At home in the Grand Canyon

“We hiked. The sky was sunny. It was overcast. It was rainy, the weather mild between the raindrops. Hail fell one afternoon and we sought refuge under a rock overhang. The trail wandered perilously close to the steep drop-off to the river and I planted my feet with deliberation, buffeted by the wind.

We hiked. This was the put-one-foot-in-front-of-the-other part of the program. I availed myself of every opportunity to stop. One day I stopped mid-stride and broke into enthusiastic applause. Jay stopped and started to applaud, too. A century plant (or agave) was sending forth a central stalk—thick as your arm and twice the height of a man—preparing to bloom.”

Veteran Grand Canyon hiker Deb Liggett describes the hypnotic effect of a multi-day hike on the Tonto Trail, in her essay “Marking Our Place,” one of the 40+ poems. essays, and stories in the first issue of Deep Wild: Writing from the Backcountry, coming your way later this month.