Arizona in October…
Wes and George enthusiastic before their first Arizona hike!
Wes and I deliberately picked late September and early October for our hike to avoid extreme temperatures. We felt that autumn would be in the Goldilocks zone - not too hot or too cold. Well, climate is what you expect, weather is what you get! Arizona decided to enjoy a hot spell during our trip! Temperatures were at or near record highs and often topped over 110 degrees Fahrenheit. My training in Michigan and Alaska did not prepare me for the Arizona conditions, and both Wes and I were getting concerned about how to handle the heat.
As I mentioned at the end of my last blog segment, disaster had struck after my Alaska cruise. I had about three weeks before the end of the cruise to the start of the Rim-2-Rim hike. I wasn’t home two days before I developed a crippling upper respiratory virus. The first week I didn’t want to get out of bed and only after that week did I start to recover. I was driven to do some light hiking to try to get back to normal but I struggled with short hikes on flat ground. Even that little exertion left my lungs aching and breath jagged. I was worried my lungs were not recovering fast enough to be ready for the canyon. I had to request a steroid inhaler from my doctor to try and get my lungs back to normal. The inhaler helped but I was still reliant on it when we flew out to Arizona. I was doing great after Alaska but this was a dramatic physical and emotional setback.
Image of the Phoenix terrain from our hike.
So now Wes and I found ourselves heading to Arizona and both of us were concerned about hiking in the hot weather and me worried about some of my lost conditioning. We arrived in Phoenix late on a Friday night and discussed going for an early morning hike on Saturday to try and get acclimated to the climate. We thought we’d be able to get out before the day got too hot to get some idea what hiking in the heat would be like. Well, Saturday morning didn’t go quite as planned.
The backdrop to all of this was the continued warnings about hiking in the canyon and people having to be rescued because they didn’t follow guidelines. The warnings about hiking in the heat hit home which is why we wanted to get an early start. The need to get acclimated and conditioned for the heat, rather than avoiding it, seemed like the logical move as we discussed the morning hike. Our cool weather preparations seemed wildly inadequate. With some heat conditioning we would be ready for the canyon!
The early start didn’t happen and we found ourselves heading to the trailhead after 9:00 am. There was no sense of urgency despite us checking how quickly the temperature would rise. We got up later than planned due to a late arrival in Phoenix. Even breakfast, critical so we’d have energy for the hike, was at a leisurely pace. Our grand canyon backpacks include a bladder to hold three liters of water. Since these were not available for our Phoenix hike, we realized that we needed a way to transport enough water for the hotter climate. This translated into a side quest to Walmart to get cheap backpacks and bottled water. Even with the mounting delays, we felt great about the precautions we were taking.
In our attempt to be smart we picked a hike that didn’t seem too extreme in duration or elevation gain. It was a loop hike about three miles long. We were used to doing this type of hike all the time as part of our training. Coming from Michigan, though, we didn’t realize that there was little to no shade. When we got to the trailhead and saw the rocky, open terrain, we were undeterred. We were pumped! We were trained! We were prepared! We had this! With plenty of water, sunscreen, moisture wicking clothes, hats, etc. and a can-do attitude. We were going to knock out this hike and enjoy sightseeing in Phoenix. We didn’t even consider not going. What we hadn’t factored in just how hot it was going to be that early in the morning. It started out over 100 F and got hotter. But as we Midwesterners love to point out, it was a dry heat so we set off regardless!
We started out with enthusiasm and set off at a decent pace. We drank plenty of water but after about a mile into the hike I started to observe signs that I wasn’t doing well. I felt a bit weak climbing the hills. Was I still recovering from the virus? We continued to climb and now I was feeling slightly nauseated and maybe just a bit faint. We hadn’t even reached the halfway point on the hike. I shared how I was feeling with Wes. I explained my symptoms and concern about continuing the hike. I was worried that if I was in the early stages of heat exhaustion or stroke we could make a bad situation worse by trying to push on. Wes, to his credit, respected my position and was supportive. We agreed to turn back.
