Backpacking Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon--Day 2--Ribbon Falls

Day 2:  Ribbon Falls, Wall Creek, and rest day at Cottonwood Campground, May 13, 2025

I reserved two nights at Cottonwood, partly on the off chance the North Rim didn't open when expected. Then I'd have the option of blitzing up to the North Rim on this, my second day, and then returning to the South Rim on the third.  Luckily, there was no such trouble with snow on the North Rim, so I had a day at leisure.    

I enjoyed a relaxing morning, then took my mostly-empty backpack and headed to Ribbon Falls, only a couple of miles south of Cottonwood.  

I'd worried that Bright Angel Creek would be dangerous to cross, because two years ago in early May it had been a violent, frothing terror I wouldn't have dared cross.  Last year in late April it had been pretty vigorous.  I wouldn't have crossed it alone, and I would have been very, very careful to pick exactly the right spot.  I heard a couple of tales that year of people who HAD crossed it.  One, an young man, very adventurous and strong, had said it made him nervous but he was okay.  The other was a somewhat older couple, but also very fit and adventurous.  The woman had lost her balance and the current tore off her shoe and sock.  The man, by some miracle, had caught the shoe.  But the sock was history.  And she was grateful it hadn't carried her off.  So...I'd gone into this knowing I might not see Ribbon Falls. 

The first day, however, the moment I saw Bright Angel Creek emptying into the Colorado, I knew I had a good chance.  It just looked like a nice little creek.  When I got closer and saw how clear and relatively gentle it was, I got excited.     

Bright Angel emptying into the Colorado May 12, 2025:

Bright Angel emptying into the Colorado April 23, 2024:

Bright Angel Creek from the bridge at Phantom Ranch, May 12, 2025:

Bright Angel Creek from the bridge at Phantom Ranch, May 8. 2023:  

It's not quite as obvious in these pictures, but look at the color, the white caps, the rocks sticking out (or not), the width.  Nature is so variable.  

Anyway, with the creek so nice and low, I hiked down from Cottonwood to the northern, "bridge" crossing.  Of course, there's no longer a bridge, but you can see the remains of it if you look hard in this pictures:

I went just upstream of the old bridge site, where there seemed to be a trail, and found a really good place to cross.  It was no problem at all at this water level.  Later I heard one group that had crossed downstream of the bridge site that said it was a "nightmare."  I investigated on the way back, and yes, I'd recommend going upstream--at least at this water level.  I heard others say the "creek" crossing on the south end was sketchy.  Others said it was fine.  But I think the braided trails also lead to various crossing points there, so just investigate a bit and pick the best one.  NOTE:  I do NOT RECOMMEND crossing in higher water if you're alone, if you're not used to creek crossings, or if you have any other reason for caution.   And if it's like it was in 2023 when I was here, I wouldn't cross at all.  

I got there at about 8:30 AM and I had the entire place to myself.  It was amazing.  

I played in the pool at the bottom, climbed up behind the upper part, watched the wind change the course of the falls, sat on a rock and let the spray cool me.  Then came the moment when the sun finally made its way down over the cliff walls and lit the upper cascade.  Gorgeous.

The first people got there about 10:00.  I talked with lots of interesting people, all doing the Grand Canyon in their own way, from the thru-hiker who didn't start ultralight but who, after almost 700 miles, is now, except for extra powerpacks he carries so he can facetime his girlfriend for an hour in the middle of nowhere when he finally gets signal, to the guy who had brought several old-school paperback adventure novels because he and his friends were staying at the lodge at Phantom Ranch and could afford the weight.  There was a group camping two nights at Cottonwood, like me, who'd planned to hike up to the North Rim today but decided they'd better save their energy for the unexpectedly long hike back to the South Rim (with the Bright Angel Trail closed partway).  There was a geologist who explained that the mound of Ribbon Falls had formed over the eons like a cave stalagmite.  And the guy who discovered that the little cave we'd been wading into actually had a birds nest with two baby birds in it:

I spent about four hours there, and loved it.  What a privilege to have a day to spend in a place like this.  

By the way, I got a ton of comments on my rainbow water shoes.  

Their tread/soles were good enough to wear all around the falls (with caution), and they were super comfortable.  They are also super light, dry quickly, and will probably become my go-to camp shoes, even if I'm not going to use them as water shoes.  I'm not sure how durable they'll be with hard or extended use, but for this purpose, they were perfect.  Ounces:  5.2 for the pair.  Packability:  great.  Price:  $8 when I bought them (though they're showing $10 now).  Anluke Water shoes on Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078WS7VSL.  Available in plenty of colors/patterns.

