In May of 1980, my dad decided to hike across the Grand Canyon. And I of course wanted to go with him – for each of us, the chance to hike across the largest canyon in the country was too good to pass up. My dad was going to turn 60 later that summer, and I was almost 27 at the time. Even though my wife and I had an 11-month-old son, we chose May of 1980 to make the trip. We acquired the required permits, which were easy to get at the time. As it turned out, we couldn’t hike all the way across the canyon, as the North Rim was still closed (the North Rim is a thousand feet or so higher in elevation than the South Rim, gets considerably more snow, and is closed from October into mid-May), so we decided to go down one trail and out by another. In the end, we chose the South Kaibab Trail to go in and the Bright Angel Trail for coming back out.

In today’s hiking world, gear is lightweight, durable, and expensive. In 1980, not so much. Back then, I had a Kelty external frame backpack, with a sleeping bag and pad – none of which were light by today’s standards. We wore blue jeans and t-shirts, and I even had a pair of cut-off blue jean shorts which I wore hiking out! I’m sure there was higher-tech clothing available even in 1980, but we just rolled with what we owned. I had a heavy pair of leather high-top hiking boots – they must’ve weighed two pounds each, and my dad wore a pair of Danner boots with wool socks, which were so comfortable that he still has them today. My boots were not as good, and gave me some problems on the way into the canyon.

We carried freeze-dried food, even including freeze-dried ice cream for dessert. Our water was carried in old-style Boy Scout canteens – those things clunked and clanked constantly on the outside of our packs. Our sleeping pads were simple two-inch thick foam pads. I wore a “camera vest” which was actually a fisherman’s vest, but it served the purpose well by allowing me to carry a couple of extra lenses and filters, plus film (yep, there was something before digital) and a few miscellaneous items. My camera then was a Nikon FM, which was actually a fairly lightweight camera compared to today’s digital DSLR cameras. Still, I’d imagine that we each carried nearly 40 pound packs with all the not-so-light camping gear plus my camera gear.

A 1980 Grand Canyon Backpacking Trip Begins

We drove from Oklahoma out to Arizona in my parent’s VW Vanagon, and set up camp at the National Park campground on the South Rim of the canyon. After a day at the campground, my mom dropped us off at the South Kaibab Trail Trailhead. As we hiked down and down along the South Kaibab Trail we continuously dropped elevation (a total of about 4,700 feet), and hiking deeper and deeper into the rocky gorge we were essentially going further and further back in geologic time until we reached some of the oldest rocks on earth (about 1.7 billion years old) in the deepest part of the canyon. We had traversed on this hike from the highest and youngest geologic layers in the canyon – the Kaibab Limestone – to the oldest – the Precambrian Vishnu Basement Rocks – a 1.4 billion year history of the earth in just 7 miles!

We crossed the Colorado River at the Black Bridge which is 440 feet long and was built in 1928. We then hiked a short distance downstream to the sandy beaches of Bright Angel Creek across from Phantom Ranch. After our several hour hike, nearly all downhill, my toes had developed some blisters so I went and soaked my feet in the creek – aaahhhh, that water, which had flowed down from the still-frozen North Rim, was a cold and wonderful feeling on my hot and sore feet and toes!

That night we rolled out our sleeping bags on the sand…no tent needed, since it was at least 30 degrees warmer in the canyon than it had been on the rim the night before (when it got down to nearly freezing). We laid on those bags and gazed on the plethora of stars, and saw a couple of shooting stars and numerous satellites passing overhead. Sleep probably eluded me for much of the night, but that’s okay; the view and location made it all worthwhile.

The next day, we got up, had breakfast, packed up, and proceeded to hike north along Bright Angel Creek on the North Kaibab Trail. Hiking on this trail will eventually take you to the North Rim. We weren’t going that far however, as the North Rim was still closed for the winter. We hiked to Ribbon Falls (about 5.6 miles to the north, but with only about 1,250 feet of elevation gain), and the day became hotter and hotter. I recall that I was not feeling especially well, which might have been the onset of heat exhaustion, or I was simply dehydrated. We refilled our canteens at the falls, treating the water with Halazone tablets. After visiting the falls and resting a while, we hiked back to the Bright Angel Campground area and again camped on the sand for the night.

