My alarm went off at 6:00 AM and I got up slowly. My legs felt strange. At first I couldn’t place the feeling, but then I realized they were a little sore. Only 11 days after finishing the PCT and my legs are sore from a 7 mile hike. Granted we dropped over 4,000 feet, but still I was surprised. It wasn’t necessarily a bad feeling, and at least it meant I had done something that warranted the soreness.

As I packed up my tent, I put some water on the stove. I was going to make hot oatmeal. Thinking back to the PCT, I only had one hot breakfast the entire time I was on trail. It was the morning after the rest of my group crossed Matterhorn Creek. Considering what happened, or should I say almost happened, to me when I crossed it, I would say I deserved that hot breakfast. Now that I’m not on a long trail, I think I can get used to this leisurely wake up and hot breakfast thing.

After our breakfast, Bedazzled and I set out on the North Kaibab Trail, which would take us all the way up to the North Rim over 14 miles and 5,700+ feet of elevation gain. Last year, I hiked from the South Rim to Cottonwood Campground, which is 7 miles up the North Kaibab trail, with my sister. Today, I was excited to hike the last 7 miles of trail and climb up to the North Rim, which is over 8,200 feet in elevation.

Soon after leaving the Bright Angel Campground, the trail entered a narrow canyon called “the box.” It’s walls were a maroon brown and they were dotted with green vegetation. It looked like something out of The Land Before Time. There was a prehistoric quality to the rock, and I suppose it actually was prehistoric rock since it was at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. The Bright Angel Creek snaked between the canyon walls and the North Kaibab Trail paralleled it giving us access to unlimited water, which saved us from carrying it in our packs.

As we progressed, the canyon started to open up and the views widened. On our left, towers of rock scrapped the sky. On our right, buttes of red stone capped with white sandstone sat resolutely. These silent monoliths carved over millennia kept our mouths open and breathe abated as the miles fell before our feet.

Before we knew it, we were at the turn off for Ribbon Falls. We took the .3 mile spur trail getting our feet wet as we crossed Bright Angel Creek. At the base of the falls, the rock walls had an orange hue and the rock beneath the waterfall was covered in vibrant green algae. We took a secret path and climbed up behind the waterfall and enjoyed a snack and the view.

We took a different trail from Ribbon Falls back to the North Kaibab Trail. Everything was going well until we arrived at the bridge that would take us over Bright Angel Creek. There was a sign saying it was closed until it could be repaired. We were forced to bushwhack down to the river and ford it. It brought back memories of the Sierra and all the rivers we forded.

Soon we passed through Cottonwood Campground and I was finally on new trail! The canyon continued to open up as we went and the surrounding features rose to even higher heights as we started to approach the North Rim, now just 7 miles away. As we went, I would turn around and see Bedazzled smiling to herself as she walked. Finally, I asked her about it and she said she was just so happy to be here. That in turn made me smile. I am glad that our journey didn’t end with the PCT and that she is getting to see another part of America.

The North Rim feels so different from the South Rim. Here we are among colossal formations that appeared so small when we viewed them from the South Rim just a day ago. The Colorado River is nowhere to be seen, but the work of its tributaries are still on display. As we begin to climb, the rock walls close in and we are in continuous shade.  The scale is immense, but intimate. As we begin the final climb, we pass Manzanita Rest Station, Roaring Springs, Suvupai Tunnel, and the Coconino Overlook. All fine places to rest our weary legs and drink in the view.

We reached the top of the North Rim and looked back across the canyon to the South Rim. Our minds know we can from there, but somehow we can’t believe it. I traced our route with my finger, picking out landmarks and calling them out to Bedazzled. We completed our first rim-to-rim of the Grand Canyon, but I still can’t believe it.

We pulled on our jackets in the cool autumn air and walked over to the hiker and biker campground to check-in. We setup our tents and walked out to the North Rim to watch a magical sunset. Our reward for the day.