Greg recommended Ribbon Falls, one of the few waterfalls in the area. And as a bonus, the falls were very close to some small Native American ruins. The destination was perfect, but the hike out there wasn't exactly a walk in the park. The falls were seven miles from the ranch, so our total hike for the day would be fourteen miles. This, of course, would be happening one day before we hike out of the Grand Canyon. But we were starting to recover from the Kaibab Shuffle, and the destination seemed entirely worth the effort.
But even without factoring in the destination, the hike itself was spectacular. The trail follows Bright Angel Creek and meanders its way through the mini-canyon that it formed.
As always, photos by Greg Bryan.
Every now and then, we would come to a wide part in the canyon which would give us clear views of the North Rim (we came in from the South Rim). The North Rim is about a thousand feet higher, and a little harder to access, so getting a peek was a nice treat.
The weather was still a bit overcast from the day before, and there was still clearly snow remaining at the top of the canyon (i.e. where we were headed the next day).
Ribbon Falls is actually two sets of waterfalls. Lower Ribbon Falls is the main one that people hike to, and has some very interesting geological formations. Upper Ribbon Falls is smaller, and requires (as the name implies) an additional one mile hike up the canyon to where Lower Ribbon Falls originates.
That one mile hike is enough to deter most people (since they've already hiked six miles to get there), so Upper Ribbon Falls is very rarely visited. But the extra effort was definitely worth it.
The waterfall was a relatively small one, but in a desert canyon, any water feature is an attraction.
The Native American ruins were from a grain storage area that was carved into the side of the canyon. It was in a cool, tucked away area, and seemed like a very smart place to protect food from the desert heat.
And here's me writing what you're reading now.
The hike the upper falls took us out from the bottom of the canyon, and gave us a great vantage point to look around. But even Greg's fantastic photos barely do it justice. It was stunning.
We hiked back down to Lower Ribbon Falls, and easily understood why it was the bigger attraction.
Upper Ribbon Falls derive their charm from being serene and tucked away, but the lower falls are much more visually striking. The green, moss-covered mound is actually travertine stone formed by minerals in the water accumulating over millions of years.
What's especially amazing is that you can easily walk up behind the falls and get an amazing view of the canyon.
Now for a peek behind the curtain. As I've mentioned, we've had our own personal photographer with us on the entire trip. And Greg wasn't messing around. His hiking pack contained two cameras, a handful of lenses and plenty of filters. He looked every bit the photojournalist that he is. Talk about a perfect hiking buddy.
After a quick lunch on the trail, we headed back to the ranch. But by this point, breakfast was catching up with me. That morning, I picked through the ranch kitchen and put together a giant bowl of granola, raisin bran, dried cherries and dried apricots. What the hell was I thinking? An injection of pure tree bark would have had less fiber. The seven-mile hike out felt like a seventy mile death march on the way back in. I was struggling pretty bad.
And to make matters worse, the trail was a two-foot wide path with a rock wall on one side and the creek on the other. There wasn't a tree in sight to hide behind. Suffice it to say that the Tecate we had back at the ranch was one of the best beers I've had in my entire life.
Of course, this was all just a warm up for tomorrow's hike out.
