November 1993
South Bass to the river and return.
This trip was to be our first extended packpacking trip into the more remote regions of the south rim, and was our first serious backpacking trip in about 7 years. My friend Fred Edson and his wife Margie Puerta had reserved 6 spots and asked Tom and I to join them and Fred's brother-in-law and friend.
We could not get any information from the backcountry office concerning water availability along the Tonto between the South Bass and the Hermit Trail except for those streams listed as "perennials". Consequently, we each packed 2 gallons of water for the trip down, as we wouldn't be hitting our first reliable water source until xx%$#@#***.
Having not packed for a trip in quite awhile, we were not as efficient as we could have been and were weighted down with too much food. I packed 18 bagels for this trip, figuring I'd have 1 with each meal and a few extra. Also, I packed 5 pounds worth of trail mix, raisins, peanuts, and M&M's.
We took 2 vehicles to the South Bass trailhead, located some 30+ miles west of Grand Canyon Village. This dirt road is rough going and after a good rain or snow would be unpassable. Luckily for us there had been no rain for about a week.
We found some intact toward the top of the trail and within a few hours were at the base of Mt. Huethewali on the Esplanade. Practicing our map and compass work, we found the USGS marker right at the point where the trail drops into the Supai formation. We continued along the ledges of the Supai, which looped around to the east and back south before dropping down through the Redwall, which at this point is basically a talus slope. It was a long difficult descent, made all the more difficult by the amount of extra weight we were carrying. We didn't make it to the junction of the plateau that night. We camped the first night at the first available flat spot past the Redwall. Fred and Margie were above us somewhere.
The following day we headed down to the junction of the South Bass and the Tonto. Fred and Margie had planned to go down to the river and spend a few nights there, and Tom and I were to head across the plateau. When we got to the junction at midmorning my legs were shaking and we sat down and decided we were just too unprepared to head out into the unknown. The South Bass had given us a real beating, especially with all the weight we were carrying. So we decided to change our plans and head down through the drainage of the Bass to the river. First we cached some food and water for the return hike and then we headed out. The trail ends abruptly at a cliff just above the river and so we traveled west a bit until we spotted a cairn which marked the descent to the sandy beaches below. The beach area at Bass Rapids was large and we headed past the rafting boat abandoned in the 1930's, east along the dunes to a nice spot tuck in against the dark vishnu schist.
Fred and Margie showed up about 5pm that evening and were very glad to see us. They had spent the night in he Supai formation and had put in quite a few miles that day. We cooked a great meal and bedded down early to the roar of the Colorado.
The next day we spent exploring the area. We headed west and discovered the area where William Wallace Bass had strung his cable across the river. The cable has since been removed but some remnants still remain, most notably the trail built down to the waters edge. We also spent time identifying animals in the area by the footprints they had left in the mud at the rivers edge. It was a relaxing day which included just laying in the sun on the black schist sanded smooth by the relentless movement of the water through the inner gorge.
On the 4th day we got an early start and headed back up the Bass. We had pumped water from the Colorado and along with the water we had cached had enough for the next two days. It was a long slow hike out of the inner gorge and through the redwall, but the campsite we found in the Supai was magnificent. We were literally at the Redwalls edge, with a drop of 600 ft and the entire South Bass at our feet. We slept well that night but just to be sure I piled a few rocks at my feet so I wouldn't slip during the night any closer to the edge than I already was.
The next morning we made the Esplanade within the hour and were up on top a few hours after that. It was a wonderful trip.