u/guywhocampz

Bright Angel Campground

I've wanted to spend a night at the bottom of the Grand Canyon for years. Like a lot of people, I'd looked over the edge and tried to imagine what it would feel like to stand down there beside the Colorado River. It's truly impossible to comprehend until you’re actually down there.

I also filmed the entire adventure if anyone wants to see the full hike - link is here.

I was lucky enough to score a last-minute week-day permit and called a buddy who as it turns out has never backpacked before. Thankfully he was in marathon shape. We also packed a few humble luxuries like camp chairs, a cast iron pan and a pound of frozen ground beef for trail tacos.

Making trail tacos

We camped the night before in nearby national forest and then started our hike down the South Kaibab Trail around 9am. The trail was packed with sightseers, day-hikers, trail runners and backpackers. Every switchback seemed to peel away another layer of the canyon.

The trail has a rhythm to it. Ooh Aah Point gives way to Cedar Ridge, then Skeleton Point, and eventually The Tipoff where you have a shaded shelter to rest at. By this point it was getting pretty warm around 80 degrees but it felt hotter as there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. The further down we went the walls rise higher, the air grows warmer, and the Colorado River which looked like a ribbon from up above becomes a tempting oasis.

Couldn't wait to get to the Colorado River

There's something amazing about soaking my beat and bruised feet in the Colorado after hours of descending. Phantom Ranch felt almost surreal, a tiny village built out of stone where backpackers from every corner of the world seemed to share the same exhausted grin, air-conditioning and the cafe’s signature lemonade. Yes, there is a working restaurant and gift shop at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

We got one of the last sites Bright Angel Campground right next to the creek. There were issues with the water line to camp so we had to do the ½ mile hike to the only working spigot at Phantom Ranch a few times over our stay. At night everyone used the redlight on their headlamps to minimize disturbance. Also, there were tons of deer milling around the creek.

Our creek-front campsite

Everyone talks about hiking into the Grand Canyon. They should. But hiking back out is what counts. We saw a number of people way down on the trail who we had serious concerns about their ability to get back out.

4,800+ feet of climbing doesn't sound real until your legs have to negotiate every one of those steps. The canyon has a way of humbling you. And then you start to feel the altitude near the canyon’s rim over a mile high.

I've hiked in a lot of beautiful places, but there's something different about the Grand Canyon. Its views are otherworldly, the trail impeccably maintained and the rim-side visitors center is sort of a Disneyland for outdoorsy people

I’m happy to answer any questions about permits, gear, March conditions, or the route if anyone is planning the trip.

Huge thank you to the men and women who work in the National Park and keep the trails maintained and the lemonade stocked. We appreciate you.

Elk!

I spent 30 years trying to find a backpacking pan that didn't suck.

Prepping the pan for trail tacos

You know the stuff they sell at REI, lighter and lighter every year. I recently bought a titanium pan, and within seconds on my isobutane stove my eggs had turned into a black crust. I've tried aluminum non-stick, the classic aluminum Boy Scout mess kit, stainless steel, and basically every camping pan on the market over the last 30 years of backpacking.

If I was going to cook actual food in the backcountry, I needed something better.

I needed cast iron.

Thus began my quest to find the lightest cast iron skillet on the market that didn't cost over $100.

I started with the standard 8" Lodge, which weighs 3.2 pounds, and lugged that hunk of iron deep into the Joshua Tree backcountry. Between that and all the extra water (there's none out there), it nearly broke me.

The pancakes in the middle of the desert were absolutely worth it.

Since then I've been hunting for something lighter that still had a real cooking surface and a decent lip. No 3.5-inch novelty skillets.

Then, at a random Sportsman's Warehouse in Anchorage, Alaska, I stumbled across the Lodge Blacklock 7-inch Lightweight Cast Iron Skillet. The moment I picked it up and felt its spry 1.82-pound weight, I knew I'd found something special. At around forty bucks it felt expensive for a Lodge, but I bought it anyway.

Six months later, I have zero regrets.

For context, I'm a quasi-ultralight backpacker. I regularly carry a 30-pound pack up mountains and thousands of feet of elevation gain. I have friends whose entire tents weigh less than this skillet.

My 1 night pack weighed in at 30.44 lbs

Whenever I pull it out, people look at me like I'm insane.

I'd argue the insane people are the ones eating freeze-dried chicken fettuccine that never quite rehydrates, leaving you with crunchy chicken jerky floating in mediocre pasta.

This March I carried the Blacklock to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for a night at Bright Angel Campground. I also packed in 1.25 pounds of frozen ground beef (which thawed during the seven-mile hike), taco seasoning, shredded cheese, and flour tortillas.

Cooking the Berf

I'm not exaggerating when I say they were the best tacos I've ever eaten.

Spending the rest of my life chasing this feeling

Even better, I got to share them with a buddy on his very first backpacking trip. I think I ruined him for life.

So to all you dreamers, fellow cast iron luddites, and backpacking heretics - I see you. Everyone thinks we're crazy.

But I'd argue the people cooking on fancy HexClad and Teflon pans are the truly unhinged ones.

Now... back to working on my seasoning.

