We just got back from a trip to the grand canyon. The highlight of the trip was without a doubt hiking down the canyon, and spending a night at the bottom of the canyon.

There are several trails leading from the south rim to the bottom, but my recommendation is hiking down the south Kaibab trail, since most of it is on the ridgeline and heading down you get beautiful vistas of the canyon.We took some amazing snapshots, which we were very proud of.

I would not recommend going up the same trail, since the climb up is very strenuous and the isn’t much shade on the trail, so a good loop down and up the canyon would be climbing down the south Kaibab trail, and up the bright angel trail which is less exposed.

There is no water on the trail, so bring lots of it, as well as energy bars, at least for the way down, for the way up you can buy stuff at phantom ranch. There is also no bathroom except one about halfway through the trail. Also, it’s usually sunny so be sure to have a hat and sunglasses with you.

To make the climb as easy as possible, try to pack lightly. We each carried pack of about 15lbs. It’s possible to rent hiking poles, which I didn’t but Mike did, and it turned up that with poles the hike up is much less strenuous.

Hiking down and up on the same day is do-able but is very hard, and when we consulted with th the park rangers they advised us not to, so we hiked down and spent the night in the bright angel campground. If you do decide to climb down and up on the same the, start very early, because the hike down takes about 4 hours, and the climb up could take about 8 hours.

The trail begins from Yaki point. You should park your car at the park and take the shuttle from the park to Yaki point. It’s about 1.5 miles (about 1 hour) from the trail head to cedar ridge. The next 1.5 miles, are the best of the trail, offering great views of the canyon, and from Skeleton point, you also begin to see the Colorado river. From skeleton point the trail begins to descend sharply through a break in the limestone wall until the Tonto junction, 4.5 miles from the trailhead. About 500 yards from the junction is a point called the tipoff, where the trail begins the final descent to the bottom. This part is the steepest part of the trail. From there you eventually reach a suspension bridge, and continuing over the bridge will lead you to the bright angel trail, Phantom ranch and bright angel campground.

The bright angel trail is less steep than the south Kaibab, but is also longer (9 miles). It makes for an easier climb because there is more shade along the trail. The hardest part of the trail is from the bottom to Indian gardens, so make sure you have plenty of water. You can get water at Indian gardens. The rest of the climb up is a bit easier, but be sure to take a rest regularly, and drink a lot. The climb is deceptively long, so be sure to start early, before the bottom of the canyon gets too hot.