30.09. Grand Canyon

Today we set off to another part of the canyon.
After a short journey, we reached a charming train station, idyllically located by the canyon, not far from the gorge we wanted to climb. With a slight muscle ache from the previous day, we quickly descended into the canyon to tackle the long descent of 7 kilometers and earn ourselves a breathtaking view of the Colorado River.
We battled against the darkness that would fall in six hours, and driven by the anticipation of the view, we made good progress. However, the view of the main canyon was limited, which made the descent seem a bit one-sided. In the valley where campers can overnight, we were ready to tackle the last two miles to the viewpoint.

For a short time, we had to seek refuge in a hut, as a helicopter brought supplies and stirred up a lot of dust.

After the helicopter left, we used the time to eat our sandwiches and continued on our way, joyfully anticipating finally reaching our destination and seeing the Colorado River flowing through the Grand Canyon from above. When we wanted to venture down the 'dirt road' to the plateau, we were welcomed by a sign stating that the plateau was closed due to construction work. We couldn't believe our eyes and didn't want to accept it. Unfortunately, two workers came towards us confirming this.

The entire descent, which lasted over three hours, was for nothing!

Clearly disappointed and morally defeated, we began the strenuous journey back. But there was also a silver lining on the horizon: we agreed that the further path to the plateau would likely have given us an even more arduous ascent in the dark. We had simply arrived too late to manage the long tour.

So we soaked our clothes in water, as the sun was still beating down, and stomped off.

During the laborious ascent, accompanied again by some squirrels, we were surprised at the end by mountain goats. Together with other climbers, we experienced the ascent as a little community – in the end, we all cheered together.
Exhausted, we got into the car and drove back to our apartment. After another battle against moths and spiders, we enjoyed a simple dinner, watched Robin Hood together, and then fell asleep.

Small fun fact: The floor in our accommodation was carpeted. Again and again, we stepped on small sharp pieces that almost severed our feet with every barefoot step, as painful as these little sharp pieces were. From day one, we wondered what these nasty little creatures were. Google Lens eventually became our savior in distress. And lo and behold: it turned out to be the dead flower of a plant with the charming name 'Goathead'. Obviously, we had unknowingly dragged these little troublemakers into the house as they grew right outside the door.