As we made our way back to the car, I continued to deteriorate. I made a point of stopping to rest and drink water but my strength continued to fade. I took exaggerated care with my steps as my concentration and focus waned. All I wanted to do was rush to the car and escape the heat. I forced myself to keep a reasonable pace and push through. My thoughts teetered between placing my next step and how much further we had to go. It was maddening! I could see the car but mentally, it was a world away. We eventually made it back to the car and I handed Wes the keys telling him that I was in no condition to drive. I collapsed into the passenger seat as we cranked the air conditioning. The cool air felt like a lifeline had been extended to me. I reclined my seat and poured water over myself and just laid there cooling off and slowly recovering. After about 20 minutes I was able to sit up and started to feel more normal. That’s when a new worry took hold. If I had misgivings about going into the canyon in the heat before, my confidence was completed crushed at this point. I was scared about the hike and seriously thinking that I’d have to back out!
Doesn’t look like Michigan, does it?
My go to approach when I don’t know how to handle a specific problem is to engage experts. In this case it meant contacting the tour company. With a heavy heart I made the call. The gentleman at the tour company listened to my concerns, asked for details of the situation that led to my call, and slowly and methodically talked me off of the ledge. First, he took the time to explain, in kind terms, that Arizonans do not hike under the conditions we tried to hike in. If someone wanted to hike, they would start out at daybreak or earlier and stop well before the time we started. He described how the Phoenix hiking community had to face the reality that they were restricted in how they enjoyed the outdoors. The conditions we would experience in the canyon, he explained, were nothing like what we experienced earlier in the day. The canyon hikes, other than the first day, would start before daybreak to maximize hiking in cooler conditions. On the first day, due to drive time from Phoenix to the North Rim, we’d be starting after lunch but the trail would be in shade. No conditions would come close to matching our hike. He emphasized that they took great care to make sure their customers were safe. I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed though. Wes and I thought we were not pushing ourselves but I got humbled. By the time the call was over, I was off of the ledge and starting to feel good about the canyon again. An outfitter was recommended to me where I could get further advice and maybe some alternate apparel to help with the heat.
At the outfitter, the proprietor patiently explained that what we did “just isn’t done down here” and our reaction to the heat wasn’t unexpected. He recommended a long sleave hoodie that was UV resistant and moisture wicking. By wetting it down regularly, he explained, would enable it to act as a chiller through evaporative cooling. I took his advice and picked one up. Being a physicist and understanding evaporative cooling, I could intellectually grasp the value of what he was proposing, but I was still apprehensive about whether or not it would be significant enough. However, I cannot underestimate how much of a difference it made! Our tour guide, Jonathan, would use some of the water he carried to soak me if we were not by a convenient stream. It genuinely made 100 degree weather feel like a shady walk in the forest!
YogaGeorge enjoying his hoodie on day 3 of the hike.
I was embarrassed that we misjudged our understanding of the heat and our preparations for handling it. It is a cautionary tale about how normally reasonably intelligent people can make mistakes. My partnership with Wes, more than just a father and son relationship, further grew during this adversity. We easily, and objectively, discussed our observations, perspectives, and feelings so that we could rationally correct our mistakes. As an example, our preparations for the hike allowed us to realize early on that something was amiss and to react accordingly. There was no suggestion to push on and ignored the warning signs and that could have made a bad situation much worse.
It was not easy having to reach out to the experts and explain what happened. Interestingly, it was my scientific background and training which made the discussions easier. In the search for scientific truth, I had to regularly admit I didn’t have the answers and engage those who may be able to help. So even in my embarrassment, I was able to fall back on my conditioning and reach out for help. I can honestly say that the failed hike led to changes that made the Rim-to-Rim hike more successful. I’m incredibly grateful to our tour group not just for their advice, but their emotional support! Without them, this story would likely have ended before it even began.
YogaGeorge
ps. Call out to Wes for his help editing this segment.