fstopandsee

To get to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back up in one day, you should start well before dawn. This is near the top of the canyon, and you will take many more switchbacks like it before you get to the bottom.

The trail on the left was the start of a very long but very rewarding day of hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and back. It might look like daylight in this picture, but the sun had just come up on the other side of the ridge to reveal this view.

I started the descent into the Grand Canyon in near total darkness. That wasn’t much fun, but it did mean that I was able to see the sunrise from many angles on the way down!

I recently hiked the Grand Canyon and spent some time in the Southwest, so this blog may have that kind of vibe going on for awhile. After watching the sun set facing the other direction, I went back to this spot. The light seemed flat at first, but also really brought out some of the colors and removed all the shadows that previously darkened many of the details.