Grand Canyon North Rim from Tonto East Trail

Grand Canyon North Rim from Tonto East Trail,
Inner Gorge, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

We descended into the Grand Canyon one day in April. It was hard to get a backcountry permit from the National Park Service. They do their job, mind you. Have to keep the stupidest of tourists from killing themselves.

I must admit: without the guidance of a much more experienced friend, I would probably have been stupid enough to get in over my head. Why? Because the desert is no place to fool around. You have to know what you are doing.

We hoisted our heavy backpacks onto our shoulders and lumbered down the trail that started to wind down from the South Rim, headed down Hance Canyon. Down into the Inner Gorge, where few tourists tread. How wonderful to leave the casual gawkers and day packers behind. So down we went, expectantly.

You cannot walk around in the Grand Canyon. You're either a tourist walking around on the roads and vistas of the South Rim, or you're a day traveller down into the gorge via a licensed packer, probably on a sure-footed mule.

Or...you can walk. You can take a casual day hike down one of the few trails from the top, or you can seek out a backcountry permit if you are experienced enough to want to stay overnignt. In this case, we chose to go for it, get the permit and backpack it, seek out the solitude.

This photo was taken on that trip. Down into the Inner Gorge, we wound our way along the serpentine trail called the Tonto East. Up each side canyon, around each branch of each side canyon, of which there seemed to be an innumerable number.

One evening, after we had hiked along the Inner Gorge through the spring heat, we set up camp. Dog tired but wondrous as to the incredible scenery aroundus, I wandered with my camera. This is a bit of what I saw then.

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