Grand Canyon - Boucher, Tonto, Bright Angel - Backpack Day 1: The Boucher Trail - April 2010

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Whites Butte Saddle

Sunlight amidst Showers

A short while later, after following a mostly flat and quite straightforward path again, we arrived at the grassy flats below Whites Butte. The skies looked a little more in turmoil, the wind had picked up again, and we could see smeary tendrils descending from the distant clouds. Mike had initially wanted to press on, but as time passed and the skies grew darker, we figured it might be better to camp here for the night. We had enough water to make it through dinner and breakfast (and it was only a short two-hour hike the next morning to water); the sites were plentiful, flat, and required no extra walking. Decision made.

The possibility of a drenching spurred everyone to the highest level of efficiency, and in short order the tents were up and well-staked into the ground (very excellent ground for staking here, by the way). The strong gusts of wind had returned, now with a few raindrops mixed in. These soon passed, and we decided we'd better get to making dinner. This was also done with a maximum of efficiency (and perhaps a bit to little water for our dehydrated meals), and we finished without getting too wet. We then secured our gear and decided to wait it out indoors for a bit.

Whites Butte Saddle Camp

Misty Grand Canyon

Stormy Below

It indeed did rain. Quite hard, in fact. And with a bit of sleet mixed in. I estimate there were a few 80km/hr (50 mph) wind gusts - enough to give our lightweight Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 tent a good wind resistance test. It was, all of a sudden, a cold and wet day. We spent the good part of an hour in our tents, wrapped up in our warm clothes, listening to the weather outside.

Heavy Showers

Moody Clearing

Chilly!

Then, pretty much as suddenly as it had arrived, the weather passed. Poking my head outside, I could see patches of blue up and to the west, and a curtain of dark rain retreating away to the east. Restless, I got up and walked around in the last few showers, then declared to everyone else that the worst had passed. It was still light out - enough so for us to cook our dinners in the light, before it got dark.

A final look

Soon dusk descended, rendering Whites Butte little more than a rocky-looking shadow of a nipple. It was still damp, windy and cold, so there wasn't much chatting and socializing going on. It had been a long day, in any case, and so we decided to hit the hay nice and early. Tomorrow would be a very easy day; we weren't in a rush, so I didn't specify any sort of rise time. Sleeping in was a-ok!

The gusty winds continued battering the tents for a couple of hours. When I briefly awoke sometime around midnight, though, I noticed that it had grown still -- possibly signalling that the beginning of our extended calm weather was now upon us.

Click to view full-size with photo points

Interactive Trackmap, Waldron Trailhead to Whites Butte Saddle

Waldron Trail to Boucher Trail at Whites Butte

Start Time: 8:44a.m.

End Time: 5:38p.m.

Duration: 8h53m

Distance: 14.18 km (8.81 mi)

Average Speed: 1.6 km/hr (1.0 mph)

Start Elevation: 6638ft (2023m) *

Max Elevation: 6638ft (2023m) *

Min Elevation: 4427ft (1349m) *

End Elevation: 4521ft (1378m) *