Today we begin our exploration of one of the most beautiful places on the planet! The enchanting turquoise waters of the creek and the breathtaking waterfalls of the canyon are a tropical paradise and a true anomaly in the southwest desert. Our hike involves creek-crossings, climbing in and out of gorges and plenty of scrambling around as well as swimming and jumping from some of the falls. Once the group has had the chance to appreciate the full grandeur of the canyon we will make our way back to camp for a delicious dinner.
Author: Paul
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Good Morning Arizona.
It’s five am and I can’t sleep. It turns out I’m not immune to jet lag in the way I’m apparently not immune to death. Yesterday we walked the rim (yes, that’s hilarious).
It is so beautiful out there. It’s like someone fired a shotgun into the Earth and just let the raw wound of twisted rock sit and scab. As far as the eye could see only accounted for 10% of what the total of the Canyon is. Grand Canyon National Park itself is 1.2 million acres. The parks here are as big as the portions and GC has been super sized (*makes a note of that for the book and congratulates oneself*). Everyone here is so friendly it puts me on edge. They all want to know how I’m doing and they won’t settle for anything less than “swell!” as a response. We went for dinner in the most American “family restaurant buffet” going. There was an old man in the corner doing bad covers of Creedence Clearwater Revival songs and the man on the table next to us was wearing a masked intruder t-shirt and kept disappearing, leaving his young family to fend for themselves. The waitress tottered about remembering everything off the top of her head. I refused to eat food I hadn’t heard mentioned in the Hollywood movies of my childhood so got a plate of brisket, shrimp, corn dogs, mac n cheese and ice tea for dinner.
I’m tired but I can’t sleep.
I’m hungry but even the bread tastes like diabetes.
I’ve seen enough tarantulas but not enough hiking.
Today, as Jamiriquai famously said, we are going deeper underground.
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Grand Canyon: Day 3.
After an early breakfast we head along the canyon to the Hualapai Hilltop and the trail that represents the only land access to Supai Village, home to the Havasupai tribe. The hike begins at 1,645 metres and descends, before leveling off in a beautiful red sandstone canyon. After 13 kilometers of hiking and a descent of 600 metres, we arrive at the Supai Village, where the Havasupai Indians have made their home for many centuries. A further 3 kilometers brings us to Havasu Campground where a spectacular dinner and exploration of nearby Havasu Falls will round the day off.
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Grand Canyon Trek: Day 2.
We start our challenge with one of the highlights of the trip today. We leave our lodge in Grand Canyon Village and start our walk along the canyon trails, some of the most popular and visually stunning sights in the United States. From our trail the views along and into the Canyon to the roaring Colorado River are breathtaking. Our guides will be with us along the way to bring life to the views with history and geology. After lunch and a good chance to soak in the incredible scenery we head back up to the village. From there we transfer to the local town of Williams after an amazing and unforgettable day at the Grand Canyon.
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Grand Canyon Trek: Day 1.
We depart from London Gatwick on a flight to Las Vegas. I’ve been instructed as usual not to pack my hiking boots but to wear them to the airport and on the flight. If your bag goes missing then you can replace anything except your hiking boots.
We transfer from LV airport to the Grand Canyon National Park. We have already been instructed to get an early night.
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With two weeks to go.
Two weeks from today I will be heading to the airport to take part in the third of my charity treks. For those of you who follow my blog closely you will know that this year the trek is across over 70km of the Grand Canyon over five days. I’ve never been to America and the idea of this being my in is very exciting. It is impossible to not be influenced by American culture and some of my favourite writers are from the States and wrote at length about their love for the country.
I first signed up for a trek because of Kerouac. Although he became fairly problematic as a person and became a troubled, bloated and alcoholic version of his former self. The version of Kerouac featured in on the road was not the man he was by the time the book was eventually published and hippies and beatniks hunted him down seeking some kind of sage. It doesn’t matter what the man was like, his words will be here forever and his thoughts on the great stretches of America he traveled across as well as his spirituality and understanding of the universe are what remain. That’s what I love and that’s what I wanted to gain from traveling and writing in the way I do.
I’ve been preparing myself physically and mentally. I’m eating well. I’m running a couple of times a week and heading out on lonely treks through the Essex countryside with a thermos and some sandwiches trying to spend as much time on my feet as possible. I tend to fall off the routine for the rest of the year but in the run up to a trek I get ready to emerge myself in it completely. I can’t wait to fly out. It’s one of the things I enjoy the most.
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Tips for freshers.
