31. October 2007 by admin.

Veterans Day puts a face to the freedoms we enjoy in this country. It puts a face to those men and women who sacrifice so much for the freedoms large and small that we all too often take for granted. The faces of American veterans are those images of our grandparents and parents, our brothers and sisters, our children and grandchildren. They are all too often the gentle faces of young men and women who have volunteered to protect us with their very lives.

Two years ago Believe In Tomorrow embarked on an initiative to greatly increase our service to active military personnel who have children in medical crisis. I am enormously proud of Believe In Tomorrow’s Military Housing Initiative. It is an opportunity to show our gratitude and support to veterans while fulfilling our core mission of helping sick children. It is the right thing to do, and we are dedicated to expanding this effort to serve as many families as we possibly can. I have had the opportunity to meet many of these families and I am always impressed by their strength of character and their courage.

The American Freedom Foundation is holding a Veterans Day concert at Constitution Hall and they have named Believe In Tomorrow as one the beneficiaries of the event. Martina McBride and Darryl Worley are performing at this year’s concert on November the 10^th, which honors our military veterans. We feel that it is quite an honor for Believe In Tomorrow to be recognized for the work that we have been doing and we want to thank the American Freedom Foundation for all the wonderful work they do to support these efforts.

I opened the paper this morning to read about a young man who grew up near where I live. The Pentagon announced yesterday that Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, a 27-year-old Green Beret in the Army’s Special Forces, died last week while on a training mission in the Philippines. I never had the honor of meeting Mr. Curreri, but I will be thinking of him and his family this Veterans Day and thanking him for his service and sacrifice to our country. I will think of all of those brave veterans who have gone before and of all of those who are serving today. I will be thinking of my oldest son Ryan, who is a Marine officer training to be a pilot. And, I will be asking God to bless each and every one of them.

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24. October 2007 by admin.

I just returned from Hendersonville, North Carolina where several events were held to support the construction of the Believe In Tomorrow House at Pinnacle Falls. When completed next May, this new Believe In Tomorrow retreat facility will be the first in the United States to prioritize military pediatrics.

Many volunteers working on this project attended a reception last Thursday. During the event, I mentioned to everyone that one of the things that I have been the proudest of since I started Believe In Tomorrow 25 years ago is the opportunity to meet and work with so many extraordinary people. I believe in the power of good…….and I believe that good people joining together can accomplish amazing things. David Amick, the Believe In Tomorrow 2007 Unsung Hero of the Year Award recipient is a living symbol of all that is good in our world. His story is profiled in our Fall Newsletter. His work in North Carolina to build a retreat for military pediatrics is attracting many other good people to join our efforts there. Jennifer Taylor and everyone at Renaissance Communities are one great example. Their positive energy and enthusiasm to build the Believe In Tomorrow House at Pinnacle Falls is contagious within their community. Positive enthusiasm by the way is one of the telltale signs of good people. Attending the reception were also a number of people from Combs Construction, another great group of talented people with big hearts.

And speaking of big hearts, Joe Wise is a man with a great big heart. Joe’s company, J-4 Electric, is coordinating all of the electrical work for the Believe In Tomorrow House at Pinnacle Falls. In addition, Joe launched an event called Bikers Believe in North Carolina to expand awareness and raise funds for the construction of the project. The event was held several weeks ago and was a great success that Joe plans on repeating next year.

On Saturday I spent the day at Pinnacle Falls where Renaissance Communities hosted a reception. It was a beautiful clear day and a wonderful opportunity to see for myself the natural beauty that surrounds the future site of our retreat facility. I hiked to the waterfalls and sat for a while, enjoying the sounds of nature and the cascading water. By every measure it exceeds our goal of providing families with an environment that will help them to renew themselves mentally, physically and spiritually. It reminded me of a letter written long ago by a mother of a child in our programs who stayed at another Believe In Tomorrow retreat.

She wrote, “I do not know what God has in store for my son, but somehow being in a place like this restores our faith. How can you not be restored when surrounded by God’s beauty?”

