Cold weather hiking at the Grand Canyon? Yes, of course… it’s not so bad. Well, there was some snow on the trail to hike in. The temps were chilly, but just divine to hike in! No worries about getting too hot or dehydrated in this kind of weather. We started hiking about 9am, not worried about beating the heat if we were hiking during the hotter months. The snow on the trail was more powdery and not too slick, maybe due to the temps being in the teens. It was about 20 degrees when we started moving downward. The trail drops quickly to a spectacular view looking west. Overall, the Tanner Trail offers big sweeping views and is best hiked in cooler months due to the lack of shade. We eventually arrived at the top of the Redwall for a lunch break, enjoying the panoramic views of the river below. The Redwall section is rough but drops quickly like the top section. Then, the trail meanders along ridges and slopes to the drainage that leads to the Tanner Rapids. The trail is about 9 miles and we all arrived by 3:30, in time to watch the shadows lengthen and set up camp near the Tanner Rapids. The night was a chilly 35 degrees. I bundled up and was mostly comfortable, but my lightweight sleeping bag rated for 28 degrees wasn’t quite enough to stay warm. I awoke about 6am the next morning and took off hiking to warm up and to catch the sunrise. Puffy clouds interfered for a dramatic sunrise, but the views of the meandering river were worth the trek. I dropped back down to the camp for a hot breakfast. Later that morning, I took out my paints for a oil study of the rapids and cliffs above. After lunch we took the Beamer Trail for just over 2 miles up canyon to explore. On returning to camp, I whipped up a couple more oil paintings before dinner. We spent time refilling our water for the hike out the next morning. Some hikers got an early start and the other half got going a little after 7:30. It was a joy to watch the canyon fill with morning light. The temps stayed comfortable for the hard climb up. Right before the last 2-mile steep push to the top, clouds rolled in for some interesting shadows. My brother’s new boots were causing him pain and he decided to take the last 2 miles in flip flops. They worked just fine for him! Will this be a new trend? Snowflakes drifted down just before finishing the hike. It was thrilling to watch the snowstorm blow in from Lipan Point! Enjoy these pictures from the hike:
