Originally posted by Kerrowdown In theory, yes. In fact I was very worried about my stamina coming out of hibernation season here in AZ (summer), so I actually scaled down the planned hike and skipped 3 waterfalls which would have added 1 mile R/T to the route. But what I found was that every 100-200 yards at most was a waterfall, which presented a roughly 30 minute break between sets of stairs. I actually went faster going up than I did coming down because there were fewer photo stops.
I had also allocated a full 10 hours for the hike and packed a gallon of Gatorade six bolilo rolls and a pound of meat and cheese. At about 1230 (right on schedule) I reached the half way point, and spent enough time eating and recovering that the hike up wasn't nearly as bad as I had thought. I had also decided not to carry my external flash, extra filters, my sigma 100-300 and my FA 100 macro in my pack, so it only weighed about 20 lbs (with full kit it weighs about 30 lbs). I think the extra 10 lbs savings also helped.
It was also a cool (low 60's) overcast day (perfect for waterfalls) so I didn't get overheated. It was a "fantastical" place, between the diffused light through all the trees and the sound of waterfalls echoing through canyons. I don't think I've said "wow" and "oh, cool" so many times in one day before.