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23. October 2007 by admin.

Today we woke at about 5:30am, and packed up our camp for the last time and headed up the Bright Angel Trail. It is a 4.6 mile climb to the top and we arrived at the South Rim in the early afternoon. The weather coming up was cool, and we felt strong and relatively rested. We spent some time at the top looking back toward the North Rim and filling our memories with the sights and sounds of the adventure. They are memories that have been firmly imprinted into our minds. For me, arriving at the South Rim is both a joyous and reflective occasion. The canyon has been working its magic and I am perfectly content to continue the immersion of nature into my soul. It has a healing, regenerative power….. a magnetic pull to center your life and nurture your imagination.

The most important aspect of the hike is that it was a tremendous success from the standpoint of raising money and awareness for the Believe In Tomorrow Military Housing Initiative. We have accomplished goals that we set out to accomplish and that is a measure of our success. Tomorrow we leave for the ride back to Phoenix and then onto our homes, families and friends. As a team, we have also accomplished something that we can treasure and be proud of for years to come. Scott, Doug and Dave have been wonderful hiking companions. Each of them greatly added to the experience in unique and meaningful ways and I am proud to call them friends.

I want to thank Scott for volunteering to carry the GPS system so that everyone could view our progress online, (as well as many other items the group shared, ie: chocolate, batteries, etc…) through 72 miles of rough and difficult terrain. It was a heavy piece of equipment. (We still believe that Scott may have also had a kitchen sink tucked somewhere in his backpack, as he seemed to have just about everything else.)

I also want to thank everyone reading this for their support and encouragement.

In the next several weeks we will be meeting to evaluate the future of pledge driven adventure events to support Believe In Tomorrow.

Until the next adventure…..

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22. October 2007 by admin.

We woke this morning to learn that Doug had got up in the middle of the night to see two ring tail cats, a raccoon like animal with a cat like ringed tail, inside of the vestibule of his tent. They were not at all afraid of him and he had to shoo them away. Last night, Doug for the very first time left food in his backpack, which is hanging outside on a pole near the tents. This morning he noticed that his backpack was open and all his food was missing, and we later learned that ring tail cats have the uncanny ability to unzip tents and backpacks.

We hiked this morning from the bottom of the canyon to a point about a third of the way up onto the Tonto Platform using the Bright Angel Trail. It is a beautiful section of trail that is like a grand staircase reaching toward the Tonto Platform. Water seeps from the rock in many locations providing green vegetation to the red backdrop of the desert rock. After setting up camp at Indian Gardens we hiked along the Tonto Trail for several miles. It is a great place to look and see where we have been and where we are going.

This was our last night inside of the canyon and we have all been commenting on how fast the time has gone by. We hiked to a place called Plateau Point, where we could look down at the Colorado River and out along the canyon as the sun set. Plateau Point is a spectacular slab of rock that juts out over the edge of the Tonto Platform high above the Colorado River and far below the South Rim. We arrived an hour before the sun sets and we can see evidence that we are leaving the solitude of the inner canyon and re-joining the mix of humanity that visits the upper layers. There are about fifteen people on the slab at Plateau Point. It is a festive atmosphere with several people doing yoga, others are cooking their dinner on the rock or taking photo’s. One family with several small children were allowing their children to run near the edge, seemingly oblivious of the sheer thousand foot drop into the abyss of rock and water below.

We made one last campsite meal and went to bed. I left the fly down on the tent so that I could see the stars.

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21. October 2007 by admin.

Today we woke up brushing a layer of red dust off of ourselves and our belongings. The wind was strong during the night but had calmed down considerably.

