What I Ate In A Day: Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim Edition
In most of America’s national parks, you’ll find that hike. In Yosemite, climbers scale the sheer granite face of El Capitan. Visitors to Zion Canyon white-knuckle their way up and down Angel’s Landing. At Grand Canyon National Park, that hike is Rim-to-Rim, where visitors walk from one side of the canyon to the other. In one day. After 24ish-miles, roughly 13,000 ft of elevation change, and entrance into the actual hell dimension that is low-elevation June in Arizona, I completed that hike.
Others call Rim-to-Rim (or R2R if you’re pretentious) “a life changing experience”, “the hardest thing I’ve ever done”, and “a way to find myself”. I mostly just thought it was really hot.
My biggest concern when hiking Rim-to-Rim was packing my backpack- specifically choosing snacks that would sustain me through the absolutely absurd athletic endeavor that was walking across the Grand Canyon. Water was no issue, as I was hiking along the route of the pipe that supplies water to the park and would be able to refill relatively often. I just needed my fuel. Combining knowledge of my own needs with the advice of the experienced hiker I was traveling with, here’s what I ate in a day hiking from Rim to Rim.
Breakfast
Between waking up in the woods at 2:45 am and hitting the North Kaibab Trail at 4 am, I consumed an unusually high amount of calories, and my body was not happy. I started healthy… by shoveling down two huge cookies from the famous bakery near Grand Canyon North Rim. I washed those down with a Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness juice, which is almost like eating vegetables. My stomach was already full, but my brain and my hiking companion told me to keep eating. Next up- overnight oats prepared in a Talenti gelato container. I got through about half of them before giving up. Stuffed to the brim, I chugged a Starbucks Doubleshot Espresso and a liter of water. My tummy was upset, but I did what had to be done.
Snacktime Number One
The legit hikers all stress the importance of replenishing salts, which I’m pretty sure is just an excuse to eat an inappropriate amount of salty snacks. After a few hours of hiking downhill, sliced cheese and vegan pepperoni with crackers totally hit the spot. I was starting to feel tired and frazzled, but I had my salts!
Snacktime Number Two
I had stashed another one of those delicious cookies in the cupholder of my backpack, and it had not travelled well. I barely had an appetite, but didn’t want to let the cookie go to waste. That being said, it was a great snack.
Lunch
Ah, the sweet relief that was taking a lunch break. My buddy bought me two lemonades from the Phantom Ranch snack counter at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and I nourished my body with a few handfuls of trail mix while enjoying the 130 degree heat.
Snacktime Number 3, etc.
There were some Goldfish crackers (salts!) and Gatorade (more salts!) involved. I think my brain cooked in the oven that is the basement rock of the canyon.
Post-Hike
I ate three bites of ice cream and fell asleep with my face on the dining room table.
