I am traveling with my family to the Grand Canyon in October. My family consists of DH(42), me(44), DD(13) and DS(10). We have our permits and will be hiking down the South Kaibab, staying 2 nights at Bright Angel, then hiking up the Bright Angel.

DH has been on this trek before. But it is an entirely new adventure for our children and me.

Full disclosure. I am 44 years old, have a non-rigorous job (although not sedentary...I'm a healthcare provider), and have not been a regular exerciser for quite some time. Also, I am moderately overweight and have a previous leg injury. I had ruptured my calf muscle last summer. So, all things considered, this will be quite a challenge for me.

To prepare, I have been walking in the neighborhood for the last couple months. This area is flat flat flat. So, in addition, I have challenged myself to more strenuous and hilly environments a few times...but not enough. For example, a few weeks ago, our family went to a state park and took a rugged trail (without packs) involving steep cliffs, ladders and some scrambling. We had a great time, and our learning curve was pretty steep from that trip. I started learning how to compensate for my weeker leg on uneven surfaces. Plus, we tried out some freeze dried meals and learned to use our stove. (although my husband already knows this kind of stuff)

This week, I took my son to an amusement park. This park is very hilly, plus has a water park that involves a LOT of stair climbing. I discovered that the stair climbing resulted in swelling, pain and stiffness to my weeker leg. I am thinking that this is due to the need for more conditioning. 3 dyas later, the pain has subsided and the stiffness and swelling ae much improved. I have continued to walk in the neighborhood while this is healing. On this day, we walked over 9 miles.

So, now I find myself 3 1/2 months from our step off and I feel very anxious about this adventure. Primarily because I don't want to get to the bottom and not be able to make it back out. I think the way down will not be a problem. But, walking uphill is more difficlut because it requires me to dorsi flex that ankle more than it wants to.

All in all, I have determined that I am going to do this trip. I am looking forward to it, but still have some concerns as you can tell. I will continue to challenge and push myself to strengthen that leg, get more weight off and learn the basics of backpacking.

So glad I found this site!

Welcome to the site!

It sounds like you've set yourself quite a challenge with that Grand Canyon trip. Normally I would tell a beginner that getting out on the trail with whatever gear and clothes you can scrounge up is far more important than weighing all the nuances of saving an ounce here or there, because until you've spent some time on the trail you don't really know what your needs are or what approach suits you best. If you can try out a few less ambitious overnight trips locally, that's still good advice.

Good luck strengthening that leg! Feel free to ask any questions you have after looking around the site a bit. There's a ton of good info already here. Enjoy!

Do you use trekking poles? They definitely help for steep ups and downs, and can give you a faster pace on the flat. They will take some pressure off your legs. I have a bum knee and won't leave home without my poles!

I hate to be the pessimist, but having done that route, if the leg does not improve significantly, I would not do the trip. Going down is NOT easy. I second the trekking poles. You need to strengthen your downhill muscles as well as uphill muscles. Instead of a second day at the river, a better plan is to take two days to come out, camping at Indian Springs. Take absolutely minimal gear. Other than water your pack should be about 20 pounds. Better yet, have the others carry most of the weight. On the bright side, three months is a lot of time to improve your leg.

Absolutely what WD said. We did that trip a few months ago and staying at Indian Garden was both enjoyable (you can do a flat 3 mile side hike out to Plateau Point if you feel inclined and knock 1,000 + gain out of the climb up. My wife and I were able to walk 20 miles on hilly terrain before we went and still needed to eat some Aleve and slather on some Bio-Freeze after getting down off the S. Kaibab.
Trekking poles are a must in my book of geriatric pursuits, they really are a valuable tool at saving injury and pain on downhills. Take it seriously and make sure your leg is ready to go, but I can assure you it will be worth it. It is simply incredible and wonderful beyond words.
PS- something didn't feel right, so I re-read the whole post. You already got your permits! I would suggest not doing alot of lounging around your rest day, as your muscles will just freeze up. If you don't have any at least 3,ooo foot gain trails near you, some serious stair climbing carrying weight is in order. It's quite a haul out from the river. My wife runs 3 miles a day and we are both very active and carry little extra body weight and we are hesitant to do the whole trail in one shot without serious training. 4460' in elevation gain and 10 miles is not really a beginner's trail. I'll add that you'll need to be absolutely sure your leg is healed, not just feeling better- it will be severely stressed and tested. Evacuation from the trail is VERY expensive. Also consider what it might be like for the kids. We passed a Boy Scout troop on the trail that were experienced hikers and were still not exactly sprinting up and they stayed at Indian Garden. 9 miles of road walking on flat terrain is not hauling a pack up 10 miles of rugged, sometimes gravelly and slippery trail where balance and focus is needed most of the time. I'd want to be able to walk closer to 25+ miles a day on the road to consider myself in shape for that task. Go to the Park Service site and look at the videos and read all the material. I find it unusual that you would have chosen to not stay at Indian Garden unless you were not very well informed. I hate to be so negative, but I'd hate to see you or your kids in jeopardy, or even in severe discomfort because you weren't ready. Make sure your packs and footwear fit and are RIGHT. They can turn a trip into a nightmare if they aren't. Lots of good info on getting that done is on this site. Best of luck.

