Monday, April 07, 2014

Below the Rim - Day 1

After storing my bike to use at the end of the hike to retrieve my van, I drove to Grandview Point, the "jumping off point" of my hike.  By 9 am I was slowly making my way down, dropping hundreds of feet of elevation in a couple of hours.

By lunch, I had reached the Tonto plateau, along which I'll hike for the next 3 or 4 days.

It was warmer as I descended, pungent odors from some bushes reached my nose and tiny lizards dashing off the trail as I approached.

I stopped a couple of times for water and a rest, but it wasn't really hot and there were pleasant breezes along most of the trail.

At one point, I had views of the Colorado, still another 1400 feet below.

I stopped at one little seep of water and filtered some to top up, not being completely sure where the next supply might be.  Half an hour further on, I came to Grapevine "Falls" (actually Grapevine Springs), where there was more water and a good place to camp for the night.  My tent site is already in the shade as the sun drops behind a ridge.  It's been a 10 mile day and time for some rest.

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