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Elegant-Road t1_j29eir1 wrote

The pictures don't do justice to the actual scale of Grand Canyon in my opinion.

It's jaw dropping when you see how huge it is in person. Its just magical.

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Alohagrown t1_j2aju4c wrote

They never do the Grand Canyon justice. It’s a very special place when you visit in person.

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pointychallenge t1_j2bevm3 wrote

It’s just too vast for any photo to capture. What I remember about the north rim compared to south is that the drop is so far that my fear of heights didn’t kick in. Too deep to grasp. Even when I told myself the little green dots were trees, just didn’t seem real. Wild.

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Works_4_Tacos t1_j2bfget wrote

It truly is.

My ex-fiancee and I got engaged down there while camping at phantom ranch.

Both when hiking in and out (+9 miles each way, plus an unfathomable amount of vertical terrain) we were LAPPED by these ultra marathoners rim to rim to rimming the damn thing.

Literally starting on one side of the canyon, running all the way down and back up the other side to then just turn back around and go down and up again to where they start. Multiple times in a day.

Absolutely unbelievable feats of human endurance.

My wife and I swear next time we hike the canyon we're rafting in. F that noise.

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ST_Lawson t1_j2c09xt wrote

> Both when hiking in and out (+9 miles each way, plus an unfathomable amount of vertical terrain) we were LAPPED by these ultra marathoners rim to rim to rimming the damn thing.

Did about 18 miles in the canyon a bit over a year ago (South Kaibab down to the tip-off, across Tonto trail then back up Bright Angel). There was a group of guys on our shuttle bus that morning doing R2R2R, but fast hiking it. I don’t understand that thought process though because nearly all the return trip would be after dark so you’d miss all the scenery.

If I was ever going to do that, I’d make arrangements to stay overnight at the north rim. Go south to north one day, stay overnight in the lodge, north back to south the next day.

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UltraRunningKid t1_j2c0wdq wrote

If they were fast hiking it, it's not unrealistic to finish in 12-14 hours and not have to do a ton of it at night.

Source: did 2 x R2R2R in 22 hours in October

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ST_Lawson t1_j2c38es wrote

Sure, it’s do-able if you’ve planned it that way and are in shape for it. The guy we were talking with was planning on starting the hike back at around sunset that night though. Idk what his definition of fast-hiking was though. They were faster than my group (we had one person around 70 and one around 78), but slower than another group who were jogging down.

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The_Best_Yak_Ever t1_j2bhehr wrote

It’s one of those places that has to be seen to be believed. I was just there last summer when my dad, dog, and I went on a massive road trip down into the seven westernmost states. The canyon alone was worth the trip!

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M0hnJadden t1_j2cchqq wrote

When I went I thought that no picture could do it justice because in a way it looked like a picture. The north rim was so far away that all sense of depth was lost. I knew it was real, but it looked like somebody went out a few miles and dropped a really convincing but flat canvas. It truly boggles the mind, I went with some friends who are rarely lost for words and we couldn't help but stand in stunned in silence for a couple minutes. Can't wait to go back and take my family, spend more than just an afternoon, and actually get down into the canyon.

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Phreedom1 t1_j2eittj wrote

Agreed. My entire life I heard how incredible the Grand Canyon was. I heard it so much that I was afraid the over-hype would lead to an underwhelming experience when I finally visited it in my 40's. It's one of those rare places that no matter how high your expectations are, they are exceeded when you see it for the first time.

EDIT: Getting up early and making your way to the rim when it's still dark to watch the sunrise is an absolute must.

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