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dawn on the South Kaibab Trail, December 18, 2009
This is the first day of an overnight backpacking trip. I went down the South Kaibab Trail and spent the night at the popular overhang camp along the Tonto Trail in the Cremation use area, primarily exploring downstream in Cremation Canyon. On the second day I went west and explored the east arm of Pipe Creek, and returned to the South Rim via the South Kaibab Trail.
This was my first time hiking the Grand Canyon with significant snow and ice accumulation. Fun!
thermometer at the Cedar Ridge outhouse
Cremation Creek, this day’s centerpiece
sunrise along this part of the trail
There’s a shortcut from the South Kaibab Trail to Cremation Creek from this spot below the Redwall. Once at the bottom of the switchbacks below Skeleton Point, the trail contours along the east side of a high wall, and the Zoroaster Temple comes into view around the corner. It’s from this point that there’s a gradual slope leading down toward the Cremation area. The slope is shown in the photo above, as well as on the left side of the photo below. It consists of simple off-trail walking.
Access into the westernmost upper drainage of Cremation was easy enough, but I was soon stopped at this high pouroff.
I continued west and scrambled/downclimbed into the center drainage. With a little more diligence I could have probably found a safer, less direct route.
Soon I came upon the Tonto Trail.
…and continued downstream into the canyon itself
The canyon widened before continuing into another narrows.
Near this corner I came to a smooth, 10 to 15-foot pouroff that I did not care to attempt to downclimb, and chose this spot to turn around.
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