On the first day I went from the South Kaibab trailedhead to Phantom Ranch and then on to just west of Demaray Point on the Clear Creek Trail.

06:17 pm - Clear Creek Trail – Demaray Point

I got a later start that expected today. When I woke up at 4:00 this morning I checked the weather at Grand Canyon and the temperature was only 13°F. I had wanted to be at Cedar Ridge for sunrise and have breakfast there but I didn't see it warming up before the sun came up so I bailed on the early start and stayed in bed. I finally got up at 4:30 and on the road to the south rim by 5. I arrived at 6:30 at which point the temperature was up to 18°F. I had a nice breakfast at the El Tovar - biscuits and gravy with scrambled eggs and sausage. The gravy was very spicy and very, very good.

When I arrived at the Canyon around 6:30 the temperature was up to 18%deg;F and by the time I finished breakfast the temperature had risen another 10 degrees and it was up to a balmy 28°F. I headed over to the Backcountry Office and caught the 8am shuttle to the South Kaibab trailhead.

I started down the trail at 8:25 and it was still a bit chilly but at least not bitterly cold. I just had on a long sleeve shirt and a sweatshirt and was very comfortable.

I arrived at Cedar Ridge at 9:05 and spent about 15 minutes there wandering around and taking photos. I met a nice couple from Long Island there who were looking for day hiking advice and I talked them into going out to Skeleton Point.

I got to Skeleton Point around 10am and they were right behind me. I managed some nice shots of them with their camera with the Colorado River below them and Phantom Ranch behind. They were quite satisfied with the view and grateful of my suggestion.

I left Skeleton Point at 10:25 and arrived at The Tipoff at 11:10. I actually sat down there and had a Clif Bar as I was starting to get hungry. It was also starting to get warm and I decided to loose the sweatshirt.

I arrived at the river around 12:30 and was at Phantom Ranch by a little before 1:00. I spent a little more than an hour at Phantom Ranch and ate my bagel with peanut butter and blueberry preserves that was originally supposed to be my breakfast. I also had a nice cold cup of lemonade and picked up a couple more bagels for my next two breakfasts. I was feeling very tired when I arrived at Phantom and not thrilled at al with the idea of leaving.

I left Phantom around 2:15 and the hike up to the Phantom Overlook was the warmest of the day and the only time I actually broke out in sweat. I made it to the overlook by 2:45 and at 3:00 was at the base of the Tapeats contour.

I finally broke out onto the Tonto at 3:30 and made the mistake of laying down for a few minutes... which ended up being about 10 minutes. I did not want to get up but when I did I felt pretty good. I breezed along the trail and when 5:00 came I was just west of Demaray Point and started looking for a place to camp. I found a nice one in the drainage just west of Demaray and had camp setup and had even eaten dinner before the Sun went down.

It is 6:48 now and almost dark. The Moon came up almost as soon as the Sun went down and it is very close to full. It should light things up very nicely here tonight. It is very quiet here and the only sound is from a handful of crickets. There is no wind at all. The crickets probably won't last long and will be quiet as soon as it starts to get cold. It is not that bad right now. It feels so good to be laying down and hopefully I will sleep good tonight.