A watch, a 4Runner and the bottom of the world

The Grand Canyon is a dark sky park, but actually the entire drive from Flagstaff to the Bright Angel Trailhead on the South Rim of the canyon feels like navigating deep space. With the exception of the Chevron station in Valle and the Tusayan streetlights just outside the park entrance, our 3am drive to go hiking is shrouded in darkness, photographed by starlight.

I’m hiking with two of my closest and oldest friends, one of whom is a Flagstaff resident and the main instigator of many absurd, often outdoor adventures. We are all in our mid-40s, have all been ‘in training’ for months for this 17 kilometer walk (with a gain of 1500 metres) and are most likely all thinking about the last body part we hurt.

And because we’re guys of a certain type, we texted a lot and talked about everything we need to know to optimize this experience, from the edge to the river and back again. There is a lot of talk about shoes (trail runners vs. hiking boots vs. boots); hydration and energy (we have about 18 liters and 20,000 calories together); and how much our various backpacks, walking sticks, zip-off pants, etc. weigh in grams.

And because I’m an even more specific type of nerd, I had already given a lot of thought to the right vehicle to transport us on our journey through the inky night, settling on the (recently award-winning) Toyota 4Runner. Also crucial was a robust and emotionally correct mechanical wristwatch, a job for which the good folks at Tudor lent me their latest version of the iconic Ranger.

The perfect harness

I’ve only been to Flagstaff twice, but from the first minute in town it’s clear that this is as much a Toyota home as Toyota City is in Japan. You can’t throw an Innova Aviar (this is a disc golf joke) without hitting a beloved Tacoma or crunchy 4Runner.

When I pulled up to my friend’s house, there was already a quorum of off-road-ready Toyota products in the driveway. With my box-fresh Gen 6 4Runner on site, three of the vehicle’s iterations were represented; a nicely modified gen-three sat behind a familiar/rusty 1995 gen-two. There was also a recently purchased 1996 Land Cruiser, and the youngest of the bunch, a 2014 Tacoma. This is Flagstaff.

Furthermore, while Jeeps and Subarus are also thick on the ground, the Arizona highlands were absolutely lousy with ORV Toyotas of every age and condition: a crisp Land Cruiser had a window sticker that read “94 FJ80 / 1.2 Million Miles / 6 Continents,” which is a huge and hugely specific flex.

There was no reason to expect that I’d actually need all the capabilities of a new 4Runner—we’d be hiking into the Grand Canyon, not driving down it—but the truck certainly fit the general, over-prepared, over-engineered vibe of the entire operation.

A fun watch to explore

This sphere would also extend to my wrist. Although I hate to admit it, I’m the kind of guy who thinks about what kind of watch he’s going to wear while, say, hiking through the Grand Canyon.

For many people these days, that would mean one of the many shatterproof smartwatches, like an Apple Watch Ultra or something from the impressive Garmin Fenix ​​line. For me, analogous to my core when it comes to watches, this meant reaching out to my friends at Tudor about a Ranger loan.

The concept of a ‘field watch’ dates back to the First World War and was based on the incredibly practical concern of keeping time while surviving in a harsh, wet and often exploding environment. Wristwatches built for military use evolved pragmatically during World War II and beyond, and were a natural choice (if already on the wrist) of the nuts who, among other things, climbed very high mountains for the first time.

The actual connection between Tudor’s involvement in the monumentally arduous British North Greenland expedition of 1952 and the debut of the first model to bear the Ranger name (in 1965) is not exactly the clearest origin story. But suffice it to say that the Tudor Oyster Prince watches shipped with BNGE played an important role in the construction of the brand’s long-running field watch, as they are waterproof, ruggedly built, easy to read, and can generally take a beating.

While my phone tracked my steps, distance, altitude and the like, the Ranger told me the time and gave me a sense of connection to great expeditions of the past. What can I say, I’m a romantic.

The walk itself

It’s funny: I’ve done almost all of my hiking in the mountains of Maine and New Hampshire, where I have family. Clearly, the Canyon experience could hardly be more different than pushing your way through ferns and foliage to clamber up damp, mossy rocks.

