(There is a separate Trip Report for my backpack to the bottom that trip here.)

Work in progress…

I headed out to Grand Canyon National Park in January of 2011 to camp and do an overnight backpack to the bottom of the canyon. Why January? Well, less crowded. I had overheard a Ranger telling another visitor seeking a backcountry permit on that 2007 trip that aside from New Years’ Eve and New Years’ Day, it was very unlikely they’d have a problem securing a first-come first-serve permit for Bright Angel campground (at the bottom). Hmm, I thought at the time, I’ll come back. And I did.

With modern speed limits, Deming, New Mexico is a reasonable first day stop out of Austin–about 700 miles. I stayed there the first night, then on to Williams, Arizona. The first week of 2011 had been extremely cold in northern Arizona; every day in nearby Flagstaff had a low temperature of zero or below. (I don’t have the data for Williams.) Williams, at about 7,000′, had had a recent deep snowfall. I had recently gotten a new camera (Nikon D3100) and walked from the motel down to the Grand Canyon Railway station and took a bunch of photos.

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