For the second time, I was thwarted in my attempt to make it out to Racetrack Knoll.  I guess it's not meant to be for me.  I did enjoy getting to see all of Ojojojo Canyon and a lot of Indian Hollow.  Maybe on a future hike I can do that loop hike just north of Mountain Sheep Spring.

     Be sure you have the directions for getting to the trailhead.  It took me just over one hour driving time from Jacob Lake to the trailhead.  A sign at the start of Forest Road 233 recommends a high clearance vehicle after that, but I had no problem driving my car there for the third time.  Presumably, conditions would be a little more harsh in the spring.

     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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