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Grand Canyon 2005
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Grand Canyon Backpack - Day 3
The Tonto: Hance Creek to Grapevine Canyon
On day 3 we woke again around 5:30 am and were welcomed by sunny skies. Today would be nice and warm, with perfect breezes to keep us cool. This was the day that our itinerary would diverge from the original itinerary. In the original itinerary we were going to hike up to the top of Horseshoe Mesa where we would camp the night, and hike out the next day. Instead, we would continue west on the Tonto Trail for another 3 days.
Hance Creek Panorama
Shannon hikes out of Hance Creek Canyon
Agave and unnamed butte
Juicy Fruit Ad
Andrew gave us the choice to directly hike up and over Horseshoe Mesa (approx. 1500 ft vertical gain and descent), or to stay on the Tonto trail and hike around it. Hiking up and over would cut down our distance by about 3 km. It was a pretty unanimous decision that we would go around. An extra 3 km on a flat trail didn't seem so bad when compared to going up and then down 1500 ft. Although it would have been interesting to do the Horseshoe Mesa route, the longer way rewardeded us with many beautiful views, and I am now left with a desire to return one day and go to the top of the Mesa. Plus, I am not sure some of our knees would have made it! Along this section of the Tonto, we also discovered that Angel's Gate was a separate entity from Hawkin's Butte , and as Shannon pointed out, it looks a lot like an Orca Whale.
Thick Tapeats Sandstone
Claret Cup Cactus
Jenn on shelf of Tapeats
Hiking out of Hance Creek
Brian on Tonto Trail
Brian checks GPS
Caroline on Tonto trail
Typical Mid-morning snack break
Cairn and Hikers
Angel's Gate
Lightly Trodden Tonto
Desert Globe Mallow
After rounding Horseshoe Mesa, we hiked into the next sidecanyon (called Cottonwood Canyon). We stopped for lunch at the creek in Cottonwood Canyon, which, not surprisingly, is called Cottonwood Creek. Cottonwood Creek is a scenic little oasis in the desert. There was a small waterfall in which we took turns dunking our heads, and plenty of cool trees to sit under. Caroline had a little adventure with her lunch when she cut her finger open while slicing some food with a knife. Fortunately her very sad finger became a very happy finger after some quick intervention and an excellent medical kit.
The Tonto Platform
Cottonwood Canyon
Desert Oasis
courtesy BConnell
Paintbrush and Cottonwood
Cottonwood creek Campsite
Brian records video
Cottonwood Creek Cascades
Luncthime freshener
Shannon freshens up
Aaah
Cool Connell
Pretty hikers at Cottonwood
Lunchtime accident
First Aid
All better now!
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