How fit does one need to be for the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim

Question

I'm seriously considering a solo hike, rim-to-rim, across the Grand Canyon, coinciding with the annular eclipse on May 20th. I want to challenge myself, and figure this one could do it.

I have read that one can, if they are very fit, do rim-to-river and back in a day, but I haven't found what hiking from one rim to the other and back is like. I was thinking that I, as an FOF (Fat old fart, who loses pounds from the hair loss only. turned 40 last month, and feeling every bit of it) should budget a lot of time.

Is four days excessive? Is this too big a challenge? Does anyone have any experiences to help me gauge this trip?

Answer 1

Pretty fit! The US National Park Service (NPS) doesn't recommend rim-to-river-rim as a day hike, for instance.

My father did several rim-to-rim trips in a day when in his 40s, but he was an avid runner (but not a marathoner), hiked, and had a job that had him outside part of the time. He would usually fly or have my mom drop him off at one rim, and we would meet him at the other. He would arrive terribly dirty, tired, and usually blistered, and would have to rest the next day (at least). He would travel very light, so more like an adventure racing trip.

I believe he also did several overnights, probably staying at Phantom Ranch.

There are several websites that talk about rim-to-rim trips like this one:

Planning a Grand Canyon Rim to Rim Hike

The NPS has a Trip Planner document that gives some general times for various trails.

It may be too late to get backcountry permits for May, particularly in connection with an eclipse.