Each of us seems much more relaxed today as the pressure of the North Rim climb is behind us. We cooked the fish for breakfast and packed and were on the trail by around 8am. The hike each day is strenuous. Some days are simply harder than others, but there are no easy days. With each day we are becoming more efficient at setting up and breaking down our campsite. There is a rhythm to our hiking, and to each day, that is becoming more in harmony with the environment surrounding us. There is something comfortable to me about the feel of this environment. The early sense of wariness and unfamiliarity is giving way to a distant feeling of longing to be a part of the surroundings. I wonder if those dreams that you cannot quite remember when you are awake are the remnants of the ancient dreams of our ancestors. Dreams of wind and water and blue skies must have filled their sleeping hours.

We arrived back at Phantom Ranch and continued on to the campsite to set up the tents. Scott and Dave hiked along the Colorado River and Doug and I took a side hike up Clear Creek Trail which rises above Phantom Ranch. We hiked to a point about 1,000 feet above the river and it was a beautiful view. While we were there we watched a helicopter evacuate an injured hiker far below. We later learned that Dave and Scott were watching the same rescue from the river trail that they were on. On our way back down we encountered a small group of the injured hiker’s friends who had hiked to a lookout point to watch the helicopter take off. In the group was a former Air Force pilot who was talking to Doug about fishing the Bright Angel Creek. He asked Doug if by any chance he had lost a small container of fishing lures along the North Rim trail. Doug had in fact lost the lures and they had been found by this man. The coincidence of it all was rather stunning. We were on a remote trail, in a remote canyon, within the very large Grand Canyon, and happen to strike up a conversation with the only people we encounter on the hike, that brings us to the connection of the lures. Perhaps the sequencing of such random events is due to some physical law of attraction enhanced by the desert environment. Perhaps it is simply a coincidence.

After arriving back at camp we hiked to Phantom Ranch where we had obtained a meal of beef stew, salad and corn bread. It was a wonderful meal and it was fun to sit and review the hike and to listen to the stories of other hikers who were there. After dinner we returned to the camp and promptly went to sleep. I believe that our average bedtime has been around 7:30pm, but tonight we far exceeded that. We did not get to sleep until 10pm.

Tomorrow we hike to Indian Gardens and the Tonto Platform.

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19. October 2007 by admin.

I do not believe that any of us slept much last night. The wind was relentless throughout the night and sleep only came in brief increments. At the first sign of light we were up and delighted that it was not raining…… giving us an opportunity to break down our camp and make it back into the canyon. At over 8,000 feet, the weather at the North Rim can be significantly different than at the bottom of the canyon. Last year I had experienced freezing temperatures at the North Rim and descended to find the warmth of 80 degree temperatures at the bottom. This year proved to be similar and we descended back into the canyon at a pace that was as fast as we could safely move with the weight of our backpacks.

A very healthy sense of humor has been a part of each days hiking. Much of the humor has been directed at ourselves and situations we have created. Hiking down from the North Rim this morning something very funny happened that it can only be described as a “priceless” moment. Apparently, the rumor that George Clooney is in the canyon is spreading. A mule train carrying tourists to a canyon overlook passed us on the way down. The lead wrangler was a middle aged, weathered looking cowboy. As he was was passing us on the trail he stopped the entire mule train and backed his mule up to a point directly beside where Scott was standing on the side of the trail. With a knowing smile on his face, but without saying a word, he reached over and shook Scott’s hand. He then proceeded down the trail shaking his head and smiling at the fact that he had met Mr. George Clooney himself. A woman tourist, riding one of the mules, very shyly said , “Hi George,” as she passed by. Later in the day, a ranger stopped by our camp to check our permit. He mentioned to Scott that he looked a lot like George Clooney. When Scott politely said that he was not, the ranger said, ” you know George Clooney is in the canyon this week. He is hiking with three guys wearing orange shirts.” I am sure that stories will be told for years to come, by many different people, about the day they saw George Clooney in the Grand Canyon.

We descended the North Rim and arrived back at Cottonwood by mid afternoon. After setting up camp we went fishing and Doug again caught two beautiful rainbow trout. It was very windy and the red dust of the canyon floor blew through the air and filtered into the tents. We could look up toward the North Rim and see dark clouds shrouding the top of canyon and we were glad that we were no longer there. We ate well that night, cooking rice and mashed potatoes and freeze dried meals. Just before entering my tent I shined my flashlight toward the direction of the creek and caught the reflection of an animals two eyes peering back at me. We could not determine what type of animal it was but the eyes looked cat like.

