The Grand Canyon - Rim 2 Rim 2 Rim

“The wonders of the Grand Canyon cannot be adequately represented in symbols of speech, nor by speech itself.” - John Wesley Powell

After that all I can say was wow! Going into the Rim 2 Rim 2 Rim I was a little over confident.  Over the past 14 years I have run nearly 30k miles will millions of feet of climbing, but nothing, short of living near the canyon, can truly prepare you for the double crossing. 

The idea of a trip to / run across the canyon was hatched by a few of my friends (Doug, Donal, and Mat) over 2 years ago.  I jumped on board quickly having known others that have done it.  It sounded like a great challenge.  But unfortunately due to the state of the world, it got postponed.  

The Rim 2 Rim 2 Rim represents a double crossing of the Grand Canyon.  It is somewhere between 42-48 miles in length and can be done a variety of ways.  We chose to go South to North to South using the South Kaibab trail to descend (in the dark), the North Kaibab to climb to / descend from the North rim, and then the Bright Angel trail back up the south side.  Our route was about 44 miles with just over 11,000' of climbing.  

Our trip was 4 days long.  We left Boston on a 6am flight direct to Phoenix, stayed in Flagstaff for a night and then at the Yavapai lodge for 2 more.  We completed the run Saturday and flew back the following day.  

Shortly after arriving we made a stop in Sedona for a shake out run.  Southern Arizona is known for having an abundance of trails and didn't disappoint.  We did a 6 mile out and back called Devil's Bridge which was pretty run-able minus the final climb.  After some recovery food and beer, we made our way to our Airbnb in Flagstaff.  

We started out the second day with an early morning run around Buffalo park and even hit up a short section of the Arizona trail.  With the adrenaline running high, we were already planning our next big adventure; Tahoe Rim Trail?  John Muir Trail? the possibilities are endless.  

After some breakfast, we finally made our way out to the Canyon (~1.5 hour drive from Flagstaff).  Having spent a good deal of time in the mountains and even some at various national parks like Arches and Canyonland, I still wasn't prepared for enormousness of the Grand Canyon.  We stood there at the visitor's center steering out at the North Rim repeating to ourselves "We are going to do what?"

Later that evening we grabbed dinner at the tavern next to the Yavapai lodge and few more of our friends arrived (Matt, Madhav, and Matts uncle Hank).  Our plan for the next day was to start at the lodge, run to the South Kaibab trail head (2.5 miles), do the crossing, and then run back to the lodge from the Bright Angel trail head (1.5 miles).  Still confident in our abilities I suggested a 5am start, but Matt, who had done this last year insisted we move it up, so decided to start at 4:30.  

The Run

After a 3:50am wake up and a light breakfast we were on our way.  With a new moon that week it was pretty dark.  We arrived at the trail head just before 5am.  

The Weather

The weather forecast was a solid 60 degree swing with starting temps at 30 degrees and canyon supposed to reach near 90 by early afternoon.  Weirdly though we never saw most this as the uphill wind we encountered while descending kept it at least 50.  Additionally, we managed to stay out of the sun for ~85% of the day which helped keep the temps fairly moderate as well.  None the less, I overdressed during those early miles and quickly head to shed layers only a few miles in.  

Those first 6.5 miles from the top of the south rim to the river we magical.  I am not really one to talk about life affirming experiences, but ascending down a trail, in the dark, by head lamp, as the canyon begins to light up as the sun rises was pretty special.  We felt like we were in a painting.  The adrenaline was at full power for all as we zoned in on ever step, every switchback, achieving a flow state.  

We reached the river around 6:50 and stopped for a few photos.  It was so quiet as the work had not yet woken up.  

At this point we had descended over 4500' and were eager to see how our bodies would respond over the next 9 miles.  While, this section is great for running, it does have ~2000' of climbing, and does tax the system on a day that is already long.  Mat set a steady pace through this section and got us to the
Cottonwood campground by 8am.  17.2 miles and 1500' of climbing down.  The fun was about to start.

While the next 6 miles were tough, it really was only the last three that really hurt.  I am used to just grinding out steep climbs.  Here though, with the switchbacks, it really was run-able, but I just wasn't prepared to put in 15% grade mile after mile.  Honestly I think I would have found it easier to climb just at twice the grade and get it over with.  

Around 10:30am, I reached the North Rim.  We had gotten strung out a bit during the climb, but re-grouped fairly quickly.  

This is when Matt and Madhav, pulled one of the hero moves of the day and jogged a 1/4 up the road and re-filled out bottles for the rest of us.  There were not words to express out gratitude.  

