Total Mileage: 269.5
I woke up at 4 am with a fire under my ass. Not actually, but it was cold, and I probably wouldn’t have minded it.
On the move by 5 am, I needed a big week. I was just shy of 43 miles to Pine, AZ and I needed to get there by the end of the day. I had very little battery life left, and I wanted to charge my stuff overnight instead of taking 3 hours the next day to do it. Two birds with one stone was the name of the game.
The hiking was tough, a lot of uphills. I met an older guy named “Cheese it” on the trail who said it was mostly downhill for me from there. Not sure what “Cheese it” was putting in his juice that the morning, but the trail was anything but downhill.
I kept pushing; 20 miles, 30, 35, 40. I arrived at the highway to Pine at midnight. I then walked 2 miles into town. I found an outlet outside of a laundromat and plugged my stuff in, laid my pad and sleeping bag out, and fell asleep on the side of the road, hidden by some bushes.
The next morning, I resupplied, had a big breakfast, and was back at the trail by 9 am. Knocked out a 34.2-mile day. The following day a 40.3 to make it to the Saloon at Mormon Lake, get my resupply box with my 13th and final pair of shoes, and have a Ribeye steak dinner, courtesy of another fellow Looper named “Phish”, who was there to meet me. We hung out for a bit; he gave me some intel on the section coming up, and I pitched my tent close by, next to a jeep road.
I had 37 miles to do today to make it to the REI in Flagstaff before they closed at 8 pm. I desperately needed new shorts. I was tired of the whole western United States catching a glimpse of my left ass cheek flapping in the breeze. I made it. Barely. I had no desire to deal with laundry, so I just bought a new pair of socks instead.
My good friend Levi’s dad, Steve, lives in Flagstaff; he picked me up and took me to a killer Mexican restaurant. He then dropped me off at my motel and brought me back to the trail in the morning.
It was a cruiser section from here and I was able to get 41.5 for the day. I was in a large open meadow, and the next morning the wind was whipping and it began to snow. I was one layer short of being reasonably comfortable but, as it stood, I had to continue to push hard and stay warm. I got 41.7 in for the day.
After 20 miles the next day, I made it to Tusayan, AZ. I resupplied at the general store and the prices they charged for things were borderline criminal: $9.49 for a thing of Oreos! Cigarettes were cheap, though.
I had 6 miles to make it to Grand Canyon Village and the ranger station to get my permit for the park. It was 2 pm and the ranger station closes at 5. As I was applying mustard to my microwaved “Big AZ” chicken sandwich, a woman walking by asked if I was doing the Arizona Trail. I said yes, but no, and briefly explained the loop. Her name was Jen Hogen, and she’s a ranger in the park. She was able to get me a permit over the phone and help me figure out logistics through the Park, the Tonto Trail, and the South Bass Trail. She saved me a bunch of time, gave me a map, and pointed me in the right direction where I didn’t have to walk the 8 (not 6) miles to the Grand Canyon Village. Thank you, Jen!!!
After doing everything I needed to do, I crammed in another 11 miles for the day, getting down into the Canyon, which was significantly warmer than up above. Ending the day with a 32.9. this week was hard, but I got the weather window I needed and an easy trail.
I may just pull this crazy thing off after all…