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18. October 2007 by admin.

To know a person’s character you sometimes have to spend considerable time with them, or go through a difficult situation that brings out the true character that we are made of. Our hike today tested the very core of each of us.

The North Kaibab trail from Cottonwood to the backpack camping area at the top of the North Rim is 8.2 miles. The rise in elevation from the bottom to the top is almost one mile straight up of steep switchbacks. The beginning of the trail follows the cascading crystal water of Bright Angel Creek as it falls toward the bottom of the canyon, eventually to make its way to the Colorado River. The water flows against the sand colored rocks that make up the stream bottom and create a gurgling symphony that reverberates against the canyon walls. The North Rim has a distinctively different look than the South Rim. Cactus and scrub pines are now mixed in with cottonwoods and aspens. The golden leaves of the aspen trees shimmer in the breeze blowing downward from the top of the canyon. The song birds that live within these trees add their own chorus to the canyon symphony.

By 7 am we had broken down our camp at Cottonwood and were on the trail heading North. With 50 lb. packs we developed a slow, measured pace as we climbed steadily uphill. Usually, there is little humidity in the desert, but today was an exception. Within the first mile of the hike we were sweating almost faster than we could replace the fluids back into our bodies. It was, I now know, a sign by nature of what was to later come.

Along the way we encountered a solo woman hiker named Karen that we had met the day before at Ribbon Falls. She told us that her husband, who was not able to make the hike, was waiting for her at the North Rim parking lot. As we climbed the wind grew stronger and cooler and the blue sky of the early morning gave way to low gray clouds that swept the top of the canyon. When I climbed to the top of the North Rim a year ago it was later in the month of October and the lodge at the top had been closed for the winter. I was looking forward this year to seeing the lodge open.

As the trail winds it’s way toward the top it often clings to the face of sheer cliffs that drop away to the bottom of the canyon far below. About half way up we heard the sound of thunder and shortly afterward the rain began. Strong gust of wind whipped through the canyon and the air began to get cold. We had been trying to take short breaks every hour but discontinued that practice as we developed a sense of urgency to get to the top. I could feel myself running out of energy and knew that we still had about two hours of the most difficult part of the hike ahead of us. The rain created a stream of water that flowed down the middle of the trail and turned the red dirt into mud. With each step I could feel my pack become heavier and the energy flow from my body as though it was being pulled back into the canyon.

Mistakes fall into two categories; those that are avoidable and those that are unavoidable. Today I made an avoidable mistake that I learned from in a painful way. I do not believe I ate enough last night to sustain the energy output of the climb. It is the small elements that matter in life and in the canyon they matter even more. It is a life lesson that ultimately I am appreciative of.

It was a punishing hike. In the canyon, everything is further away than it looks. When you think you are near the top you are often actually some distance away. On several occasions rocks, loosened by the steady rain, fell away to go crashing and bouncing toward the bottom of the canyon. I was hiking in the lead position and at one point a softball sized rock fell onto the trail from above and landed about five feet in front of me. It was another lesson, this time about the random possibility of unavoidable accidents in life.

When we arrived at the top of the North Rim at around 3:30 we had each been tested and we had endured. It was an exhausting, triumphant moment. The character of my hiking partners was never more nakedly apparent then during today’s climb. They hiked strongly, and most importantly supportively, and I have come to know them as people I would like to be around in both the best and worst of life’s circumstances. They each are people that can be counted on.

At the trailhead parking lot we met Karen and her husband. We had speculated on the trail that Karen might be either an artist, a schoolteacher, or a nurse, as judged by her personality. We found out that Karen owns a VW repair business in Seattle. Another of life’s interesting lessons learned. From the parking lot we hiked the 1 mile to the campsite and set up our tents. The campground had a hot shower and laundry area where we dried our clothes and took what we each agreed was one of the best showers ever.

