ALL HIKERS

DAY 2: OJOJOJO CANYON TO SOWATS POINT

     I am awakened by a nearby thunderstorm just after midnight.  Lightning and thunder are close by.  A few minutes later the water begins flowing in the creek and rises to the level of my tent floor, but then subsides.

   
  Rising waters
10-5-2010 @ 12:35
 

     Around four o'clock in the morning, another thunderstorm forms just up canyon.  This time the water rises higher inside my tent but does not go over my Neoair sleeping pad.  All my stuff stayed dry on top the sleeping pad.  Whew, that was close.  When the water again recedes, I lie down and sleep for another three hours.  Then, just after seven o'clock, a huge thunderstorm stops directly overhead.  Lightning and thunder are everywhere and rain is pouring down.  Just in case this thing goes completely south, I unzip my tent door to allow for an easy escape route.  I sure wouldn't want to get trapped inside this thing during a flood.  Then I hear a load roaring noise, much like a nearby approaching train.  This can't be a good sound.  I grab the two most important things in my tent:  my boots and my Nikon digital SLR and quickly step outside just as a wave of water hits.  Fortunately, the water is only knee deep, but it is really rushing by.  With no weight inside my tent, it begins to fill with water and is being pulled downstream.  I hold tightly onto the tent while I pull out as many of my belongings as possible and place them on a nearby ledge that is high and dry.  Thank goodness for that ledge or all my stuff would be gone.  However, my tent has now filled completely with water and I'm having a hard time holding onto it.  I manage to get most of my other things out before the fast-flowing water rips the tent from my hands and whisks it quickly downstream, never to be seen again.

Mini flash-flood
10-5-2010 @ 7:45
Mini flash-flood
10-5-2010 @ 7:45
Mini flash-flood
10-5-2010 @ 7:45

     In addition to my tent, I lost my favorite camp shoes and miscellaneous odds and ends.  In a little while, the rain quits and soon the water level goes down considerably, so I think it's time to pack up what's left and get out of here while I can.  I'm just going to put on wet socks and boots and hike directly up the creek bed even though my feet and boots will be completely under water.  Otherwise, it would take me hours to get out.  I make my way up canyon quite a ways before another thunderstorm comes by.  I wait that out under an overhang.

Waiting out the rain
10-5-2010 @ 9:27
Waiting out the rain
10-5-2010 @ 9:27

     I then continue up the canyon and exit by the south arm, which is much easier than the north arm I came in on.  However, the soggy, rain-soaked, soft ground makes hiking really tough.  When I reach Kwagunt Hollow, I know the Cottonwood trees at the base of the descent can't be too far ahead.

   
  The Cottonwood trees
10-5-2010 @ 10:10
 

     I start the steep uphill climb.  I am completely pooped from all this hiking on wet ground, so my speed up the switchbacks is abysmally slow.  I reach the top and proceed to the south around the level section.  When I reach the Forest Service sign, I know I'm fairly close to the rim.  The trailhead sign is a welcome sight.

A soggy Forest Service sign
10-5-2010 @ 12:30
The Jumpup-Nail trailhead sign
10-5-2010 @ 1:00

     I quickly throw my stuff in the car and jump in just as the rain starts pouring again.  My car is still the only one in the parking lot.  I think I'll just sit here a while and have lunch.  Then it's a real challenge to drive out FR 233 because of the soft road surface and all the big pools of water.  The water is quite deep in several places and I almost get stuck a few times.  I reach my campsite at the North Rim in under two hours.  One of the big thunderstorms has not only taken out their electrical power but the power grid for most of northern Arizona for the rest of today and tomorrow.  Apparently, they weren't immune either to the fury from this barrage of severe thunderstorms.

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