After I left Ribbon Falls, I explored Wall Creek just a bit--upstream--because I'd read of someone else adventuring up there.  It was too brushy, but I picked around a bit and found several darling little frogs and this handsome guy:

 Just before I got back to Cottonwood, at 2:20 pm, I met a young woman running BACK from the North Rim already.  "Are you running rim-to-rim-to-rim?" I asked in awe.  Her:  "Yes.  First and LAST time.  It's work."  And me?  I was just lazing around all day in a beautiful place.  Those trail runners are really something else.  

I spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing in camp, chatting with fellow campers, wading in the creek.  Another fantastic day in the Canyon.  

Backpacking Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon--Day 1--South Rim to Cottonwood Campground

Day 1:  South Rim to Cottonwood Campground, May 12, 2025

A dawn start on the South Kaibab, everything misty blue:  

A very, very, very windy sunrise from Ooh Ahh Point:

The most beautiful part of the trail (especially during this time of day):

For any day-hikers out there who just want a little taste of the canyon, I highly recommend the first bit of the South Kaibab (at sunrise, if possible).  Go at least 10 minutes or so past Ooh Aah Point and you'll see the above section of trail, which is one of my favorites anywhere.  Remember that going back up will take twice as long, and there's no water and practically no shade, so carry enough water and go when it's cool.  

Me at Skeleton Point.  Note the scarf to protect my ears from the continuing and very aggressive winds, the knock-you-off-balance winds.  This was my fifth hike into the Canyon and the only one with this particular weather feature.  Luckily it calmed down a little on the few parts of the South Kaibab where you really don't want to be knocked off balance.    

Well-loved trail:

Me at the fork where normally you can go left on the River Trail and right to Phantom Ranch, but the River Trail is still closed for pipeline work (as is the Bright Angel down from Havasupai Gardens).  The South Kaibab had a lot more traffic on it than usual because of the closures.  People going from the river to the South Rim had two choices.  First option:  Go up the South Kaibab to the Tip-Off and then across the Tonto to Havasupai Gardens, where they could pick up the Bright Angel.  This added significant mileage.  Option two:  Go straight up the South Kaibab (steeper than the Bright Angel, really exposed, and without water).  This unexpected prolonging of the closure didn't affect my itinerary, so I was lucky.      

I met a mule train right about here on my very first trip.  What a cool echo.

After playing in the Colorado, having some lemonade at the Phantom Ranch canteen, writing postcards, and filling up with water, I started through the Box on the North Kaibab:

It was getting pretty warm, so I took every opportunity to get my hat and scarf wet in Bright Angel Creek:

Some of the many colors of prickly pear blossoms I saw on the trail:

And there were so many gorgeous, lush sotol blooms, towering over the rest of the vegetation.  Very cool.

The aggressive wind, however, was dehydrating me even more than the 90+degrees Fahrenheit would normally have, and I ran through my water faster than expected.  I was down to my last quarter cup or so (not as dire as it sounds, because I could have backtracked a bit and found a decent route down to Bright Angel Creek or just pushed through to Cottonwood Campground, less than a mile away, but I was still sooooo happy to find this beauty crossing my path:

I sat down in the shady-ish banks of Wall Creek and filtered about 3 liters of water.  

By the time I got to camp, I was hot and tired and happy.  I felt a little bit like this squirrel:

I relaxed the rest of the day, snoozing in the shade of my campsite, chatting with others by the creek--including a cool thru-hiker who let me pick her brain, wondering whether the wind would die down enough for me to put up my tent, cold-soaking my dinner, and then watching and listening to a bunch of bats who were chowing down on bugs at dusk.  What a lovely, lovely day.

By the way, I finally set up my tent before dark (still in the wind), and even though the ground was so hard I could hardly get my stakes in partway and had to shore some of them up with rocks, my tent did really well.  It flapped noisily, keeping me awake for a while.  But it didn't fall down.  Spoiler:  and it wasn't until the next afternoon that one of the less-secure pegs finally pulled out.  So now I've had my first rainy test (last Grand Canyon trip) and my first windy test (this trip), and the tent's going strong. 

It's the Naturehike Cloud Up 1 (20D nylon variety).  I'm not crazy about some aspects of it.  It's kind of cramped (but what do you expect from a one-person backpacking tent?)  The tunnel design is not as handy for getting in and out as other door designs.  There are rather of a lot of stakes and guy lines, so it's not as quick to set up as it claims unless you have really nice, soft ground (but those stakes and guy lines probably help it take the wind as well as it seems to).  However...for the money, it's the lightest tent I've found, it's just big enough for my needs, it packs down fairly small, it has nice features like reflective strips to keep you from wandering off in the night and losing your tent, and so far it's been good in rain and wind.   So...I would recommend it for budget backpackers or people just testing the waters before they invest big.       