It hurts to admit but it has been ten years since I was a fresher. I am therefore best placed to give you advice on what to do with the rest of your week/life. There’s something that bothered me about being a fresher. It wasn’t so much that I feared being swirlied (I still fear this, I live in constant fear of this), it was more that it sounds like you’re already the victim of something. That aside, here’s my top tips for making it through and coming out the other side as a reasonable human being.
- Don’t take up smoking to be cool or bohemian.
More than anything this is a cost saving thing. I’m not against smoking although it will cause you any number of problems including death if used for a prolonged period. Cigarettes are really expensive. Even buying tobacco and papers is now out of your price range. If you need to do something with your hands then buy a Rubik’s cube or take up knitting.
2. It’s okay to sleep with nobody and it’s also okay to sleep with everybody.
As long as everyone involved is consenting to it and you’ve detailed your hard limits then go for it. If you want to sit in eating microwave pizza and binge-watching Lost cringing at the thought of contact with another human being then go for it.
3. Don’t even think about the debt.
Unfortunately we are stuck with a government who think education should be for the privileged and your fees are going nowhere my friend. Each month for seven years a slice of my monthly wage has been taken away before I even see it. I’m clear of storecard and credit card debt so I don’t think about my student loan. It’s just one of those things. Chances are I’ll be dead before I pay it off so I’ll be laughing at the Student Loan Company from Hell.
4. Don’t buy a kettle, toaster or microwave.
Every Diana, Blair and Tinky Winky (I’ve based these names on the big stuff that happened in the year you were born if you’re 18 and therefore of university attending age by my understanding) will have been bought a kettle, toaster and/or microwave by their parents (Lyndon and Caroline (again, I’ve based this on the big stuff that happened in the year your parents were born if they were 30 when they had you)). Check into halls and get a feel for the white goods counter before you head to the Value range at Tesco, the Basics range at Sainsburys or Asda.
5. Go to lectures.
Take it from someone who didn’t, it won’t help. It doesn’t matter how hard your hangover hits you at eighteen, it’ll hit you a lot harder at twenty-eight and then you’ll still have to go to work and pretend to do some adulting while sweating out ill-advised jagerbombs while you try to grip a venti something-mocha. Go to lectures and learn. Knowledge is power. She will probably still be there when you get back.
6. Cultivate new friendships but don’t forget those you had before.
You are going to meet a lot of amazing people. I see my friends from university as often as I can. Some of them have got married. Some of them have kids. Some have grown up adult jobs. Some of them still think they’re nineteen. They’re all great. What you have to remember is that you’ll also come home to your old friends and you might even move back home after university so don’t burn those bridges. Keep everyone who is good to you and for you close. You need them.
7. Experiment.
If there’s a time for regrets it is when you are at university. If there is a time to find out what you’re into it is when you are at university. If there is a time to find out what you’re not into it is when you’re at university. If there is a time to assist in finding yourself, it is when you are at university. Kiss a boy (if you’re a boy, or if you’re a girl, again, consent and everything else in point 1), try and start a band, try pilates or kickboxing or crochet or croquet. I kissed a few boys and a few girls, I kissed the Incredible Hulk, I started a band, I tried pilates. Your experience doesn’t have to be the same. You don’t have to do as much or any of those things but work out what you do fancy. Keep your hard limits.
8. Be a cheap bastard – except when it comes to two commodities; toilet roll and binbags.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if you use cheap toilet rolls and binbags you are going to end up putting your finger through it and covering your hand in shit. Buy cheap fruit and vegetables because they’re still fruit and vegetables and you need that shit. Bulk buy pasta and rice because you need cards. Buy cheap bread because how else are you going to make a black pudding sandwich but trust me on the toilet roll and binbags.
9. Get student discount in as many places as you can.
There are websites dedicated to lists of stores and restaurants that give you student discount. Try here, here and here. You will miss that when it is gone. I’ve been fortunate enough to recently start a professional qualification which means I have regained the right to an NUS card and it is fantastic. I’m a discount pimp.
10. Enjoy it.
People are very quick to tell you that certain times in your life are the best years of your life. That’s bullshit. It’s what you make of it and how you categorise it. What I thought I wanted ten years ago is different from what I want now, that goes for both my life and a night out. I rarely want a Snakebite anymore for example. What I will say is that it’s the last hurrah for a lot of people before you have to get a job and commit and do all of those terrible things you’re partly putting off just by going to university so try and enjoy it. If you’re anything like me you’ll spend the whole time thinking about what a great anecdote it will make one day instead of enjoying the moment. Enjoy the moment and trust me on the toilet paper and binbags.
Former me:
Paul Schiernecker 