AZT Day 45: North Rim & Beyond

Daily Miles: 24.3, Total Miles: 742.0

Warmest night so far – mostly slept in the bag liner. Early morning in the canyon is pretty special!

Since the North Rim is closed until May 15, I had the hike up to the North Rim on the North Kaibab Trail all to myself – gorgeous views up to both rims with the sun up and morning sunlight.

A special treat was getting to the North Rim and looking back across and seeing the San Francisco Peaks in the distance.

Once on top, I headed to the still closed backcountry office and used the water filling station.

About a 4,000 ft elevation gain to the Rim but had to climb another 1,000 ft before reaching the park boundary, a bit of snow present. Through forests and big meadows, this long day ended at Crystal Spring – going to be much cooler tonight.