Grand Canyon Teaser

 Soon I'll post all about my rim-to-rim Grand Canyon backpacking trip, but for now, here's a simple picture:

Speckled Rattlesnakes

I've posted before about how cool speckled rattlesnakes are, and how the individual populations in the different mountain parks around Phoenix have evolved different colorations according the rocks where they live, the better to camouflage themselves.  Well, here's the first one I ever saw, at Skyline Park, where there are a lot of gray, cream, and light brown rocks:

  

Here's a (blurry) picture of one I just saw last weekend at Camelback Mountain, where the rocks are mostly red and brown:

Pretty amazing, huh?  

The Memory Palace, by Nate DiMeo

Dear Nate DiMeo,

I'm very upset with you.  Your book was just not long enough.  I wanted more, more, more.  I have listened to approximately three podcast episodes in my entire life.  They're not really my thing.  But I am totally going to go out and listen to yours.

I loved this book.  The subject matter was fantastic—interesting and varied.  The writing was creative.  At times the style got a little more experimental or grandiose than I like, but that's very subjective, and I still enjoyed it even in those bits.  I loved how you made these unknown people and strange moments in history so real.

The length, however, was terrible.  I wanted it to be about three times as long.  I'll forgive you, however, if you write a sequel.     

I don't give a lot of 5-star reviews, because I think 5-star books should be pretty near perfect.  But there's not even a question here.  FIVE STARS!

Sincerely,

Melinda Brasher

Of a Feather, by Dayna Lorentz

I really enjoyed this middle-grade novel of love, belonging...and birds of prey. 

The writing was engaging and I loved the characters.  Rufus’s point of view chapters were a little uneven as far as the bird-ness, but I still enjoyed them.   

4.5 STARS.  I will certainly read more by Dayna Lorentz

Tom's Thumb--A great hike in the Phoenix area

Despite hiking a lot in the Phoenix metro area, I'd never been to Tom's Thumb until a few weeks ago.  It was totally worth the drive. 

For scale, try to spot the person standing on the ridgeline:

If I were in the Czech Republic, I would call these "rock towns"  

I named this formation "The Exasperated Backpacker."  Can you see it?  

Tom's Thumb itself:

A beautiful female Phainopepla:  

I took the long way, from the Gateway Trailhead (18333 N. Thompson Peak Pkwy. in Scottsdale), and the trail passed several distinct landscapes and areas of vegetation.  Beautiful.  Once I got away from both trailheads, it was pretty quiet too.  A lovely day.

WARNING:  I did this a few weeks ago, on a cooler day.  If you attempt this in shoulder season, go early and start from the closer trailhead (Tom's Thumb Trailhead).  I would NOT advise doing this in full summer, unless you are well acclimatized, pick a less-hot day, carry plenty of water, start at sunrise, and only do the shorter version.   

MY ROUTE:  From the Gateway Trailhead (easy access from the 101), I took the Saguaro trail to the Gateway Loop trail to the Windgate Pass trail to Tom's Thumb Trail.  I enjoyed a detour to Lookout Point, played a little on the rocks, and went about half a mile on the gorgeous Tom's Thumb Trail northbound before I turned around.  Then I went down the East End trail to the Bell Pass trail, which eventually connected back up with the Gateway Loop trail near my original trailhead.  According to my tracker, it was just over 14 miles and only about 3100 feet of gain (but it felt like more).   

A map of my route, if the forty trail names above confused you (note: all the number on my tracker site are in metric)

The traditional route from Tom's Thumb Trailhead is about 4.25 miles round-trip and 1033 feet gain, a little more if you check out Lookout Point or do any other exploring.  

 

Small Joys

 Found while transcribing a journal of mine from the Czech Republic:

Things I love:

-Strangers lighting their sparklers from yours

-Duck prints on the frozen river

-A billion diamonds scattered in the snow

Total Lunar Eclipse March 13-14, 2025

 Not sure I really need words:

Grand Obsession: Harvey Buchart and the Exploration of the Grand Canyon, by Elias Butler and Tom Myers

As a person currently quite obsessed with the Grand Canyon (though not as obsessed as Harvey Buchart), I thought this was really interesting.  The authors certainly did their research, and though I think it could have been trimmed a bit, it didn’t feel overburdened by the weight of that research.

The style was very readable, and I liked knowing more about Harvey’s early life and later life, as well as the lives of some of his contemporary hiker/explorers.  I also enjoyed the authors’ attempts to recreate some of the routes/climbs Harvey did.  

I enjoyed the pictures.  I wish there had been a few more maps (the famous one on the inside cover was too tiny to be terribly useful)

Overall, a slightly long but very interesting read for someone already interested in the topic.  It might be a bit much for those who aren’t already a little obsessed.

And Harvey…though this book did keep him a bit at arms’ length, it worked for me, because it kept him larger than life.  

4.5 stars

The Secret Language of Birds, by Lynne Kelly

This was a sweet, gentle, middle-grade read about a girl trying to fit in and learning to love birds.

