SaddleBrooke hikers gather for an impromptu hike on the snow day at the Grand Canyon. Photo by Randy Park.
Susan Hollis
On April 30 over ninety members of the SaddleBrooke Hiking club traveled to Grand Canyon National Park for three days of hiking. Eleven hiking guides: Larry Allen, Roy Carter, Dave Corrigan, Howie and Elaine Fagan, Susan Hollis, Randy Park, Rob Simms, Dave Sorenson, Don Taylor and Elisabeth Wheeler, helped lead a total of 20 different hikes.
The first day of hiking, May 1, was cool but sunny, great hiking weather and wonderful views. On the second day everyone woke to find six-inches of snow on the ground. For those in the campground, some in tents and some in RV’s, it looked like eight inches or more of snow on top of the picnic tables. Most hikes that morning were canceled, but many members got out and hiked on their own or formed impromptu hiking groups. While Wednesday’s weather was not the best for hiking, views of the Grand Canyon in snow were beautiful. By late afternoon on Wednesday, the snow had melted.
Wednesday night was our scheduled group dinner, arranged by Harriet Pearson. Seventy-two people had the opportunity to dine in the famous El Tovar dining room. How Harriet was able to obtain a reservation for all 72 people was nothing short of a miracle.
Weather for our third day was back to clear skies and perfect temperatures for hiking. That day our group had many hikes to choose from: hiking the Bright Angel Trail to Indian Garden; hiking both the Bright Angel Trail and South Kaibab Trail with the Tonto trail in between, hiking on the East Rim trail and West Rim trail, going to Shoshone Point and then a short hike on the Arizona Trail or taking a short hike on the South Kaibab Trail to Ooh Aah Point. Many of the hikers wish we could have stayed longer, as temperatures in Tucson were 100 degrees.