This was a really good hike.  It is one of the easier hikes you can do in the Canyon.  The hard part is getting to the trailhead at Swamp Point.  Be sure you have directions before starting out.  Downed trees on the road are always a possibility.  I was lucky to be able to get out there in my car on this trip.

     It's hard to miss finding Dutton Point.  Just head south on the Powell Plateau and stay near the east edge.  One mile before Dutton Point you come to an uphill section of the drainage at Dutton Canyon that requires some serious bushwhacking.  There is about a hundred yards of thick, dense Catclaw Acacia, thorny Graythorn bushes, Pin Oak, and Manzanita to get through.  Woe be to the hiker who wears shorts or a short sleeve shirt through this section.

     I like my new Nikon D7000 DSL.  In addition to great still pictures, it takes HD movies.  I'm still having excellent results from my Rainbow Tarptent and Thermorest Neoair sleeping pad. 

     Numerous critters such as mice, ravens, squirrels, and ringtails are a threat to attack your food in the inner Canyon.  For many years, there were two widely used defenses against critter attack: the Ratsack Cache bag, a mesh, stainless steel bag, which came in three sizes, and the Ursack, a bag made with a Spectra material.  I bought both, but preferred the Ratsack because it was larger, cheaper, and had a superior Velcro closure system.  Even though the Ratsack company website is still active and will accept your money, most people now indicate they never received their order, their money was never returned, and they could not get the company to return a phone call.  Due to the widely reported difficulties and lack of response from the Ratsack company, that product is no longer carried by the General Store in Grand Canyon Village.  Two new products have recently come forward to fill the void:  the Outsak and the Foodsack.  Both are similar in design to the Ratsack and utilize a mesh stainless steel bag with a Velcro closure system.  The Outsak is a lighter duty version and some people report that animals were able to penetrate it.  The Foodsack is the heavy duty version and appears to be bullet-proof, so it is the product that I recommend.  I have and use the Foodsack.

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