This morning we met at Doug's house at 5:15 in order to get to the airport for a 6:45 departure to Phoenix. It seems as though this date has arrived suddenly. In two days we will be plunging into the Grand Canyon for a 72 mile, 7 day hike that will take us from the South Rim to the bottom of the canyon, all the way across and up to the top of the North Rim, and back down again to reverse the hike to the South Rim. It is going to be a challenging endeavor to raise funds for Believe In Tomorrow's Military Housing initiative.
To date, we have raised about $85,000 which I consider to be a huge success. I have learned too, that you can not always put a stationary dollar value on this type of a fund raising endeavor. Raising awareness of the need for Believe In Tomorrow pediatric housing has been a result of our efforts, and that has a very fluid and positive value.
My hiking partners are Doug Widlake, Scott Vogt and Dave Reymann. Last year I hiked the same route as a way to explore the inner workings of a pledge driven extreme adventure effort. It was a solo hike and it became for me much more than I ever imagined. In addition to raising funds to support our housing efforts, I gained a greater insight into my own life and the world around me along the way. It was so meaningful in fact, that I believe it left a lasting impression that I will carry with me for a very long time.
I believe that positive attracts positive and good attracts good. I cannot think of three more compatible people to hike with and share this experience with, than Doug, Scott and Dave. They have trained very hard for this hike and I know that they are as excited as I am to begin the journey. I have been very impressed by the eagerness of each of them to learn and properly prepare for this trip. Unfortunately, Scunny McCusker, a good friend of mine and a great Believe In Tomorrow volunteer, was planning to make the hike but had to drop out due to business reasons. It was Scunny who originated an extreme adventure pledge event to raise funds for Believe In Tomorrow. Scunny has twice kayaked from Baltimore, Maryland to Ocean City, Maryland, which is an unbelievable feat, to support our pediatric housing.
After arriving in Phoenix we drove North on I-17 and stopped to visit several Indian ruins along the way. We arrived at the Grand Canyon around 3:00 p.m. It was the first time that Dave, Scott and Doug had ever seen the Grand Canyon and their reaction was everything I hoped it would be. Seeing the GC for the first time is pretty awe inspiring and I know they were in awe of both the size and the incredible beauty. Although you can see photo's of it, nothing can do it justice until you see it in person and stand on the rim and look out.
After we checked into the hotel we immediately went on a hike down the Bright Angel Trail for about a mile and came back up. It was a good introduction to the steep terrain. Along the way we looked at some Indian paintings high on a cliff wall. Although the paintings are over a 1,000 years old they are relatively new to the canyon as far as time goes. The Grand Canyon is a visual symbol of time on a grand scale. A thousand years is simply a blink of the eye in the life of the canyon.
After the hike we went to dinner. Dave and Doug wore the Believe In Tomorrow Grand Canyon Adventure t-shirts and were approached by a number of people who wanted to know more about the hike. People seemed genuinely amazed when they heard what we were about to do and why. We brought brochures and several people promised to send pledges.
After dinner we called it an early night and were asleep by 9:30.
