longest drive down and appeared a bit harassed as they checked in just in time.
The flight was as fine as any vacation flight. All the tickets purchased as a group were seated close, so we could go over maps etc. We landed at Las Vegas at 2:50pm. We picked up the vans and the two groups wished each other luck. They went south and we went north. We stopped in north Las Vegas at a small store called Mario's for the beer, pop and ice for the trip. We were relieved to see the van intact when we nipped out of the store! The drive to the North Rim took close to the predicted time, faster in the new 75mph sections and slower in construction. We arrived at the North Rim Lodge at 8:45pm.
We took care of the check-in, then had a fine meal of pasta and pork medallions in the lodge restaurant. The room must have been 30' tall in the center, all logs. They even had Bass Ale.
We woke at 4:00am and by 4:20 we were having a groggy cup of instant coffee and "cin-a-bun" purchased in the Las Vegas Airport. Our timing was pretty close to optimum, as it was dark when we left the lodge, but dawn at the trailhead 2 miles north. There was still snow in patches from the Friday storm and the weather report put the morning temperature at 29F. The trail was wet, but free of snow. We started down through large pines at 5:00am.
Where the South Rim trails have the full canyon vistas, the North Kaibab trail works its way down the steep Roaring Springs Canyon. The views on the North Kaibab are impressive due more to the steepness in the confined gorge and the hanging side-cut trails. Even with the dramatic cliffs, the trail was wide and provided excellent hiking. We made the 7 miles down to the Cottonwood Campground in a couple hours and enjoyed the last of the monster "cin-a-buns" at a clearing alongside the Bright Angel Creek.
The next 3 miles of the North Kaibab was a gentle downhill cruise through some open and arid sections. During the next 4 miles to Phantom Ranch, the trail follows a narrow gorge through fractured rock. It was about half way through this stretch that we met the south-to-north contingent and swapped keys. We enjoyed a short visit and continued on to lunch at Phantom Ranch. There we sipped iced lemonade under a shade tree from 11:00 to about 11:45am.
The temperature at the Colorado river was only 82F. By 12:00 noon we were starting our climb up the Bright Angel Trail. We kept a steady pace up moderate grade to Indian Gardens Campground and had a 20 minute break for lunch #2.
Then the climb began. After the mile or so of gentle uphill, the trail starts the switch backs on talus mounds that continues right on up to the South Rim. The views of the main canyon open up with each switch back. It became a game to pick a neighboring pinnacle and watch as you climbed even with it and eventually looked down on it. The trail takes on a bit of a circus atmosphere right at the top as there are hikers plodding their way back up ranging from full fledged tourists in dress shoes to multi-day backpackers. Everyone's got their eye fixed on the top. We oozed up over the rim at 5:02pm (Eric) and 5:09pm (Al, Kris & John). What a hike! 23.5 miles.
Eric graciously agreed to pick up the van left at the South Kaibab Trailhead, while the rest of us hobbled over to the Maswick Lodge. There we found a wonderful cooler with beer and wine. We picked the peanuts out of the gorp and drank a beer with our feet up. After a hot shower, we had a fine prime rib at the Arizona Steak House. A full, but fine day.
The 4:30am departure felt a bit rough. Frankly, we could have all slept another 10 hours or so. But a McDonalds breakfast on the road got us to Las Vegas again by 9:30am. We checked in the van and were at the airport in time for the flight back. All in all, the flight forced our schedule but was much less fatiguing than the 12 hour van drive back to Colorado that we had done in the past. We returned home to patches of spring snow. It was a fine trip, and a fine time was had by all!