dwfoster.com

yet another personal site on the web

The Grand Canyon, Arizona
Ever since I first experienced The Canyon in 1964, while on a trip through the southwest with my father, I had a keen, but unfulfilled desire to see below the rim. Although it would be another ten years before I would visit again, it wasn't until 1981 that I finally set foot below the rim for an overnight hike. Having hiked here several times since, I've now grown most attached to this place. My first trip was not on one of the first time hiker recommended main trails. It was the Boucher-Hermit loop hike off the South Rim. This hike taught me very quickly about the demands of hiking The Canyon. Subsequent hikes found me wandering around Thunder River and Deer Creek, Powell Plateau and North Bass Trail, and most recently, Tuckup Canyon. A few years back, I reluctantly did the Bright Angel with my nephew, his first time in The Canyon and my first down the heavily traveled trail. Despite the crowds and the heat (it was the middle of July), I was still able to enjoy the inner canyon. I do dislike crowds though, and therefore prefer more remote regions of the park, particularly those leaving from the North Rim. Some of the most beautiful and rugged trails in the entire canyon start on this side of the Canyon. Because of its location and relatively short season (May to October at the higher elevations), the North Rim receives far fewer visitors than the South Rim. Not that the South Rim is any less visually pleasing, but as Edward Abbey put in print, "I find that in contemplating the natural world my pleasure is greater if there are not too many others contemplating it with me, at the same time." To the right you'll find links to journals I kept on some of these hikes.