I've never made that trek, although I did walk about halfway down the mule trail and back without water. That was in 1968 and I was 15. I didn't know better.

Personally, I don't like to venture into situations that have a decent probability of turning out bad. In this case there is an equation you might consider: Probability of getting to the point you can't walk x the expense of recovery if it happens. A helicopter ride might cost around $40,000. You are also involving the helicopter crew in a dangerous situation.

This is an estimate, but based on my experimentation with a Fitbit pedometer, people take approximately twice as many steps uphill as they do on flat areas. Qualitatively, I've determined that effort is a function of the number of steps. To put this in English for the non-math people, a 10 mile hike uphill is about equivalent to a 20 mile hike on the flats. In other words, if I were in your situation, I wouldn't attempt this hike in one day if I couldn't walk 20 miles on the flats without significant pain.

If you decide to go, I read in Eat and Run that vegans heal more quickly than meat and dairy eaters. I've also read this in many old books. Becoming vegan is a great way to lose the extra pounds and get more energy.

Gershon,

Please keep in mind that there is a genetic component to what diets a body does well on... It is great you found something that works for you, but for people with other genetic setups, it might not. This is the same reason that medications aren't a one size fits all. (I mean this very good naturedly!)

Back on topic, I think even people not in good shape (ie me) can still hike safely and have a lot of fun - just need to be flexable on their trip plans and listen to their body.

Heather,

I took it good naturedly. From what I've seen in the stores, some people do well on soda and potato chips.

The problem is that on some trips (ie: bottom of grand canyon) there is no bail out once committed. On most trips you can stop and someone can come and get you on an ATV or at a road crossing. Once you go for the bottom of the canyon and a return there are few other options.

Gershon, I also tried to factor in rugged trail conditions and the fact you have weight on your back. 20 miles on a flat
road without a pack is less than what it takes to get up Bright Angel in one shot IMO. There's no bailing out either, no permit, no staying. Up is MANDATORY. If you encounter rain and/or high winds, it will up the ante even more. Apples to Apples- We walked 20 plus miles on snowy, windy roads in Vermont where we live, each carrying about 12 lbs. the week before we did the Canyon trip. I think we could have done the trail from the river, but we would have been pushed physically. Last fall we did a 4,000 foot gain in the Sierra up to the Palisade Glacier that was easier than Bright Angel.

You have three months yet before you have to make the go/no-go decision. But you have to make it before the hike; once you've started, as already pointed out, the only escape is a very expensive and risky helicopter ride. This is not a trip in which you can bail out part way!

Do listen to those who tell you how strenuous a trip this is! Think a vertical mile (plus the horizontal/map miles) of stair climbing with pack, at least the first part in considerable heat.

How old are the children? If they are teenagers and in good shape, the main problem may be slowing them down. If they're younger, though, this may not be the trip for them, either.

So very glad I posted here. Your replys are reinforcing my determination. I will double my efforts in training and preparing my body for this hike. I will also share your posts with my husband to decide if we really want to take our kids on this hike or not. They are 13 and 10. They are fairly fit for kids their ages, but I don't know if they are physically and/or mentally up for this.

But, in the meantime, I have been walking daily (although I took yesterday evening off) and taking one or both kids with me. Although I don't have any options for hills. I suppose I could head downtown to one of the bigger office buildings and walk the stairs. Do they let you do that? At the very least, I will increase my distance, start using hiking poles and adding the pack.

The leg felt better after about 2-3 days. I continued walking even though it was sore. I have determined that the soreness was not due to any new injury but mearly an indication of the need to strengthen the remaining muscle.

My husband has hiking poles that I will cabbage onto. Any suggestions for finding a pair of my own that doesn't cost an arm and leg?

Personally, I would do the trip without the kids so you know exactly what it involves. Then go back and do it with the kids in a few years. If you were to stop and camp at Indian Garden, I would say there is a good chance the kids could do it. But if you walk up and out in one day, I think it is too much for the kids (and even too much for you). Do all you can to revise your permit to camp at Indian Gardens. Maybe you can get on a waiting list for a cancellation. When we did the Grand Canyon, we did not even have a permit- we just picked up a cancellation day before our hike.

