Tanner Trail – December 2006
Day 1 – Lipan Point to Tanner Beach:
A real pain in the back.
This is my first return to Tanner Trail, the beginning of my original backpack in The Canyon, over five years ago. This time I’m traveling with D.K. and Buster. If I’m honest, I reluctantly start this hike with concerns about a pinched nerve in my lower back.
We quickly switch-back our way below the saddle at 75-Mile Canyon to a good water cache spot below Escalante Butte where we stop for lunch. During the Redwall descent, Buster is slowed by shaky knees. This is a common condition in The Canyon, where every downward step is jittery from bracing against the weight of a pack, and it can be especially difficult for rookies such as Buster. He stumbles a few times, cutting his hand in the process, and starts slowing way down as The Canyon pounds yet another first-timer.
For the duration of the hike down D.K. is well in the lead while I’m a few steps behind Buster, trying to motivate a faster pace and fewer breaks. By the time we hit the bed of Tanner we’ve been hiking for six hours, and the prolonged weight on my back has seriously inflamed my pinched nerve. The only way I’m semi-painless is hunched over a bit and I probably look like Quasimodo right now. My hope is that an extended cocktail hour will help ease the pain.
Day 2 – Layover at Tanner Beach:
Back out on Beamer.
Slept shitty and wake up with ridiculous back pain. Any chance now at making it to the Little Colorado River confluence is out of the question. Buster is beat up from yesterday as well, so it’s the smart group choice to change our plan. That sucks but we’re all still happy to be down here.
D.K. and Buster are off to fish up River while I struggle to wake up in any sort of painless fashion. They stop a quarter mile away where cliff walls prevent further passage at River level. Shooting pains in my back, like repeated knife stabbings, allow me the ability to cover that distance in the lightning quick time of thirty minutes, only stopping to keel over in pain every ten steps or so. We fish the morning with no luck and return to base camp for lunch.
Buster and D.K. go down River in the afternoon while I nap. A solitary goose honking on its flight overhead wakes me feeling a little better, then I meet up with them returning from a half mile away; along the way notice some pottery shards. After returning to camp the weather turns quite cold after sundown. Heavy gusts mixed with some scattered showers prevail through the night.
Day 3 – Dayhike from Tanner Beach to Comanche Creek:
Canyon wildlife abounds on an unsuccessful Comanche raid.
Our limited view of the South Rim reveals fresh snow this morning. Buster made a Canyon rookie mistake last night. His backpack was hanging in a tree, but some of the food was in an open compartment. It appears mice have enjoyed much of his favorite candy bar.
Our goal today is to day-hike the Beamer Trail in search of more promising fishing grounds. We trek up River to the beach at Comanche Creek. Even that short section of the trail has a little exposure worth mentioning, one slip or slide at the wrong place could send you flailing down into the River a couple hundred feet below. I try not to look down too much and fail.
Today is a good day for Canyon wildlife sightings. D.K. spooks a single mule deer out of a mesquite thicket. There is a pair of mallards lounging in an eddy, and watching us nervously. A California condor soars overhead. Despite our efforts, the only angling action we get is one rainbow trout chasing my spinner.
Day 4 – Tanner Beach to upper Tanner Canyon:
Backpacking in a winter Canyonland.
Time to climb at least halfway out, thankfully my back is feeling better. Win the psychological battle. Don’t think about the entire length, just put one foot in front of the other; look to the next switchback instead of the heights above.
We make it to below the Redwall ascent with intermittent snow flurries in our now regular trekking order: D.K. staying five to ten minutes ahead of us while I am constantly pushing at Buster’s heels. Have a short lunch and then crank out the climb in good time.
While approaching our intended camp and the water cache between Escalante and Cardenas Buttes, the snow continues falling with greater density. Our site is a flat clearing next to a very large boulder, underneath which is a cave-like depression just big enough for two small tents, or three dudes and their gear.
While Buster and D.K. are deciding how to arrange their tents in there I quickly set mine further away under the welcome shelter of a large juniper tree. They end up setting tents next to mine, somewhat exposed to the snow but out from underneath the slight danger of a crumbling boulder; beneath which was the added nuisance of pack rat shit everywhere.
D.K. and Buster remain in their tents trying to dry clothing and stay warm while I huddle underneath the boulder. The snowstorm doesn’t appear to be letting up anytime soon, and I’m getting cold. Amongst the pack rat detritus there is some dry timber and it’s tempting to build a small fire. The presence of charcoal indicates someone recently acted on that temptation.
After dinner Buster bolts for the warmth of his tent (not to emerge for fourteen consecutive hours). D.K. generously assists me in consuming the rest of our whiskey supply. I luck out on a dumb-ass move, my tent door has been open for nearly three hours, but thankfully the juniper kept most of the snow out.
Day 5 – Upper Tanner Canyon to Lipan Point:
“Where’s the ski lift?”
Wake up and it’s still snowing. Buster and D.K. get stirring early; coffee does the meanest things to people. I’m fortunate my dozen odd vices don’t include the coffee bean. I convince D.K. to bring me hot water for oatmeal in bed, and don’t leave my tent until I’m packed and ready to go.
There is some significant snow accumulation that slows our ascent. We are the first people to cut the trail this morning and some sections have snowdrifts over a foot high. Above the 75-Mile saddle there are a few places where the snow is so evenly distributed we are forced to take extra time making sure of the right track. Reaching Lipan Point feels like completing an epic winter trek. On the drive home a javelina crosses Desert View Drive right in front of us.
