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Bursts of static electricity shimmered in a ghostly light show over us as the tent flapped wildly in the blow. Gusts tugged at our moorings. A black storm parked overhead.

THE BILL HALL TRAIL TO DEER CREEK FALLS IS A STEEP PLUNGE INTO GRAND CANYON

My sister, Susan Bernhardt of Seattle, had come in early April to hike a less-traveled part of the Grand Canyon: a 4,200-foot plunge down the Bill Hall Trail from Monument Point on the North Rim to Deer Creek Falls on the Colorado River.

But North Rim hikes require weather luck. Prime season is short: late April through June, mid-September through October. Anything in between generally is too cold or too hot. The gamble is increased by the fact that permits must be obtained weeks in advance.

We tried early in the season; however, Sue's weather luck petered out. The storm blocked our way. About the same time a year earlier, I sweated down the trail in 100-degree plus temperatures.

If you're lucky with weather, head for Deer Creek Falls and leave the Grand Canyon crowds behind. Only a few permits a day are issued for two primitive no-frills campsites.

Maj. John Wesley Powell was the first to write about the place. On August 23, 1869, during his historic exploration of the Colorado River, he noted: "Just after dinner we passed a stream on the right which leaps into the Colorado by a direct fall of more than 100 feet, forming a beautiful cascade. On the rocks in the cavelike chamber are ferns with delicate fronds and enameled stems."

That's pretty much what you'll see today, except there are people now. The mouth of Deer Creek is popular with river rafters arriving from Lees Ferry, 136 miles upstream. Rafters tend to move on, but hikers like me linger.

I always sit in awe beside waterfalls. The rumbling raw power of a falls up close speaks to my primitive core. They are among my favorite backcountry destinations.

Around a bend in the slot canyon, Deer Creek Falls tumbles into a pool that tames the creek before it merges with the Colorado River. Stunted willows cling to ledges beneath the falls, drinking from the mist.

Like a knife cut through a layer cake, wind and water have bared colorful swatches of geologic time in the slot-canyon walls.

Getting there, nearly every step is steep. Prospectors on surefooted burros opened the trail in the 1880s. High up, the trail angles along bluffs. You must pass a stepped 12-foot rock wall at one point. Down was easy, but my backpack shifted on a lubrication of sweat climbing up.

I welcomed the break a sandstone mesa provides halfway down. Then the trail tilts again into Surprise Valley. Where the trail forks, turn right to get to Deer Creek.

Left leads to Thunder Spring and Tapeats Creek. You can reach Deer Creek this way, too, but it's tougher, longer, and involves an unsettling traverse along a flowing slot canyon and down Cogswell Butte along the Colorado.

Stick to the Bill Hall Trail. You'll cross easy country at Surprise Valley. After that the trail drops in switchbacks for about a thousand feet to the narrows. You'll see Deer Spring, a tributary, spilling out of the cliff face. Plan four days and three nights for the hike, allowing a day in, one out, and two days for exploring and fishing. In June bring bug repellent. In summer stash a gallon of water midway down for the hike out. Treat creek water. Zip up against scorpions, centipedes, and rattlers.

Several hikes are possible from Deer Creek. Retrace the hike to Surprise Canyon and take the fork to Thunder Falls. Or, from the falls area, take the trail upstream along the Colorado. This is the lower end of the trail from Thunder River and Tapeats Creek. Plan a hike during the prime season, and weather won't be such a gamble, or dangerously hot.

WHEN YOU GO

To get to the trailhead from about a half mile south of Jacob Lake on State Route 67, take Forest Service Road 579 to FR 461, then follow FR 462 to the junction of FR 422. Turn south and continue past Big Springs camp to FR 425, then proceed along FR 292, then 292A until you arrive at the Bill Hall Trailhead and parking area at Monument Point.

Take two gallons of water per person during hot weather, plus a topographical map. Obtain a current weather forecast and dress accordingly.

For further information, including alternative routes, and to apply for permits, contact Backcountry Reservations Office, Grand Canyon National Park, P.O. Box 129, Grand Canyon, AZ 86023. Arrange to pick up the permits at the North Rim ranger station.