Day 1: South Kaibab Trailhead to Sumner Wash,~ 9.5 miles, 4700’ elevation loss/1250’ elevation gain

We had a gorgeous morning to kick off our six day backpacking trip. The temperatures were pleasant and we had all day, so we were not in a rush and caught the 8 am hikers express from the Backcountry office. We were on the trail about 8:30 am and it wasn’t long before we saw some bighorn sheep. I always love the views on the South Kaibab and took quite a few pictures, many of my standby favorites - Windy Ridge and O’Neill Butte, the views of Zoroaster before rounding the bend above The Tip Off, and the various viewpoints below The Tip Off. We arrived at Phantom Ranch around lunch time and spent an afternoon lounging in the shade and drinking lemonade and tea. Because Sumner Wash is a dry camp, we decided to delay our departure from Phantom Ranch so we could cook dinner and save on some water. Plus, it was nice to do the climb up the Clear Creek Trail when it was cooling off in the late afternoon/early evening.

From Phantom Ranch it is approximately two miles and 1250 feet elevation gain to Sumner Wash. We had a short walk on the North Kaibab trail to the trail junction, then started our climb up. Part way up there is a bench that is a perfect excuse for a break and also a good spot to look down on Phantom Ranch and admire the canyon. We continued our climb to the Tonto Platform and reached a traverse along steep, cliff walls. We had great views both up and down river and also got a good look at the South Kaibab trail across the river. At the end of this traverse we had a small climb to the large cairns marking the start of camping at large (we did have a laugh at the no camping before two miles - there really weren’t any spots to camp anyway!). Right after these cairns is Sumner Wash and there were multiple flat spots perfect for camping. This was by far our best campsite for views - I love camping on the Tonto and being in the canyon for those immersive views. We arrived shortly after sunset and pretty much set up camp and were asleep in record time. It was a great first day!