R2R Notes and Addendums

Now that we've reached the half way point in my story, there are a couple of things that I realize I forgot to mention.

Both of them are falls. Ha!

The first occurred just past Supai Tunnel. It wasn't so much a fall as it was a near fall. I slightly rolled my right ankle, or started to anyway, and stumbled. Because I had my walking stick I caught myself and sort of half recovered, ending in a deep lunge position, bad knee to the ground, totally unscathed.

The second occurred in the box, and was a real fall...in the truest sense of the word. This time I was trying to take pictures and maintain pace simultaneously. Apparently multitasking is not my forte. I tripped on a rock and very rapidly found myself splayed out, face down, on a rather steep (for the box anyway) downhill part of the trail.

I let out what what can only be described as a roar. It was a deep, guttural, animalistic sort of roar. One that I'm sure was heard by all the people so many miles away atop the Bright Angel Trail...possibly also around the world. I tried to recover, but struggled to do so. All my weight was on my left hand, which was clenching my camera, and simultaneously shoving it into the ground. (It was somehow unscathed, fear not.)

Whether the sound was out of anger for falling, or fear for my new camera, I'm not entirely sure. But it was the strangest sound I have ever made. More than that, it originated from a place inside me whose very existence I have yet to verify. If I had a squeedely-spooch (a-la Invader Zim), I would assume that is where it came from. However, since I do not, I remain perplexed.

I repeated this sound, to lesser degrees, at least twice whilst trying to haul myself off the ground. Eventually I made it to my feet, again, mostly unscathed.

How I left these details out of the narrative, I am still unsure. I debated going back and adding them in the appropriate places, but decided against it. Instead you get this little addendum, and a slight reprieve from the endless stream of pictures and my endless pontificating on the epicness of my R2R.

Tomorrow however, I'll pick back up at Phantom Ranch and regale you with the exploits of my climb out of the canyon.
All my love.
LittleFoot