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Posts Tagged ‘Grand Canyon hiking’
Thursday, February 18th, 2010
Every time I drive to Grand Canyon, I see this billboard (pictured left) and finally remembered to stop and take a picture and comment on it for its absolute absurdity. Based on this billboard, it appears that Papillon Helicopters believes that hiking, walking or simply using one’s own two feet is more invasive to the environment than taking a tour in a helicopter. Yes, walking, hiking, backpacking, etc. does leave literal footprints, and if you stay on established trails, you are not doing damage. But what about the carbon footprint left by any gasoline and oil fueled vehicle?
Let’s look at an example from Ask Pablo on www.triplepundit.com. A hotel in Belize decided to offer a helicopter transport to and from the airport. This trip of 94km each way (and less than 1 hour each way) would contribute over 140mT of GHGs (Greenhouse Gases) per year assuming one round trip ride every day of the year. Click here for the scientific stuff. At Grand Canyon, there are numerous helicopters from a few different companies flying for over an hour each trip, with at least 2 trips per day most days of the year. I’ll take man/woman power over gas power to see and experience nature any day.
And if you are a skeptic about the whole carbon footprint/global warming controversy, (or find all the math just mentally exhausting - an exhaust that leaves no carbon footprint by the way) what about the noise emitted from these whirlybirds? Most people would agree that air traffic (planes and helicopters) are loud. But, what is loud? Let’s look at this in decibels (widely known as a measure of sound pressure). Whispering is measured as 25 decibels (dB), a clothes dryer 60 dB and and screaming child 85 dB. Each 10 dB increase in sound level is an approximate doubling of loudness. Helicopters are 105 dB, 50% louder than a jackhammer at 100 dB. What would you rather listen to, footsteps (about the same sound level as a whisper) or a jackhammer?
Still not convinced that walking is a better way to see the sites than by air? By 2020 it is estimated that 50% of the United States population will be obese. So how about getting off your a** and leave your footprints!
By the way, I am not a tree hugger. I live in the Arizona desert. Have you ever hugged a Mesquite tree or Saguaro cactus? They don’t like physical signs of affection!
Tags: Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon carbon footprint, Grand Canyon helicopters, Grand Canyon hiking, helicopter noise, helicopters carbon footprint
Posted in Backpacking & Hiking, That's F-d Up | No Comments »
Friday, January 15th, 2010
 This blog should have been posted a while back, but with all the shameless media whoring of minor celebs such as Kendra and Bear Grylls (see the last couple blogs), we had to put our own shameless self promoting blog on the back burner. Check out the January/February 2010 issue of Experience Life Magazine. There is a great article about taking an active vacation at Grand Canyon and we are featured in said article. Granted, we had to share the spotlight with a couple competitors (who will remain nameless), but we got the first line of the print article. Our very own guest, Joanna Grimes, had the first two words of the article. Her name is 4 times the size of the rest of the text and in red. They don’t mention that she was our guests but that is ok, we like our guests to get a little gratuitous promotion as well.
We did get an online article all to ourselves however; “Grand Canyon Dos and Don’ts”. This is good and important stuff, so be sure to read it.
The magazine can be found at Frys, Safeway and Barnes & Noble or check out the magazine online at www.experiencelifemag.com.
Articles: “A Grand Adventure”; “Grand Canyon Dos and Don’ts”
Since we are on the topic of gratuitous self promotion, check out our recent press coverage page to see more articles about how cool we are!
Tags: a grand adventure, Experience Life Magazine, Grand Canyon, Grand Canyon Backpacking, grand canyon backpacking trips, Grand Canyon dos and don'ts, grand canyon guided tours, Grand Canyon hiking, grand canyon hiking trips, Just Roughin' It
Posted in Backpacking & Hiking | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 29th, 2009
I just got back from leading couple of day hikes at the Grand Canyon and while I was catching up on things around the office, I spotted this neat article in Saturday’s Arizona Republic that’s perfectly timed. It’s titled ” A Grand Winter; Have the Canyon all to yourself more or less, in the off-season” . I have to agree with author Ron Dungan, the Grand Canyon is an amazing place in Winter and with the exception of the week between Christmas and New Year, the place isn’t crowded and you get a chance to see the canyon as few others do.