We made a last minute call to take the popular Bright Angel trail both to the river and back to the rim, after realizing that a connecting trail to the steeper South Kaibab trail was out of service. The closure would add miles and hours to our day, which was already a huge challenge for a group of boys.

Unlike trails in the White Mountains, Bright Angel is essentially a wide, well-maintained gravel trail. This is misleading. Even though every step down the trail and back is easier than every step scrambling through the Maine forest, there are so many more steps to take.

It’s all 4,000 feet from the rim to the bottom of the Grand Canyon from the Bright Angel trailhead, and at the bottom, after hours of stubbing my toes on the front of my shoes, it felt incredible to wade into the frigid Colorado and eat some snacks.

But because you’re used to hiking through mountains, not canyons, it’s hard to explain how different the experience is when the really hard part – climbing your way out of that mountainous ditch – happens in the second half. Just over eight miles round trip, the trail is steepest over the last three, with an ascent of more than 2,000 feet over that distance.

Despite some training, reasonably cool weather and plenty of water, those last five kilometers were absolutely brutal. From a time standpoint, I would love to do another Canyon hike, but I can tell you that between miles 15 and 16 I had sworn off hiking altogether.

Rangers back at 4Runner Ranch

If I’m being completely honest, the most love I felt for the 4Runner that entire trip was back at camp, where I opened the tailgate and lay face-first in the cargo area. Later that day and in the days to come I would have time to reflect on the eerie beauty of this part of the world, and a little pride at having come such a long way, but at that moment I just needed a place to stand.

Besides being a comfortable way to transport three guys and some gear to the trailhead, I also got the Toyota into some gravel and dirt around Flagstaff. The SUV was of course unflappable in these very mild off-road environments, and is a better than ever way to ensure you’re prepared for anything and can run around in comfort while essentially doing nothing at all. It’s simply an exceptional modern adventure vehicle.

After recovering a bit (and eating the first McDonald’s hamburger I’ve had in a few decades), I had the presence of mind to check my adventure watch as well. While I didn’t use the Ranger to keep track of anything other than time (generally and sometimes between course sections), it was certainly a pleasure to watch as I went. The large, luminous handset and numbers stood out like a flashlight in the dark of the morning, and the flash of the bracelet was a little reminder to myself to think about the journey, not just the next step.

The thing about having stuff you love that makes you want to do things

Some of the gear we brought to the hike was purely functional: a new REI pack in the right size, a pair of Nike Pegasus trail runners (everyone here says to wear sneakers, not boots), lightweight wool socks, etc.

And some things, like a truck and a watch, fulfill a functional role while also making me more emotionally invested in the trip. To me, cool gear with history, brilliant construction, new features or more offers its own compelling reason to get out and do something. The 4Runner and the Ranger both fit that description.

A postscript and an early resolution

For those of you who have been looking for this column for a while and haven’t found it, my apologies. Life, holidays and the inevitable busyness of end-of-year corporate work have put pressure on my writing time and delayed this story immensely.

That said, I’m in the fortunate position of being able to drive interesting cars and talk to passionate car people every week. The purpose of this column is to tell you all that, and I’ll tell myself again that I mean it when I sign off: “See you next week.” In 2026, expect my publication timing to tighten.

On the plus side, the delay has enabled both Toyota and Tudor news. As I said at the top, the editorial staff here at TopSpeed, together with our colleagues AutoBuzz And HotCarsselected the new 4Runner as the winner in the Best Off-Road Warrior category for our annual Buzz Awards program. If you missed these articles, I highly recommend you take a look to see why I’m not alone in my praise of Toyota’s newest SUV.

Tudor also made a major announcement about the Ranger, as I stumbled out of the leaderboard with one on my wrist. The updated model is now available in the 39mm case I wore, and with a new 36mm case, for very classic sizing and perfect dial proportions. The watchmaker does the Ranger now also offers an appealing ‘Dune White’ dial that honestly looks incredible. I may have to plan another excursion just to have an excuse to borrow one.

See you in the new year.