Gear

Gear for adventures like this is both crucial to comfort as well as safety.  Below is a list of what I had with me and I used almost everything I had. 

• Gloves, Winter Hat, Rain Jacket (shell), Tights
• Space Blanket
• Headlamp, Back up flashlight
• USB Charger
• 5 X waffles, 2 X Untapped Maple Syrup, 1 lb Swedish Fish
• 2 Peanut Butter Wraps 
  
• 2.5 Liters of Water, .75 Liter Gatorade

After a 15 minute break, we began our descent feeling pretty good.  After about 6 miles we hit really run-able terrain and started to throw down some decent miles (or so we thought).  The problem we were running into is the GPS watches only work well when they have good satellite coverage.  The more satellites, the better they can triangulate your location.  In a slot canyon like this, your coverage is limited.  At one point, my watch told me that I ran a 24 second mile (post run I used gpx.studio to clean up the track).

We hit the 50k mark right around when we got back to the Cottonwood campground.  At this point we had descended about 9500' and climbed 6500', but the real fun was still yet to begin.  Once again, being a fan of the mountains, I am used to ascending and then getting to descend back to the car.  No such luck with a canyon as the only way out is up.  There are even signs that say "Descending is optional, ascending is mandatory."

From Cottonwood back to Phantom Ranch / Bright Angel Campground / the river is another really nice section.  You drop another 1500' over 8 miles and can really move if you have anything left in your legs.  We were able to hold 9-9:30 for most of these miles.  By the time we hit Phantom ranch, we were in the hottest part of the day and decided an extended break was warranted.  We purchased some ice cold lemonade ($5 with $1 refills), found some shade, and re-grouped.  9 miles and 4500' of climbing to go.  Something we were all dreading. 

After about a 15 minute break, I took off solo figuring some others may catch me on the climb.  The next 2 miles weren't too bad as you crossed and then hugged the river.  There were a few stream crossings and some soft sand, but I was able to shuffle along without feeling too taxed.  

I caught a few more hikers in this section and they would flatten up against the wall in an effort to let me pass.  One misstep and you had about 100' fall into the water.  

As the first set of steep switchbacks began, I just put my head down and soldiered on.  After about a mile, I looked down and could see Donal and Madhav working their way up the trail.  I yelled "Donal!!!" and could hear it echo throughout the canyon. 

Next up was the Indian Garden campground which marked 4.5 miles to go.  This was a bit of a let down as with my wonky GPS, I had thought there was under 4 left.  I
refilled my water bottle one last time and kept on trucking.  

While I was really hurting at this point, it was clear pretty much everyone trying to get out the canyon was in the same boat.  I passed another sign cautioning against going to the river and back in one day.  It put a smile on my face.  

As I passed a couple taking a quick break, I said that if they saw my sleeping in the middle of the trail up ahead, not to worry and just step over me, they laughed and said they would have to get that far first.   

As I arrived at the 3 mile rest house, I wanted to cry.  How could I still have 3 miles left?  As I turned and looked back down the trail, I could see Donal and Madhav again, but now they were just 100 yards or so back.  As they caught up, I tried to hike with them but quickly fell off the back.  As I looked up, I could still see just how much farther up I needed to go. The sun was starting to set and I was eager get out of the canyon. 

My next focus simply was to get from where the rock changed from red to white, one step at a time.  Finally I reached the 1.5 mile rest house.  No matter how much I was hurting, I knew I could make it through that last section.  With 1 mile to go it finally got so dark I needed to pull my headlamp back out.  I counted down the distance remaining: .85, .70, .55, .4, .3, .25. .2, .15, .1, 0.5 ... finished.  

-- 49.1 miles -- 10:40 moving time (14:00 elapsed) -- 13:01 / mile -- 11,641' climbing --

That last .1 miles put a smile on my face as I could see the trail head. That was one hell of a day.  

Donal and Madhav had reached the rim about 10 minutes ahead of me and as soon as I finished took off to get a car to come back and get the rest of us (hero move #2 of the day).  Mat finished about 20 minutes after me with Doug about 5 minutes after that.  Matt and his uncle Hank came up a little over an hour later.  

Back at the hotel, we enjoyed a gourmet dinner of Ramen with a beer, just happy to be sitting down, in clean clothes ... totally exhausted.  

The next morning, Doug and I jogged back over to the rim and looked across one more time.  It was wild to think that we had run all the way across and back the day before.  

We made our way back to Phoenix for our flight back later that day, already wondering what the next adventure will be.  

- Scot