 - Snow on the South Kaibab Trail - Grand Canyon
Once the snow falls in Northern Arizona, it sticks around for quite awhile on the higher elevations of the canyon’s north facing slopes. For people who decide to backpack the Grand Canyon, it makes for a surreal experience. You are essentially starting your trip in winter conditions but the snow stops as you head towards the bottom of the canyon and temperatures warm up considerably which makes for comfortable day time temps at the bottom. For example the average temperatures for the canyon bottom in February are 62 F - High and 42 F - Low which are great hiking temps although the nights can get to be chilly for some folks. If sleeping in a tent in 40 degree temps isn’t your cup of tea, I suggest day hiking a couple of days down a different trail each day. The three main trails I like to hike in winter are the South Kaibab, Bright Angel or Hermit Trails. This way you can experience the canyon and still sleep in a cozy bed at night.
Either way you will need to be prepared for conditions. Besides preparing as you normally would for your hike, make sure you use trekking poles, and instep crampons for hiking the upper parts of the trails. Typically, there can be packed snow on the Bright Angel trail as far as 3 miles down the trail so these items are must for traction. For updates on trail conditions, check with the Grand Canyon Backcountry Office and check weather conditions before starting as well. Have enough layers of clothing and extra snacks for hikes. Your body consumes more calories in cold weather to keep warm so don’t worry about sticking to any diet for hikes; have fun indulging.
I know that it may sound like a plug for tourism at the Grand Canyon to encourage people to go during the off season but the guests on yesterday’s hike we’re thrilled that we had the resthouse at Santa Maria Springs all to ourselves and we spotted some coyote tracks in snow that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Even if you go to the canyon and spend the entire time on the rim, you will spend less time finding parking spots at the viewpoints and have more time to enjoy the views.
Tags: Grand Canyon Backpacking, Grand Canyon hiking, Grand Canyon Winter hiking
Posted in Arizona Stuff, Backpacking & Hiking | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
Not long ago I was talking with a backcountry ranger at the Grand Canyon when he asked me a question about how do I determine what water sources are flowing in the canyon before a backpacking trip. For me the answer was easy because of the amount of time I’ve spent backpacking below the rim but if you are a novice to hiking or backpacking the Grand Canyon, the answer is not obvious if you only rely on maps.
 Hermit Creek, a year round Grand Canyon water source When I lived in the Northeast, I could trust my maps for water sources. If there was a stream shown on the map, I could rely on the stream flowing. Things aren’t so easy out here in the southwest. The major maps of the Grand Canyon are the maps from National Geographic and Sky Terrain and even though they depict water sources on the maps, they don’t fully tell about the reliability of the water source but in all fairness I’m not sure if they can. A good example is Cedar Spring which is along the stretch of Tonto trail between the Hermit and Bright Angel Trails. This spring is a seasonal spring which stops running by the fall. If you looked at either map, there is no way of knowing that the spring is seasonal. There are also many streams that are seasonal which are noted on the Sky Terrain map but you still can’t tell from the map when they dry up since that varies from year to year.
I even did a basic Google search on Grand Canyon water sources and although there are some extensive lists on the first page of results, none of the lists are entirely accurate. So that brings me to the answer I gave the backcountry ranger; I just check with the Backcountry Office on the latest word on the area I am going to hike. They have the latest info on which water sources are flowing and which are dry. That is also my advice out there to anyone reading this blog. Before you head into the canyon, ( before you even purchase your permit for that matter) check with the Backcountry Office for the straight scoop on what water sources are flowing. The backcountry rangers update Grand Canyon National Park website with trail conditions and water conditions so this is a good place to start your research. If you can’t find water information about your specific hike on the website, the Backcountry Office can be reached Monday through Friday from 1 pm to 5pm Mountain Time at 928-638-7875 and they are glad to help you with your questions.
Tags: Grand Canyon Backpacking, Grand Canyon hiking, Grand Canyon water sources
Posted in Backpacking & Hiking | No Comments »
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