Hiker takes on Grand Canyon for 70th birthday

For his 70th birthday, Claude Grizzard took a walk in the park — Grand Canyon National Park, that is.

On Oct. 29, the Stone Mountain resident and a small band of younger hikers trekked 42 miles from rim to rim of the great gorge. They left at 12:55 a.m. from the top of the canyon, worked their way down and then ventured back up, a round-trip excursion lasting nearly 22 hours.

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Courtesy Liz Grizzard

Claude Grizzard trained for his 42-mile Grand Canyon hike by climbing Stone Mountain several times a day.

Enlarge this image

Courtesy Liz Grizzard

Claude Grizzard and his son, Chip, hiked the Grand Canyon on his 70th birthday last month.

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“There are not many people that can do this, especially people 70 years old,” said Grizzard, who described the experience as fulfilling.

The feat was made more challenging by Grizzard’s two hip replacements, but joint pain posed no problem for the determined hiker.

“The day after hikes, nearly everyone is stiff in the legs, but I’ve never had that problem,” said Grizzard, who admits he trudges along at a slower pace than others. “I’m just tired,” he said.

Decades of running conditioned Grizzard for hiking.

Prior to the surgeries in 2001 that ended his running career, Grizzard had run 15 marathons, including the Boston Marathon and the Houston Marathon, which he ran in 3 hours, 23 minutes.

“For someone my age, hiking is much better, but there is nothing sissy about most of the hikes we’ve done,” he said, referring to people who consider marathon running more of a “macho” challenge.

Grizzard had hiked portions of the Grand Canyon about 10 times before, but never gone the complete distance. He prepared for the monumental mission by climbing the closest monument he could find — Stone Mountain. Up and down he climbed the granite rock several times a day, several days a week. He also worked out in the gym, wearing out the elliptical trainer and the stair climber.

Before the hike, Grizzard drank plenty of fluids and loaded up on pizza and pasta — “the fun part,” as he put it.

On hike day, Grizzard carried a backpack with a 2-liter water bladder, two headlamps, salty snacks, three peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, five energy bars, extra clothes, toilet paper, caffeine boosters, and pills to replace lost electrolytes and remove acids that builds up in the body. He also brought along a fanny pack bottle holder and another liter of water.

The clan stopped to rest and eat and even splashed around in a creek to revive themselves. The undertaking went smoothly until uncertainty (and a bit of fear) gripped the group as they neared five miles from the top of the steep-sided rift, piercing through the dark night with their lights.

“You look up to the rim, and you think there’s no way I can make it out of here,” Grizzard said of the imposing task ahead. “But you take the next step and then the next step until you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Grizzard’s son Chip described the last few miles as a “gut-check” moment.

“You see these steps that look like they’re going to heaven,” said Chip Grizzard, 46, of feeling intimidated, exhausted and worn out. “One step at a time, that’s what we kept telling ourselves.”

At 10:45 p.m., an extremely fatigued yet excited group of hikers reached the top and headed for hot baths and warm beds.

Next mountain to climb: Pike’s Peak in Colorado, August 2009.

“You don’t stop him,” Chip said of his father. ” He’s smart enough to know his limits.”