A few years after quitting his job to pursue a longtime dream of becoming a whitewater guide on the Colorado River, former Outside senior editor Kevin Fedarko was approached by his best friend, the adventure photographer Pete McBride, with a bold and unlikely vision. Together they would embark on a 750-mile expedition, by foot, through the Grand Canyon, moving from east to west—a journey McBride promised would be “a walk in the park.” Fedarko agreed, unaware that the tiny cluster of experts who were familiar with this particular trek billed it as “the toughest hike in the world.”

　　In keeping with the two men’s time-tested habit of cutting corners and flying by the seats of their pants, Fedarko and McBride proceeded to fast-talk a group of long-distance desert hikers into permitting them to tag along for the first part of their own through-hike, which began on September 25, 2016. In an excerpt from Fedarko’s forthcoming book, A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon, he shares the grisly details of what happened on the eve of their departure.

　　One afternoon toward the end of July, I heard a knock at the front door of my home in Flagstaff, Arizona, and opened it to discover that half a dozen large cardboard boxes had been dumped on my porch. The labels indicated that shipments of gear were arriving from every point of the compass. Boots from Scarpa in Italy. Headlamps and trekking poles from Black Diamond in Salt Lake City. Sleeping bags from Feathered Friends in Seattle. Backpacks and a tent from a company in Maine called Hyperlite, which manufactured exceptionally spare desert and mountain gear for backcountry athletes.

　　“There’s a lot more coming,” Pete warned when he called me that night to explain that my house would serve as the staging area for all of the equipment, clothing, and food that he was ordering. “Your job is to wrangle everything together and get it squared away. Can you handle that?”

　　“Absolutely. Consider it done.”

　　Kevin Fedarko Live at the Outside FestivalFedarko will be sharing images and stories from his adventure in Denver, June 1-2, at the Outside Festival, a celebration of the outdoors featuring amazing music, inspiring speakers, and immersive experiences.Learn More

　　Given how many packages were still on the way, I decided it was best to wait a bit before getting to work. When most of the boxes had been delivered, I’d unpack them and start testing important items such as the camp stove, the tent, and the DeLorme InReach, a handheld communicator that enabled two-way text messaging via satellite, but could also be paired with topographic maps on a cell phone—and would, if necessary, transmit an emergency SOS. But for the moment, I simply plucked each new package off the porch, carried it down the driveway, and tossed it into the garage.

　　I knew that the organizing and testing business was important, and I had every aim of flinging myself into the mission when the moment was right. But, alas, a hundred other urgent and pressing tasks intervened—laundry, napping, mowing the lawn—and despite my best intentions, the pile in the garage continued to grow. Then, almost without warning it seemed, September 24 arrived, and it was time to leave for the canyon.