A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon

by Kevin Fedarko

This, it must be confessed, was something of a setback—or, to put it in terms that reflected my true feelings about the matter, transcendentally soul crushing.

They died fully conscious, parched and prostrate in the dirt, with an empty water bottle clutched between their fingers.

this is how I live

“Maybe we’re being taught some kind of a lesson,” he replied. “Although I have no idea what we’re supposed to be learning, aside from the fact that we totally suck.”

“Let’s roll,” I said to Pete. “We’ve got an appointment with someone who will know what’s wrong with you.”

me, taking my cat to the vet

After handing us some candy bars (sadly, they weren’t carrying any hard liquor or hallucinogenic drugs), they wished us well, revved their engines, and spun off.

enveloped in furnace-like heat, and aware—dimly or otherwise—that the time he had left was slipping away as sweat poured through the pores of his skin at a rate of more than a liter an hour in the 110-degree air.

this is just summer in Houston