Like most folks, my trips are over for the year. I don't have any more canoe trips on my schedule until next May. Once again, just today, I have hung and packed away all of my canoeing gear for another winter.
I find I always need some new adventure to look forward to and to train for. I just did the Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon last Monday. But now I have nothing to aim for and nothing to train for. I guess I will use the next few months to cut back a tad on exercise and rest the aging body. It is probably smart but I get bored quite quickly when I am not focused on what is ahead.
What I really need is another concrete plan for another adventure or trip. Thankfully, I am able to spend most of the winter in Arizona so will still be able to be outside quite a bit and do some camping.
Not sure of my point other than I am feeling a tad lethargic once again at this time of year.

wow, if i had the winter ahead as you do, i would be super stoked for the adventures in arizona.
being in n. iowa, i am biking as much as i can, paved trail and mtb.
trying to soak in as much as the nice day's we have left.
being freshly retired, we can hop in the vehicle and head south ( which we will!)
enjoy man, you've got a great life as well :)

I'm happy that both of you are living in the sweet spot.

missmolly: "I'm happy that both of you are living in the sweet spot. "

:)

I'm planning one more trip - just 3 days/2 nights in Adirondacks - but a trip. And hopefully more day paddles!

The great thing about the end of one season is it is the beginning of another. I try not to get too excited about winter tripping until at least after deer season but all this early snow has me anxious.

Winter is my favorite time in the BWCA. Canvas tents, a pile of wood.

No people
No bugs

Really looking forward to this year!

Rim to rim is on my bucket list.... give us all the scoop on how to do it!

Lucky man! I dread the frigid temps of January & February. Wintering in Arizona sounds like a slice of heaven by my reckoning. Warm to hot days and cool to cold nights is the temperature range. Perfect.

drnatus: "Rim to rim is on my bucket list.... give us all the scoop on how to do it!"

Training or reservations?

AmarilloJim: "

drnatus: "Rim to rim is on my bucket list.... give us all the scoop on how to do it!"

Training or reservations?"

Me too! Please share details on the whole reservation/permit process. I think this would be a great trip!

Tony

Gadfly: "The great thing about the end of one season is it is the beginning of another. I try not to get too excited about winter tripping until at least after deer season but all this early snow has me anxious. "

i was just thinking the same thing-where to go and what to do, the southwest is yanking at my bike chain:)

AmarilloJim: "

drnatus: "Rim to rim is on my bucket list.... give us all the scoop on how to do it!"

Training or reservations?"

Reservations

If you are hiking rim to rim in 1 day you don't need any reservations. If you are wanting to camp in one of the designated interior canyon camping areas you will need to get a back country permit. These used to be by lottery 4 months prior to your trip. The process is described on the Grand Canyon park web site. If you are wanting to stay on one of the rims I would start thinking about getting a reservation now if you plan on going in the summer.

If you want to stay at a Phantom Ranch cabin those reservations fill 1-2 years in advance.

We did the hike in one day, eliminating the need to get any permit. It also allowed us to not carry as much weight since we were not camping or staying overnight. Your schedule can be flexible in that you can change your mind and start hiking any day you want to.
We started down in the dark and finished about 12 hours later. Once you start down on a through hike you simply have to be fully prepared to finish the same day since you don't have any option to pull into a Holiday Inn.
I did it with my son and we had a terrific time. You see a lot of very fit folks and a lot of folks that make you wonder if they ever got out of the canyon.
We were lucky in that a friend of mine and his brother ran/walked the canyon from south to north and were kind enough to drive our vehicle back to the south rim for us, saving us and them the need to take a four hour shuttle. We had started from the north so we met them on the trail.

GC, I am not so sure of your point, either. It is a changing of seasons, some uncertainty in direction. I have one more likely get together with the Quad Cities group but most of my gear is cleaned and put into storage for the winter. But like you suggest, other gear is being readied. I will be in Boulder the end of the month and get a day hike in the mountains so bladder and day pack, etc. are out. Like you write, there are other adventures to consider. I got a hike in the Superstition Mountains last February and could very well end up back in that area this winter. So many options.
I do hear the lethargy or the melancholy, something about getting older and thinking one of these years it will be the end of a season can feed that mood. But just thinking and planning new adventure dissipates that mood quickly. I do not go as fast and I do not go as far, but I stop more to enjoy the trip. And that I get to go...it was not that long ago work and life interfered ...I am grateful to be going.

While I don’t have any overnight trips left, I got a few day trips planned before the ice covers the lakes. After that I look forward to a few November hikes in the woods that I don’t usually see during the sumner months. Once winter hits, I’ve got my skis and snowshoes to explore the BW. All the while waiting for the spring thaw.

Very nice! Does not sound like an easy hike.

Had a chance to hike a little bit in the western superstitions, Less elevation but it is a nice place to go. Still miss the canoe country.

The Carlson guide books for the superstitions have some good information in them.

drnatus: "Rim to rim is on my bucket list.... give us all the scoop on how to do it!"

Yes please.

No .....no....no more coming down to Arizona for the winter...it's awful! Just stay put where ever you may be and wait for your winter to be over! :)

I start a one month volunteer position as a caretaker for Kentucky Camp in Coronado NF Nov 1. Never been to AZ...