We got up around 6:30 and start packing up our gear. We had some breakfast and then finished packing. Robin headed out ahead of me while I finished purifying more water. Everyone else is gone. The pump is getting more and more difficult to use and takes longer and longer to purify water but luckily this is the last time I will need to use it on this trip. I can see Robin way up high on the trail and take some photos.

I finally get out of camp at 8:50 and catch up with Robin around 9:45 up on the Tonto. It took me about 35 minutes to climb out of Clear Creek and get above the switchbacks.

It is a beautiful day and I got some very nice shots from the trail. We stopped for lunch around noon, on the west side of Demaray Point, in a very nice spot of shade, behind a large boulder. I know I have used this exact spot for lunch in the past, either on the way over to Clear Creek or on the way back or both. It is a good location as it is just about half-way between Phantom Ranch and Clear Creek. We are not going all the way to the Ranch this day and only have about 2 or 3 more miles to cover after lunch.

After lunch we only need to go for about another hour and we get to Sumner Wash around 2:00 - a nice easy day. We found a nice shelf of rock to setup camp on and then we rested a while. The views from this camp were absolutely drop-dead gorgeous.

I took off around 3:30 and go do some exploring in Sumner Wash and to look for the archaelogic site that Bil told me about. Robin is worried and I tell her I should be back by 4:30. Shortly after I started I became worried that I was not in the right drainage but a little later I found other footprints so I followed them. They looked fresh and there appeared to be more than one set so perhaps they belonged to Bil and/or Mike? I finally got below the Tapeats Cliffs but I didn't see anything. There were several big rockfalls blocking the view of the base. At around 3:50 I reached a pour off in Vishnu and cannot go any further, at least not easily. The site would not be down there anyway so I figured I must have missed it somewhere and I turned around and headed back up the wash. On the way back I decided to climb up and over one of the rockfalls and behind it I discovered some walls. In exploring the area some more I also discovered some pottery shards on the ground. This was very cool. I continued over rockfall and along cliff base to the north and I found more ruins, possibly a kiva. I also found the ammo can with visitor register and sign in. I headed back to camp and get there around 4:45. Robin was beginning to worry but was going to give me until 5:00 before she started looking for me.

I started making dinner as soon as I got back. The sun was starting to set and it looked like it was going to be glorious. There were some clouds on the western horizon that looked like they were already on fire. Robin had chicken soup and a PB sandwhich for dinner and I had some Fettucine Alfredo into which I also threw some left-over Teriaki Jerky. It was wonderful to sit there and eat dinner and watch the Canyon transform itself from day to night. The whole Canyon was aglow with color but the colors that were being reflected off of Zoroaster Temple, right out there in our own backyard, were simply magnificent. I finished cleaning up from dinner just as it was starting to get dark and while doing this I watched the Moon rise from behind the Redwall cliffs on the east side of Zoroaster. I tried to take some photos of the moon but I have not yet got the knack of taking time exposures with the digital camera. The camera was totally freaked by the one bright spot surrounded by darkness and it refused to cooperate. By about 6:15 it was dark enough for stars to start popping out in the sky and I sat and watched for a while longer. There was still a faint glow being reflected off of Zoroaster but it was fading quickly to darkness. I climbed into the tent with Robin and read for a while before going to sleep.