After we cleaned up and dried out we hiked the 1.2 miles from the campground to the North Rim Lodge, arriving there just as the sun was setting. We ate at the lodge cafeteria and made our way back to the campsite where our tents were set up under some towering lodge pole pines about 50 yards from the rim. The wind has increased and is literally howling through the pine forest that we are in. The forecast tomorrow is for continuous rain turning into snow, and we are concerned about the hike back down into the canyon.

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17. October 2007 by admin.

Today we hiked across the width of the canyon toward the base of the North Rim, on a trail that runs along side Bright Angel Creek.

We woke at 5:30am, broke down our camp and we were on the trail by 6:30 am. It was a warm, sunny day that was in the low 90’s. The trail steadily rises in elevation from 2,400 ft. at Bright Angel to 4,000 ft. at Cottonwood, our final destination of the day. The steady incline combined with the heat made for a strenuous day of hiking. It is a beautiful trail, with an array of desert cactus, plants and wildlife that are nourished by the clear waters of the creek. Along the way lizards ran across the trail in front of us. Two hikers approaching from the opposite direction warned us of a rattlesnake by the side of the path ahead of us. Although we did not see it we could hear the distinctive defensive rattle of it’s tail as we passed by. It is a sound that stays with you for a while.

We arrived at Cottonwood by 1pm, set up camp, and immediately afterward embarked on a side hike to Ribbon Falls. The falls are tucked away in a side canyon and are a spectacular symbol of life and movement on the floor of the canyon. Water falls from high above onto a cone shaped formation of mineral deposits that rise 30 feet into the air. The cone is covered in green moss and flowering plants and you can hike up behind the falls to watch the water cascade down onto the top of the cone formation. We climbed up to this location and sat for some time taking photographs and enjoying the view.

I have begun to see the deep sense of appreciation and wonder that Doug, Scott and Dave are developing for the canyon environment. When we are not hiking, which is an endeavor that you have to constantly keep your eyes on the trail ahead of you, they are looking and taking in the often surreal scenery within the canyon. They are often commenting on the beauty of the changing colors of the canyon, as the sun and clouds sweep overhead to create a living kaleidoscope against the red hued rock formations. Each of them has worked hard to raise money and awareness for this hike to support Believe In Tomorrow services. I was hoping that as a small reward for their efforts, the canyon would work its unique magic on each of them, and I believe that it is.

We left the waterfall and hiked the one and a half miles back to camp. Doug and I had brought fishing rods and were eager to try our luck on the trout that reside in Bright Angel Creek. The creek was about 75 yards from our campsite and we found several large pools to fish. Doug was using a fly and I was using kernels of corn. Within 30 minutes Doug caught two rainbow trout and I caught a brown trout. Doug is a very skilled hunter and fisherman and this was the first fresh water trout he ever caught, which made the moment a special celebration. We ate the trout that night for dinner along with rice and other foods we had carried with us. I have read that hiking the Grand Canyon from rim to rim expends the same energy equivalent as running one and a half marathons. What we are doing, by that scale, means that we are using the same energy as running three marathons. Each night so far we have made and consumed dinner with great enthusiasm, which at least in part, is a reflection of the difficulty of this hike. It was a wonderful night and the stars again filled the sky.

Tomorrow will be our hardest day as we climb to the top of the North Rim.

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16. October 2007 by admin.

Today we began the hike. Although we had set the alarms for 5:15 to catch a 6am shuttle to the trail, I believe that each of us was up much earlier with the anticipation of starting. It was cool in the morning and we drove to the Backcountry Office, parked the car, and caught the 5:45am hiker shuttle bus to the South Kaibab trailhead where we started the hike by 6:15. It was an incredible hike and incredible day. A year ago I had started the hike by going to the trailhead with my father and uncle. It was a memory that I cherish and wished that they were with me this morning. Our first rest stop on the hike today was Ohh Ahh Point. In June, when I came out here with my father to get the permit, we hiked to to this point which is .8 miles down into the canyon. I admire my fathers determination and courage. Most people of his age would not consider such a hike. I know that he dreams of going further into the canyon and I hope that one day he does.