It was a bit repetitive, and some readers might not find it exciting enough for them, but I really enjoyed it.

The cover is beautiful, and of course I loved the details about the birds, the quest to protect endangered wildlife, etc.  

4 stars

Just a Backyard Flower

 Sorry, I took this picture to test my phone's camera, and I thought it was so pretty I had to share:

National Trail Trek 2025

The National Trail Trek is an annual event at Phoenix's South Mountain Park.  It's a 15.5-mile hike from one end of the park to the other, and this year I got to volunteer with it, hiking the trail and helping participants along the way.  It was a beautiful day (back in January), with perfect weather and good fun.

Here we are starting out in the dark:

And here's sunrise:

Some of my trail friends:

And me at the end of the day, still feeling good:

49 Miles Alone, by Natalie D. Richards

I really enjoyed this.  

The desert setting was awesome, and though a few too many dangerous things happened on their trip for it to really be believable, other aspects of the desert WERE believable and well drawn.

The backpacking details were interesting for me, giving it good pacing throughout, even before the creepy, suspenseful part really started.    

The backstory/underlying themes were strong, and I loved the exploration of the cousins’ currently strained relationship.

My only problem was the alternating first-person points of view.  They weren’t always distinct enough, so I kept forgetting whose head I was in.  However, it didn’t seriously affect my enjoyment.  

I will read more of Natalie D. Richards.  

4.5 stars

Grand Canyon Hermit Creek Backpacking Trip--Day 3

October 19, 2024--returning to the South Rim on the Hermit Trail

We had an even longer rainstorm last night.  But around 2 am I think it was, I got up to use the bathroom and the nearly full moon was out for the first time in the whole trip.  Clouds scuttled fast across it, and the sight was so beautiful I just sat and watched.  

Not a very good picture, but you get the idea:

Since it wasn't going to be hot today, I didn't get up before dawn (as had been the plan with the earlier UNSEASONABLY HOT forecast), but I still got up pretty early.  Everything was WET.  There was a huge puddle in my alcove, and a puddle under my tent when I took it down--but nothing had seeped inside.  Yay for my tent.

I tried to de-mud and dry out the tent, but I eventually gave up and packed it dampish and muddyish.

The day was gorgeous.

Where the Hermit Trail meets the Tonto, I saw these beauties:

And this resurrection moss that I doubt was green and soft two days ago (I don't think this is real resurrection moss, but people use the term--and if you ever spy it and pour a little water on it, you'll see why):

At the Cathedral Stairs, the air was still cool enough and my body warm enough from the climb that when I put on my glasses, they immediately fogged up.  And then I saw this:

Yes.  That's snow on the North Rim.  A bit up the trail, I learned from a downward hiker that they'd also had quite a bit of snow at the South Rim.

Just above the Cathedral Stairs, I met a trail runner headed down.  He had probably a liter of water on him and maybe enough room in his waist pack for a granola bar or two.  His plan?  Down to Hermit Creek, along the Tonto, and all the way up Boucher today.  That's about 20 miles with 5700 feet of gain, and the Boucher is, by all accounts, a very difficult trail with a lot of washouts.  Amazing or crazy, I thought.  If (when?) I do that, I'll backpack it in 4-5 days.  Trail runners are a whole different species.    

I stopped for a relaxing lunch at this boring place with no view at all:

That's my freeze-dried lunch cold-soaking in the sun. Yum.  

A few months back, I read a novel that talked about how there's little to no vegetation down in the Canyon.  To that, I say:

The water in Santa Maria Spring, where we were explicitly instructed not to drink the tadpoles:

The day had been gorgeous:  mostly sunny with a few pretty clouds, warm but not hot below, cool but not cold the higher I climbed.  Around Santa Maria Spring, it started getting cloudier.  By the junction with the Dripping Springs Trail it was starting to look threatening.  The sky got darker and darker as we climbed.

Maybe half a mile from the top, on those steep switchbacks, I'll give you one guess who I met.  Yes.  The trail runner.  I hadn't been hurrying, enjoying instead a leisurely hike.  But he...he'd done the whole loop and lapped me.  Sigh.  Hats off to you, trail runner.  I think, however, that I prefer my style of foot travel.

Here's me, at the requisite "Going down is optional.  Coming up is mandatory" sign.  Success!

What a fantastic trip. 

I met my dad at the trailhead, where the wind was picking up and the temperature was dropping.  

I'd worked up a sweat on the uphill section, and I figured it would be best to change into something dry.  I had time to do that and take a quick trip to the outhouse before it started raining.  Talk about perfect timing.  The whole trip, the rain happened a) at night, b) early morning on a day I didn't need an early start, c) as soon as I finished the hike.  Amazing. 

I absolutely recommend this route (but not in hot weather).

See my posts on the first two days of the trip here:

Day 1

Day 2