AZT Day 4. Wild Weather. October 8, 2016

19.5 miles to Grand Canyon National Park entrance.
Total miles: 68.7 miles

There is still some stunning aspen gold out here.

Even aspen without leaves can look dramatic.

I took a long break (hot coffee, hot lunch and internet) overlooking the East rim at the border of the Saddle Mountain Wilderness.

One of the great things of having my car close is that I can keep swapping out gear. Yesterday I decided to leave my umbrella in the car. And today it decided to rain! Of course. The sky got increasingly dark.

Soon I was surrounded by thunder and  lightening with almost no time between them. Soon I was pummeled by hail and rain. There was no where to go so I just kept hiking. Even if I had my umbrella I wouldn’t have used it because of the lightening.

When I got to the road and the National Park entrance I decided to hitch to my car. I had already been thinking of doing this so I could slack tomorrow. The wet weather sealed the deal. My instep on both feet has been hurting. I think it’s too much flat walking. So walking with a day pack tomorrow  sounds perfect.

Nice snowman. Or maybe hailman.

It was an easy hitch thanks to Amos and Josh from St George. Using my pass I was able to get them into the park for free and show some thanks for the ride.  I checked at the campground but they were full so I had to drive back out of the park. I’m back at the exact same spot I was in 2 nights ago.

I feel so warm and dry in my car. I think I might be getting soft.