The next morning we said goodbye to the canyon depths and began the hike on the Bright Angel Trail upward out of the inner canyon and onto the Tonto Plateau. We first crossed the Colorado River via the Silver Bridge. This bridge has a mesh steel floor, which gave us a bit of vertigo from looking down while crossing the Colorado River. We then began the steep switchback ascent to the plateau. Rather than hike the entire 9.5 miles and 4,340 feet to the rim, we went as far as Indian Gardens Campground, which is about halfway out of the canyon. We talked to many of the hikers going downhill on this trail (much more traffic than on the Kaibab Trail) and were amazed at how many were trying to go all the way from the rim to the river and back to the rim in a day!

It’s about a 19 mile round trip and has nearly a mile of elevation change – in each direction. And the hardest part is the last half – climbing up and out for over nine miles and up the steep switchbacks to the canyon rim at the end of the day. We also noticed how many of these hikers did not seem prepared for the experience – small amounts of water – sometimes a single bottle, shoes instead of hiking boots, and usually little or no obvious nutrition. But who am I to judge? Maybe they all made it, but I would guess (hope) that many turned back before getting to the river. Each year more than 250 people attempt the hike into the canyon eventually need rescue.

After we set up camp at Indian Gardens, we took an evening hike out to Plateau Point, which is perched high above the Colorado River. It’s about a mile and a half to Plateau Point from Indian Gardens. We saw a few wild burros out on the plateau, which were a reminder of the past when there was copper, asbestos, and lead mining in the canyon. When the mining ended, the miners set the burros free, and these were descendants of those original beasts of burden. We stayed and enjoyed the setting sun from the overlook that evening. Plateau Point is one of those places where somebody with a fear of high edges will be somewhat uncomfortable, as it’s a sheer drop of about 1,300 feet to the river below. That night while camped at Indian Gardens, a Boy Scout troop came in and set up near us. They were quite a rowdy bunch, making noise late into the night. We tolerated it, but didn’t sleep much.

The Hike Out

The next morning, we got up before sunrise and began our hike up the rest of the Bright Angel Trail – about 4.8 miles with a 3,200 foot elevation gain. It was a lovely morning on the trail, cool with a beautiful sunrise. The upper parts of Bright Angel Trail are steep with numerous switchbacks, which are quite impressive to see, and amazing to photograph. The task of building these trails many decades ago, probably with hand tools and the help of mules, is also mind-boggling to contemplate. We encountered several mule trains filled with tourists as we hiked out, and of course the sure-footed mules have the right-of-way. A lady on one of the mules commented to us that we “didn’t look like we’d been in the canyon” – I guess she expected hikers to be grubby, smelly things. The hike out was pretty uneventful. We arrived back at the rim before noon, made our way back to our campground, were reunited with the rest of the family, and shared stories of our hike.

For me this was a once-in-a-lifetime hike, and in fact the only time my dad and I did anything of this nature. We made the most of our time in the canyon and came away with enduring memories of the beauty of the canyon as few get to see it. I always feel that it’s a much better experience to spend several days in one location and really get to know it rather than trying to see many sites in the same amount of time – you come away with a better understanding and longer-lasting memories of the place. The Grand Canyon is one of those special National Parks that should be enjoyed not only from the overlooks while taking selfies, but from inside, where the real canyon is.

Need to Know

Information

In 1980, the park had a total of 2,304,973 visitors; by 2016 that total had increased to 5,969,811. The busiest month is typically July or August, and the least busy is typically January. In 1980, there were nearly 86,000 backcountry campers. By 2016, the number of backcountry campers had increased to over 330,000! Permits are required for all backcountry camping, but not day hikes. Check out the park website for all the details.

Getting There

Due to the length and depth of the canyon travel is dictated by which rim (north or south) you’d like to start from. Details for getting to each can be found here.

Best Time to Go

The South Rim is open year-round. The North Rim is open from May 15 – October 15. This page has a lot of information about current weather and also has a climate overview.

Maps & Books

See the National Geographic Map Pack for Grand Canyon National Park, Hiking Grand Canyon National Park, a Falcon Guide.

The Author

Steve Ancik is a landscape architect by profession whose hobbies include mountain biking, photography, hiking, and backpacking. He lives in Edmond, Oklahoma.

All photographs in this article © Steven L. Ancik.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in Issue 35 of TrailGroove Magazine. You can read the original article here for additional photos and content.