Sounds like you have the spirit to get ready! I would suggest doing an actual backpack in Sept. ,if you aren't planning any before then, that is as long as you can make it. Working out the bugs in a less stressful situation is a very good thing. Try to test the stamina of your family and see how far you've gained in fitness level. If one of the kids is sore or has a slight injury, you may be required to take more weight between your husband and yourself. Take that into account. Did you look into getting some of the bag lunches or eating dinner at Phantom Ranch? Though it's expensive, it will shed some pounds of food carried down, and less garbage carried up. We got a last minute cancellation dinner and the experience was priceless. Sitting around a rustic table eating family style with people from all over the world was something we'll never forget. I noticed Sierra Trading Post had a bunch of trekking poles, some severely discounted. If you go the way of collapsible, don't get the cheapest- a collapsing pole at a moment when you need it can lead to very unfortunate accidents.... If you have the room during travel for one piece, properly sized ski poles, that may be the cheapest for you- yard sale! You can find them for a few bucks.
There's some sites and videos on their use- very helpful if you don't know the mechanics of using them.
Trekking poles can be used for tarp tents and shelters- can save a lot of weight if you choose that route.

Momz,

I live in a flat area with only gentle hills and backpack in the Colorado Mountains. I measure "pedometer miles" everyday which are accurate for steady walking, but not so much around the house. I don't get many of those anyway.

I find I can hike about half my daily average in the the mountains without fatigue and about 80% of it with only minor fatigue.

My conclusion is to not worry about stairs. Just take it slowly uphill.

My HOA complained that my walking with a pack made it look like homeless people come to our area. So what am I supposed to carry my groceries in?

The issue(s) is not just fatigue you feel from walking 20 miles on the flat versus 10 miles.

First, the rim of the canyon is 7000 feet elevation. A few days camping on the rim before the hike would help.

Second, coming up after totally trashing your muscles going down! If not accustomed to a lot of ups and downs, you are going to be incredibly stiff. We saw many people at the ranch who could not even go down the lodge stairs on the second day. Very important, is to pace your descent, with many rest stops, even if you feel you could go faster.

Third is heat. October can still have 90-degree temperatures at the river. The cooler the better when going up to the rim.

And Fourth, associated with the heat, is the water you have to carry. If hot, it is really hard to have a light pack given the amount of water you will need.

As boring as it is, I would start doing an hour or more on the stair master, a few times a week. After a month of this, add a pack on your back. Because I live in a flat area, the stair master is an important part of my workout for climbing in the Sierra.

Then do the same exercises recommended for getting ready for ski season. Sorry, I do not ski, so do not know exactly what they are - but there are specific exercises for downhill muscles.

Three months of these exercises will allow you do see how your leg is doing under similar stress as hiking down the Grand Canyon. Kids probably do not need as much pre-training. They rarely have as much trouble with stiff muscles as older people. For the kids, I think long hikes are good to see that they can focus on an 8-hour of what may be boring for them. I think it is really important the kids REALLY want to do this. I would even consider letting them hike with an I-pod listening to their favorite music.

As for helicopter rescue worries, I think it is more likely you would be rescued by a mule packer. Still not good, but less costly than a helicopter. Either way, not a good outcome.

Other than landing on the Overlook or Plateau Point, not many flat places out there. Waiting for a mule would just plain eat used toilet paper. I'll once again second WD's suggestions. We bushwhacked below the San Francisco Peaks our first night out and then spent a night in Mather Campground in the GC Village. Walking the Rim Trail and visiting the absolutely incredible Watchtower at Desert View only whetted our appetite for going down in. Seeing some elk and mule deer was fun, too. My wife has altitude issues and this alleviated them completely. Not everyone is going to feel 7,000 feet, but it would be bad to find out by having nausea and headaches to start your hike. Take WD's advice and do the stair training. It worked for us. We have a 15 step staircase in our house that got used for laps almost daily. We also spent the winter on snowshoes, hauling winter packs (normal behavior) and doing hundreds of miles on hilly Vermont roads for our April hike. We were a little sore at the bottom of the South Kaibab, not in agony. We did 7 miles of side hikes, besides going up to Indian Garden the next day. I can't imagine what it would have been like without the training we put in. Next April we're planning to go down in for at least 6 days and do a good portion of the Tonto Trail.

Did a lot of work on my core strength over the weekend. Feeling stronger already!

We have discovered that we can hire the mules to carry a significant portion of our provisions for us. We are hoping we can take advantage of this and send our tents, sleeping packs and perhaps anything else that is not necesary to have during the hike. This will lighten the load quite a bit.

But, I will continue to prepare as if I will be carrying it myself. Just in case I have to.


Also, it sems that there might not be water available at the bottom or at the rest stops on the bright angel during the dates we will be there. This means I need to learn what to do about water purification, and we need to understand how much water to carry with us.

My husband has done this trek twice before, but there was always water available.