Travel | Nature | Monthly Challenge

Having the Best Time, Ending up Where I Didn’t Plan to Be

Visiting Ribbon Falls in the Grand Canyon

In the summer of 2011, I embarked on my very first road trip in the United States, joining a friend for two weeks of open roads, national park visits, camping, and hiking. At the time, the only place on my friend’s itinerary I’d heard about was the Grand Canyon, and needless to say, I couldn’t wait to finally see this natural wonder of the world.

We chose driving to the North Rim because it’s the harder to reach and thus the less popular and less crowded access to the Grand Canyon.

The plan was to follow the North Kaibab trail down to the Cottonwood Campground where we’d pitch our tents for two nights (the maximum allowed during the summer season), hiking down to the Colorado river on our first day and hiking back up the North Kaibab trail the second day.

As my title may have already hinted, that’s not quite what happened.

We made it to the campground, but my friend twisted her ankle on the way down and decided to rest it for a day, which meant that our hike down to the Colorado river and maybe even up to the South Rim wouldn't happen.

With this being my first visit to the area, I didn’t feel like venturing out on a long day hike on my own, especially since by virtue of its location — and because it’s also the most difficult hike in the canyon— the trail isn’t crowded or even peopled to be honest. Or at least it wasn’t in 2011.

That said, I wasn’t going to spend the entire day at the campsite, either, and once I confirmed with my friend that she’s perfectly fine staying put, elevating her foot and reading her book, I prepared my daypack and decided to at least hike for a couple of hours in the direction of the river.

After all, I’d woken up at daybreak, which in the Arizona summer means 4:30am, so by 9am, I was already itching to move.

As I embarked on my hike, the sun beat down on me, and with no shade in sight, I started to think that I may not make it much further before turning around and joining my friend for a day of reading at the campsite.

That’s when I spotted a sign, alerting me to the presence of a waterfall somewhere to the side of my trail. Well, I saw the sign and I followed it. It felt like the right thing to do.

And it was.

Is there a sound more lively and life-giving than the gurgle of water on a hot summer day in the desert? I highly doubt it.

As soon as I came across the first pool of water, I dipped my face in the cold, refreshing liquid of life. And I smiled. I’ve made it to exactly where I needed to be. I only wished I’d been able to call my friend and tell her to join me but no smart phones for us in 2011 (I was a late adopter by purchasing my first Android in 2016!).

Once I’d cooled off, I wandered to what looked like the main waterfall.

The location of the waterfall allowed for quite a bit of shade at the time I made it there, and I knew right away that’s the end of my hike for the day.

I’d found my spot and I wasn’t going to leave it until the sun made me do it.

Not a soul around. I had the entire waterfall area all to myself.

As I scrambled about, exploring it, I discovered a trail that led up right behind the waterfall, opening gorgeous views of the canyon.

If the rock hadn’t been wet and slippery, I could have sat in the spot behind the waterfall, reading my book and napping all day.

Don’t get me wrong: I still very much did that but down on the dry rocks, where it was much safer to do so :)

After rock-gazing for a bit through the curtain of water, I made it back down, took my hiking boots off, and dipped my feet in.

I then found a nice secluded spot by a nearby rock, made myself comfortable, and pulled my book out. In addition to snacks and water, I used to always carry a book with me.

Since 2020, I’ve transitioned to borrowing digital books from my library and reading them on my phone, which makes my travel backpack a bit lighter, but I actually miss lugging the real thing.

I ended up reading, napping, and snacking at Ribbon Falls until a couple of hikers interrupted my peaceful relaxation.

The husband and wife were checking off a bucket list item by tackling the rim-to-rim hike in a day (24 miles one way!), but even they couldn’t resist the perfect respite from the summer heat that is Ribbon Falls. I showed them the path behind the waterfall — which they naturally loved. The struggle was real when they had to keep moving.

I have no memory of their names, but before getting back on the trail, they offered to take a photo of me by the waterfall, for which they earned my mother’s gratitude, my mother who’s most definitely had it with only receiving images of rocks and trees and wildflowers and waterfalls :)

Soon after the couple departed, I had to make a move myself, as the sun had climbed up the sky and taken over the wonderful shade I’d been enjoying for hours.

I also didn’t want my friend to worry about me since I’d told her I probably would be back in two hours, neither of us knowing there’s a little slice of heaven on the side of the trail.

The hike up to North Rim the next day was brutal, but it had all been worth it for the half a day of solitude in one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. Sometimes the best time is had when you end up where you didn’t plan to be. You just need to follow the signs.

Thank you Anne Bonfert for this month’s challenge, which brought back memories of my first road trip across the US and coming across Ribbon Falls while camping in the Grand Canyon!

I loved this contribution to the monthly challenge by Melissa Rock, highlighting the beauty of smaller — but plentiful — waterfalls along Lake Superior in Minnesota. She promises hiking is involved, too, so you know I’m in for my next visit to the land of ten thousand lakes.

Another contribution I enjoyed reading — with images not only of Angel Falls but of the otherworldly tepuis — comes from Brad Yonaka. His pieces always help me learn something new, too!