A few years ago Petter, my mom and I hiked the Grand Canyon from the North rim to the South rim in one day (it's about 23 miles and steep). My experience last time was great- I felt good the whole time and even felt a burst of energy at the end. I was sore the next day but nothing unbearable.
This time was different.
We thought it would be fun to get a group together and do it again, so we got Petter's good friend Christian, my sis Holly, my cousin Crystal and her hubs Jairus, and then me and Petter. Pretty fun group, everybody got along great and had a great time... except me.
I am blaming my experience on bad luck which usually skips me but this time it didn't, it hit me with full force.
We started hiking early in the morning (like wake up at 3:30) and it was still dark. We had headlamps and jackets on because it was about 20 degrees when we started. It was so beautiful watching the sun rise inside the canyon.
The hike started out downhill and steep- and about three miles into it- I discovered I had a huge blister festering on my big toe. I had never had a blister before so didn't quite understand the fix I was getting myself into. We put moleskin on it and we kept going. Everyone seemed to be doing great but I was starting to feel like I was slowing down a bit and my toe was buggy.
Down at the bottom of the canyon it is almost tropical- it's so different than you would imagine and it's nice and warm down there- I would guess it was 75 degrees or so.
We teased Petter that he looked like a tourist- a cute tourist. There were lots of bridges to cross and it is amazing to think of the work it took to make the trail.
We crossed the Colorado River, this is a calm spot but down the river a bit it is full of rapids. By this point I'm starting to feel like I have a club foot.
We had a lot of steep switchbacks to climb and we all started strong- until I got hit with an attack of tummy trouble with it's accompanying diarrhea- yikes. We had about 3 1/2 miles to go and I had to go (if you know what I mean) but there was nowhere to go. We were on the steepest part of the switchbacks and there were people everywhere. I could walk about 20 feet or so and then I would have to sit down and breath through it so I didn't have an accident. It was horrible! The rest of our group went on and Petter stayed back with me- finally we found a clearing with a huge boulder to use as cover and I was able to relieve myself. By this point I was so exhausted and drained from my little attack that Petter had to push me up each step. He was amazingly patient and loving and I am so thankful for such a great husband. We made it about an hour after everyone else- I was so miserable I didn't have a chance to appreciate the beauty of this place.
We went and filled up on pizza and went to our hotel. At the hotel I pulled off my shoes and took a look at the blister- yikes! It was about the size of a quarter. After a hot shower my sister and hubby popped it and wrapped it up (it felt like surgery).
I hope there will be a next time because I really want to enjoy it! The car ride home was long and tiring- but we made it!
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