The camp woke up at 4:30 in the morning, speed walking 1.5 miles in order to get to the Grand Canyon on time to look at the sunrise. The colors seemed to dance on the rocks, lighting them up in a beautiful orange. Not long after, we split into three groups to hike the Canyon, 6 miles, 3 miles, and the 1 mile. Everyone was a little tired but excited to explore the Grand Canyon.
Most of the 3 mile hikers made it down to the first water station at around 6:30 a.m. with some others catching up not too long after. The hike down was surprisingly easy and everyone was ready to hike back up, though looking back up to where we started quickly demoralized everyone, yet we pushed on. The journey up was tough and hot, everyone made it out at varying times and differing levels of tiredness and thirst, the rest stop and water refill station at the top of the Canyon was a welcoming friend to all who made it back up.
After the hike everyone was free to go to the shops, grab some food, shower, or do their laundry, though everyone needed to be back by 12:00 p.m. for our amazing lunch of Deaton Stew, a longtime tradition of TWB. It is a regular stew with lots of veggies and meat along with some surprises like fruit snacks, crushed pop-tarts, and ritz crackers. After lunch, most people branched off into groups and went to the shops to get ice cream, Dallas’s favorite (even though they didn’t have the special peanut butter cups).
Today was the first day we could call home, everyone was emotional and there were some tears shed, but it was also comforting for most people to be able to hear their loved ones voices. We miss you all but we are having so much fun out west!
In the afternoon, we were able to have lots of rest and free time again. There’s so many places to explore at the Grand Canyon. The cooks laid out a few things for dinner but most people decided to get food elsewhere. After a long day we finished the day off with a sing-along. We even sang Happy Birthday to Eliott Perry-Gibson. How lucky of him to be at the Grand Canyon for his 16th birthday! Henry shared a song he had been writing about the TWB trip. This was a wholesome moment and everyone felt very connected and like family. Now onto conquer Vegas!
