After 2 days of rainy weather, it turned hot, very hot…104 degrees at river level. We were still in Marble Canyon but would soon be entering the Grand Canyon portion of the park.

Before heading down the river, our group hiked to an area called the Nakoweap Granaries. We are slow and steady hikers, we made it about 80% of the way, but realized that by the time we got up there, our group would be heading back down.

The Anasazi people, who inhabited the canyon around 100 AD, lived in dugout houses near the river, but they stored their seeds and food in caves dug into the canyon walls high above the river. The original caves are too dangerous to enter, so in the 1960s, two caves were dug as a re-creation and safer viewing option.

We did get an iconic view of the Grand Canyon. It is the scene that is on the national park coin. The view literally took your breath away.

A bit about our boat…in the mornings, the center is piled with the cots, night bags, and tents. It is then covered with tarps. This is what we leaned against during the day. The small day dry bags were connected to the tarp straps for easy access through out the day. At the back of the boat, there were two containers, one for water and one for lemonade. Each person was given a stainless steel water container that could be re-filled as needed.

Our boat guide Matt, had amazing stories about the geology and history of the canyon. He also would tell us if an approaching rapid was a one hand, two hand, or three hand (haha) hold rapid.

As we neared the end of Marble canyon, Matt pointed out how the topography was changing from limestone to shale.

Cape Solitude marks the confluence of the Little Colorado and the main Colorado rivers.

Normally at the confluence, the water would be a brilliant blue, but with the recent rain, he had to settle for muddy brown.

The Little Colorado is a sacred spot for the Hopi people, who have lived in the area for over 8000 years.

Down stream from the Little Colorado, the sides of the canyon are covered with salt deposits, a remanent of the ancient inland sea that once covered the land. As a passage of manhood, Hopi boys were required to solo hike, 100 miles through the canyon and acquire as much salt as they could carry.

Just past the confluence of the Little Colorado, is the only place that you can clearly see the South Rim of the Canyon. The Desert View Watchtower is the small point in the middle. It is also where Marble Canyon ends and the Grand Canyon begins.

Lunch was at mile 69 near Tanner Rapid. Our guides called it Shaded Cliff. The three boys who were on our boat, Harry and David from North Carolina and Stuart from Colorado, tried Cindy’s Necco candy. Andy who was also on our boat, lived in Boston before moving to Florida, told us that Necco stands for New England Cany Company and the wafers were made in Boston.

The rapids were getting bigger…we called this seating position on the the boat, the V. When you sat in the V, you got vert wet…Very, Very, Wet!!!!

The river The river rapids account for 50% of the elevation drop in the canyon, but only 9% of the distance, so we had lots of time to reflect on the beauty of the canyon.

Camp on our 3rd night was at Grapevine, named for the nearby rapid. The sand was VERY soft.

Matt, JP, and Dani prepared a dinner of spaghetti and cheesecake. It was Costco cheesecake that was frozen in the bottom of the coolers. Gourmet food on the river!!!

It doesn’t get any better than this…sleeping beside a river, in a canyon, on sand.

By Day 4 we were getting into a routine….eat breakfast, break down the cots, and pack our tent.

Our boat came from North Carolina, Florida, Minnesota, Idaho, and Colorado…Lindsay, Steve, Kate, Stuart, Rich, Andy, York, Satch, Dave, Hannah, Harry, and David. Our guide Matt was from Colorado and Dani the chef was from Arizona.

Grapevine Rapid is a bigger rapid and the water water seemed extra cold in the early morning.

York and Cindy were the grandmothers on the trip. In the mornings, they enjoyed sitting in the Tea Room which is the area behind the dry bags , where you don’t get very wet, but you can watch everyone else get wet.

Our first view of the Phantom Ranch area was Kaibab Trail Suspension Bridge, aka Black Bridge. It was built in 1928, replacing a cable car owned by David Rust.

There is a small marina for boats to beach and tie up. We were given 2 hours to explore the Phantom Ranch area, which is located at mile 88 on the river. It was originally known as Rust Ranch, after the gentleman that owned the cable car. After President Teddy Roosevelt’s visit in 1913, the ranch property was transferred to the park service and re-named for a nearby canyon and stream.

There is a campground area and further up the trail is a restroom facility that is elevated to protect the water from nearby Angel Bright Creek.

Bright Angel Creek was named by the Powell Expedition in 1869, due to it’s clear water.

It is a big thing at Phantom Ranch to buy a postcard, which is then carried out of the canyon by the postal carrier using mules.

We walked back from Phantom Ranch and had time left. So we hiked to the nearby Bright Angel Trail, aka the Silver Bridge. The bridge was built in the late 1960s. Most of the material to build the bridge was brought down the canyon by mule trains. We walked from the north side to the south side.

We hiked up the Bright Angel Trail for a better view. We even got a great view the Kaibab Trail Suspension Bridge located up river.

With still time to spare, we headed up river to the Kaibab Trail Suspension Bridge. Along the trail there are remnants of pit houses used long ago by the native inhabitants.

The Kaibab Trail Suspension Bridge, is quite a marvel to be almost 100 years old and built in such a remote location. The bridge was a wooden floor that is very worn due to the mule traffic. From the bridge we could see our rafts.

On the south side of the bridge is a hand-dug tunnel. Exiting the tunnel, there is a good view of the Kaibab Trail

Back on the boat, we watched the Black/Kaibab Trail Suspension Bridge disappear from sight and then floated under the Silver/Angel Bright Trail Bridge. It was a neat experience to walk both bridges.

We just settled in and enjoyed the calm before the storm so to speak…the rapids just below Phantom Ranch are some of the biggest on the river. The first one was Pipe Springs Rapid.

Lunch was near mile 94 just above Granite Rapid., near Monument Creek.

Then it was onto Granite Rapids…it lived up to the hype!!

The bottom of Granite was incredible.

Normally JP’s boat would lead the way, however he followed our boat, so we could watch as they went through the rapid.

Next up was Hermit Rapid…

We heard the tale and saw the remnants of a failed expedition from years before. We were glad to have made it through all of the rapids with a smile still on our face.

Afternoon pit stop was at Shinomo Canyon. It is a short hike up the creek, which involved scrambling over rocks.

At the end of the hike, we were rewarded with a nice little waterfalls. The fresh water was amazing to wash off some of the river dirt. You can’t use soap in the side canyons, but the clean water was a welcome relief.

The water falls was a fun place to play. You could also enter the cave on the right, climb some rocks, and then slide down the waterfalls.

We stopped for the night just above 100 mile rapid. Once we got our tent set-up, we had to make a repair to Jim’s sandal. People may laugh at our sewing kit, but it does come in handy. For dinner we had carnitas, Spanish rice, and fresh guacamole.

Sunset is always a peaceful time to reflect on the amazing day we had.