The Hotbox
Achievement Unlocked! We had crossed the Black Bridge over the Colorado River. After more than 6 hours into the hike, we reached our destination. Everyone's spirits had been rejuvenated, it was only 1/2 mi to Phantom Ranch where we could rest, eat lunch and laze around. Not gonna lie, I was particularly looking forward to cracking open a cold one with the boys.
It was a little past 12:30 pm and Rahul’s thermometer showed it was about 100F/37C. Very quickly we reached the watering spot at Bright Angel Campground. The others rested while Sunil and I went and thoroughly wet our t-shirts and got a drink of water from the tap. The water was warm, but welcome, especially when we soaked our t-shirts it felt cool within minutes as the water evaporated in the dry Arizona air.
We headed into the canyon along Bright Angel Creek to Phantom Ranch. As soon as we entered the canyon the temperatures shot up to 117F/47C. The canyon walls radiated heat from both sides and created an oven with the setting on broil. I brought up the rear to ensure we did not leave anyone behind. The group had grown quiet the heat was sapping energy, and my t-shirt soaking wet 10 mins back was bone dry. The last 1/4 mi was hard, with no one to be seen we had celebrated too soon, this final hurdle was yet to be crossed.
Khanda reached the Canteen first, he was thinking ahead and had ordered six lemonades. Everyone grabbed one, found a spot in the shade, and sipped the cool drink. The lemonade at Phantom Ranch is overrated, dishwater served over ice would taste just as refreshing after six hours of hiking during an excessive heat advisory. My thoughts next turned to looking for a camping spot, it had to have shade and be close to the creek so we could cool off. I saw Shabd going to the Canteen. Was he going for a refill on the lemonade? No. He checked if cabins were available and got us an A/C room for the day. I was afraid of a mutiny on my hands, trying to get this crew to camp in this weather, this was a big relief. We had lunch, theplas, and paranthas and headed into the cool cabin set at a welcome 72F/22C and everyone quickly fell asleep for a welcome siesta.
I was to find out later that what we had gone thru was not the Hotbox, it is further past Phantom Ranch. Just as well, I can’t imagine what the temperatures there would have been that day.
The South Kaibab Trail
We had planned to hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for a few years, but I never won the lottery for cabin reservations at Phantom Ranch. This time I got a backcountry permit for overnight camping at Bright Angel Campground, this suits me just fine, I was gonna have my way through no fault of mine. Cabins and RVs are for wimps. The extreme heat advisory that came with the permit was concerning, I was hoping our practice hikes have prepared us well.
Getting from the hotel in Grand Canyon Village to the South Kaibab Trailhead took ~1.5 hours. Some logistics were involved here, parking the van at the Bright Angel Trailhead so it would be waiting for us at the end of the hike and then having to take two shuttles. It was 6:30 am when we started and saw the first views of the Grand Canyon, which were breathtaking. I felt like a child at Disneyland for the first time, I can only imagine this cause I did not go to Disneyland till my late 20s. Within a 1/2 mi, we were stopped for 15 mins by a Park Ranger cause they were clearing the trail of minor rockfalls from an earlier storm. She kept the growing crowd occupied by pointing out the various features, wildlife, and types of rocks. Super interesting stuff and very nice of her, but at the back of my mind was we are getting late and can we hurry this up? Why can’t rockfalls happen at places where we needed to rest anyways? I need to work on my patience and go with the flow. Later I found out one of Sunil’s hiking poles broke, he had the presence of mind to request the ranger to dispose of it. Any dead weight we did not have to carry was welcome, maybe that delay was not all bad.
“ Today we are going for a great dinner at the best restaurant in the GCNP, the hike begins tomorrow” said Shabd. This was a great attitude to have, it was going to be all downhill to Phantom Ranch, enjoy today cause tomorrow will be a butt kicker. The views were expansive and changing often enough to keep us engaged and in awe.
The conversation turned to my Darn Rough socks, I had paid $26 for one pair. This was more than Dharmesh paid for his pants, backpack, hiking poles, and tent. The lady at REI had done a good sell job on the socks and I had fallen for it. Turns out Khanda also had the same socks, at least I was not the only butt of jokes. Best not to mention how much I paid for my hiking pants.
By 9 am it was getting hot, well into the 90F/32C range, we were sipping on our CamelBak and swigging electrolyte-laced water, with the occasional Salt Tablet. I had packed all my bottles and the CamelBak with ice and topped it off with cold water, which was the best decision of the day. A sip of cold water every now and then was a little treat I looked forward to. Blowing back into the CamelBak after taking a drink, prevents the water from heating up in the tube and you always get cold water. Whoever came up with this protip deserves a medal.
The Tipoff
Four hours after we had set out we were getting close to the Tipoff — a third of the way to Phantom Ranch. Temps now were 98F/35C, there is no shade on the way down to speak of and the shed at the Tipoff was a welcome break before we descended into the promised oven of the Inner Canyon. The shed has a couple of Sintex tanks for collecting rainwater, this is not potable but when available can come in handy for cooling down. Lucky for us there was still water in one of the tanks, another reason to be thankful for that earlier storm, this caused a twinge of regret at my earlier impatience.
Time to get everyone's T-shirts wet, so that evaporation would cool us down as we head into the Inner Canyon. Sunil had brought a plastic shopping bag for this very purpose. I took off my T-shirt and thoroughly soaked it in the plastic baggy of rainwater. Surprisingly the others did not want to take their t-shirts off, this group was shy. To be fair I had never asked them to get topless before, this was a first for me too. Now was not the time for modesty this is serious.
I fell back to our rich mythology and summoned my inner Dushasan and started tugging at people's t-shirts. “ABBEY! SHIRT UTTAR”. Strangely this made them more resistant to part with their garments, this Vastra Haran was going just as well as the mythical one. My task was harder, Dushasan had only Draupadi to deal with, and I had four guys. Neither had he hiked in the heat for four hours before attempting his shameful act. Sunil very quickly caught on and promptly assumed the role of Shaukni Mama. He was cajoling people to part with their shirts with promises of how relaxed they will feel in their soaked plastic “Bag Ka T-shirt”. Between the two of us, we got Dharam and Rahul to part with their shirts which were soaked and returned.
We then set out into the Inner Canyon and the Hotbox.