I spent 30 years trying to find a backpacking pan that didn't suck.

Getting ready for trail tacos at the bottom of the Grand Canyon

You know the stuff they sell at REI, lighter and lighter every year. I recently bought a titanium pan, and within seconds on my isobutane stove my eggs had turned into a black crust. I've tried aluminum non-stick, the classic aluminum Boy Scout mess kit, stainless steel, and basically every camping pan on the market over the last 30 years of backpacking.

If I was going to cook actual food in the backcountry, I needed something better.

I needed cast iron.

Thus began my quest to find the lightest cast iron skillet on the market that didn't cost over $100.

I started with the standard 8" Lodge, which weighs 3.2 pounds, and lugged that hunk of iron deep into the Joshua Tree backcountry. Between that and all the extra water (there's none out there), it nearly broke me.

The pancakes in the middle of the desert were absolutely worth it.

Since then I've been hunting for something lighter that still had a real cooking surface and a decent lip. No 3.5-inch novelty skillets.

Then, at a random Sportsman's Warehouse in Anchorage, Alaska, I stumbled across the Lodge Blacklock 7-inch Lightweight Cast Iron Skillet. The moment I picked it up and felt its spry 1.82-pound weight, I knew I'd found something special. At around forty bucks it felt expensive for a Lodge, but I bought it anyway.

Six months later, I have zero regrets.

For context, I'm a quasi-ultralight backpacker. I regularly carry a 30-pound pack up mountains and thousands of feet of elevation gain. I have friends whose entire tents weigh less than this skillet.

my pack weighed in at 30.44 pounds

Whenever I pull it out, people look at me like I'm insane.

I'd argue the insane people are the ones eating freeze-dried chicken fettuccine that never quite rehydrates, leaving you with crunchy chicken jerky floating in mediocre pasta.

This March I carried the Blacklock to the bottom of the Grand Canyon for a night at Bright Angel Campground. I also packed in 1.25 pounds of frozen ground beef (which thawed during the seven-mile hike), taco seasoning, shredded cheese, and flour tortillas.

That sizzling berf

All I want in life is to feel this again

I'm not exaggerating when I say they were the best tacos I've ever eaten.

Even better, I got to share them with a buddy on his very first backpacking trip. I think I ruined him for life.

So to all you dreamers, fellow cast iron luddites, and backpacking heretics - I see you. Everyone thinks we're crazy.

But I'd argue the people cooking on fancy HexClad and Teflon pans are the truly unhinged ones.

Now... back to working on my seasoning.

Bright Angel Campground

I've wanted to spend a night at the bottom of the Grand Canyon for years. Like a lot of people, I'd looked over the edge and tried to imagine what it would feel like to stand down there beside the Colorado River. It's truly impossible to comprehend until you’re actually down there.

I also filmed the entire adventure if anyone wants to see the full hike - link is here.

I was lucky enough to score a last-minute week-day permit and called a buddy who as it turns out has never backpacked before. Thankfully he was in marathon shape. We also packed a few humble luxuries like camp chairs, a cast iron pan and a pound of frozen ground beef for trail tacos.

The first Trail Taco test was a huge success

We camped the night before in nearby national forest and then started our hike down the South Kaibab Trail around 9am. The trail was packed with sightseers, day-hikers, trail runners and backpackers. Every switchback seemed to peel away another layer of the canyon.

The trail has a rhythm to it. Ooh Aah Point gives way to Cedar Ridge, then Skeleton Point, and eventually The Tipoff where you have a shaded shelter to rest at. By this point it was getting pretty warm around 80 degrees but it felt hotter as there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. The further down we went the walls rise higher, the air grows warmer, and the Colorado River which looked like a ribbon from up above becomes a tempting oasis.

Couldn't wait to get to the Colorado River

There's something amazing about soaking my beat and bruised feet in the Colorado after hours of descending. Phantom Ranch felt almost surreal, a tiny village built out of stone where backpackers from every corner of the world seemed to share the same exhausted grin, air-conditioning and the cafe’s signature lemonade. Yes, there is a working restaurant and gift shop at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

We got one of the last sites Bright Angel Campground right next to the creek. There were issues with the water line to camp so we had to do the ½ mile hike to the only working spigot at Phantom Ranch a few times over our stay. At night everyone used the redlight on their headlamps to minimize disturbance. Also, there were tons of deer milling around the creek.

Our creek-front campsite

Everyone talks about hiking into the Grand Canyon. They should. But hiking back out is what counts. We saw a number of people way down on the trail who we had serious concerns about their ability to get back out.

4,800+ feet of climbing doesn't sound real until your legs have to negotiate every one of those steps. The canyon has a way of humbling you. And then you start to feel the altitude near the canyon’s rim over a mile high.

I've hiked in a lot of beautiful places, but there's something different about the Grand Canyon. Its views are otherworldly, the trail impeccably maintained and the rim-side visitors center is sort of a Disneyland for outdoorsy people

I’m happy to answer any questions about permits, gear, March conditions, or the route if anyone is planning the trip.

Huge thank you to the men and women who work in the National Park and keep the trails maintained and the lemonade stocked. We appreciate you.

Elk!