Winter Backpacking in the Grand Canyon

Hi Everybody

I am starting to toy with the idea of a backpacking trip to the Grand Canyon in December. Anyone have any thoughts on the pros/cons of taking on a 3 to 5 day solo camping trip vs signing up for a guided tour in that part of the country? I have never been there so the environment will be entirely new to me. I hike alone in the WM and am comfortable with the terrain, have the right gear and maps, know about the unpredictable weather, etc. If you have toured the Grand Canyon, I'd be interested in hearing about your solo or guided group experiences and recommendations for moderate to strenuous winter hikes.
Thanks!

Hiking in the desert has some significant differences from hiking in the NE. Particularly notable are the heat, low humidity, and lack of water. Many of the deaths in the canyon are due to over-exertion in the heat and/or dehydration. Rain, when it comes, often results in flash floods. Water requirements can be a gallon per day (and may have to be carried for the entire distance).

In December, the North Rim will almost certainly be closed and inaccessible due to snow on the roads. Snow can also block roads along the South Rim. One should also be prepared to deal with ice and snow on the trails near the rim (ie at least bring something like microspikes). Fall is the rainy season in that area (which may extend into Dec)--flash floods are a hazard.

Grand Canyon has several "corridor" trails (N Kaibab, S Kaibab, and Bright Angel) which are in good shape and patrolled. All other trails are officially unmaintained and can be rugged.

I'd suggest that you do something shorter for your first hikes in the area--day or overnight on the corridor trails. If solo and you have heat problems you will have no one to help you. The best time to visit the canyon is in late March, April, or early May. The Canyon is 4K-5K feet deep (from the S Rim) and you have to climb up to get out...

Permits are required for overnight hiking.

Get some decent guidebooks for the canyon and read up on the details. "Hiking the Grand Canyon" by John Annerino is one good one. (Anything by Annerino on hiking in the desert is likely to be good...)

A first place to look for info on the web is the NPS website: http://www.nps.gov/grca/ and there is lots of other info that you can find with a search engine.

If you want to dream, get the books by Harvey Butchart on the GC... (Butchart was the expert on hiking the canyon.) Another classic is "The Man who walked through Time" by Colin Fletcher.

Doug

Thank you!

Thank you both for some great advice. I put in a request at the library for the book you both recommended and will most likely be back with more questions. While I like the idea of a multi-day camping trip, I will look into staying at some of the lodges since I really don't think I could, nor would I want to, carry 4 gallons of water for several days.

Barkingcat said:

That Doug Paul is spot on.

....December.....encountered a full range of weather/seasons. Some days up on the rim it was 15 degrees with a foot of snow and plenty of ice on the trail, while down near Phantom Ranch, it was 75 degrees with flowers in full bloom and trees just starting to turn color. After starting out up top, the winter gear went back in the pack after about 45 minutes and from that point on it was shorts/shortsleeve shirts.

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This is my expereince too. There was no real problem following the trail treadway despite snow. At the time I was there snowshoes and crampons were not needed though it was slippery. At the bottom is was hot - 80s and there is no shade. One of the largest temp range I've seen on a day hike. I would not want to do the hike in summer.

lawsofmotion said:

Thank you both for some great advice. I put in a request at the library for the book you both recommended and will most likely be back with more questions. While I like the idea of a multi-day camping trip, I will look into staying at some of the lodges since I really don't think I could, nor would I want to, carry 4 gallons of water for several days.

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The Annerino book is pretty cheap (http://www.amazon.com/Hiking-Grand-Canyon-Sierra-Totebook) and, IMO, worth owning. Lots of howto info for travel in the desert as well as in the GC.

In GC, one may end up using ephemeral puddles etc for water on some routes, but there is reliable water in some places. For instance, you can hike down S Kaibab Tr (dry), cross the river on a bridge, and camp (water) near or stay at Phantom Ranch (a walk-in motel--reservations required and hard to get). You can then hike back up to the S Rim via Bright Angel Tr (water at Indian Gardens). Check before going.

John H Swanson said:

This is my expereince too. There was no real problem following the trail treadway despite snow. At the time I was there snowshoes and crampons were not needed though it was slippery. At the bottom is was hot - 80s and there is no shade. One of the largest temp range I've seen on a day hike. I would not want to do the hike in summer.

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I had no problem in late March, but I just talked a very experienced NE hiker who turned back because of ice on the trail...

Expect wide variations in temp in the desert as well as from altitude. It can be below freezing at night and 90+F during the day. My first time in the canyon (in August, with my family--I was probably ~14) it was comfortable on the S Rim at ~7am and 114F at the bottom (with hot rocks all around) in the late afternoon. Shade can also be hard to find on some routes... On a more recent visit (late March 1999) it was below freezing on the S Rim at 5am and in the 80s on the Tonto Plateau (3000 ft down) in mid-afternoon.

Spectacular place, but a harsh environment. (A bit like winter hiking in the NE--if you know what you are doing, one can be reasonably safe. If you don't, it isn't hard to get into serious trouble.)

FWIW, there have been some trip reports that may interest you (just search on "Grand Canyon" in the titles of the trip reports):
* A nice 5-day hike:
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=35882
* A case of hyponatremia:
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=30482
* A hike where one had serious dehydration problems:
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=12751
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=12752
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=12753

Doug