Spring Break

I went to the Grand Canyon over spring break, and it was awesome (here is the link to my Flickr photo set of the trip, if you are interested). If you haven't been to the Grand Canyon you should try to go... its really pretty.

Friday we drove to Arizona and camped on the rim, and it was cold! There was snow on the ground and later we found out that it might have gotten down to 18 degrees that night. Luckily we were all 6 in one tent, so we cuddled up for warmth. The next day we hiked all the way to the bottom (9.3 miles with heavy packs). It took almost all day, but we were rewarded with 2 nights of restful camping at the bottom where it was fairly warm. We hiked halfway up on Monday, then the rest of the way up on Tuesday. We were able to watch the sunset over the rim on Tuesday, then we stayed in a hotel on Tuesday night because we didn't want to stay in the cold again. Wednesday we drove home.

The hiking was pretty intense because even with all of the switchbacks some parts were really steep. I finished with a great sense of accomplishment - but next time I'm riding the mules to the bottom (since I also finished with a sense of exhaustion and insane soreness).

Overall, though, it was very beautiful and a great trip. I think its something everyone should see sometime during their life. I know for me it was an opportunity to check off a life goal.