The hike into the canyon on the Kaibab is steep, with magnificent panoramic views almost the entire way. In the early morning we were in the shade and by mid morning we were in a warm but pleasant sunshine. Dave asked a man backpacking up how he was doing and he said that he had just spent 7 days in the backcountry. When Dave asked him how it was he said, “magical,” as he continued on up the trail. Although describing the Grand Canyon with words is difficult, I believe that magical is a good word. It is a special place that represents different things to different people. To me, it represents a scale of time that helps me to put my own life into perspective. It is a landscape that is unfamiliar but somehow strangely very familiar. I sometimes wonder if we are genetically coded to remember the ancient landscapes where life on earth began. In the canyon, with every step you pass through time itself. Sometimes, in the sound of the canyon winds, you can almost remember a different world that existed long ago. It is perhaps a fleeting glimpse into the primordial pool of earth and water that formed the beginning elements of God’s creations on this planet.

Today was a warm, cloudless, blue sky day. Each of us is carrying packs that weigh about 50lbs that includes all of our food, clothing and shelter to last for seven days in the backcountry of the canyon. Under the extra weight the heat becomes relentless, and the need to stay properly hydrated in the desert sun is essential. Because the dry desert air keeps you from visibly sweating, we have developed a routine of reminding each other to drink from our Camelbacks on a regular basis. I believe that we are quickly developing a team approach to the hike and that is what we need to accomplish this challenge together.

On the way down we met several National Park Rangers who were interested to hear about our hike and commented on Scott’s resemblance to George Clooney. They also were amused that three of us had on orange UnderAmour shirts. The apparel selection was completely coincidental but humorous.

A year ago, my hike down the South Kaibab was in late October and I only encountered several people on my way into the canyon. Today, we encountered a number of people and were amazed by the diversity of the hikers. While we did not meet anyone attempting a rim to rim to rim hike, we did meet people hiking to different places. Most of them however were going from the South Rim to Phantom Ranch and back, which is in itself a spectacular hike. One woman hiking down was from Spain and spoke no English. We spoke for some time about the courage that it would take to do that.

We arrived at the Bright Angel Campground at around 2:30 p.m. and set up our camp. We hiked to Phantom Ranch which has a small cantina and is the only provider of beer and wine in the canyon. After a few beers we hiked back to our camp, made dinner and spent a great deal of time staring up at the stars. At the bottom of the canyon, the lack of any ambient light provides a magnificently brilliant sky. The stars are so visible that they look like clouds of sparkling lights. We were exhausted and too tired to do anything else but crawl into our tents and sleep. I have kept the outer fly off of the tent so that whenever I wake throughout the night I can look up at the sky.

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15. October 2007 by admin.

Today we were up by 6am and after breakfast checked into the Backcountry Office to let them know we were about to start the hike. It is a chilly and rainy day and we are glad that we are starting the hike tomorrow. The rain let up slightly in the afternoon and we hiked to Shashone Point with our full Backpacks. It was a four mile hike and it felt good to be out. I think everyone is eager for the morning. Our plan is to be headed for the South Kaibab trail head by 6am. We ate in the cafeteria restaurant and have spent much of our time checking our equipment.

One of the amusing aspects of the trip has been that Scott has a striking resemblance to George Clooney and everywhere we go we can notice people doing a doubletake.

One person came up and asked Scott if he was George’s brother.

Jessica in the Believe In Tomorrow office has done a great job getting the GPS system working and on the web site, so everyone can look at our progress.

The altitude is 7000 feet and coming from the sea level it takes a while to acclimate. Hiking can leave you a little breathless until your body acclimates itself and that is what today was for. Tomorrow we start.

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