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Today's route stats: 

Today would be the longest day of our trip.  In a little over a mile we turned off the Tonto Trail and onto the Hermit Trail.  There are two steep sections between here and the rim.  The first one is the Cathedral Stairs, a series of tight switch-backs thru a narrow gap in the Tapeats sandstone.  The second steep section is from the intersection with the Boucher Trail to the rim.  The hike to the rim was uneventful, but tiring, especially for me.  The steps thru the Coconino always seem hard for me.  I stopped to catch my breath at almost every switch-back, while Brianna patiently waited for me.