Goodbye to the Grand Canyon

After our hike on Friday, we spent a little time at the hotel cleaning up. We were really dusty. Late in the afternoon, we decided to visit the rest of the Grand Canyon viewpoints in the park that we had missed. The skies were a little cloudy and it was misting. We decided to drive twenty miles east to the Tusayan Museum because we'd never been there. It had some interesting Indian displays on the different tribes and a walk through some Indian ruins.

I really like this sign. I'd definitely TRY to not harm the snakes. My goal would be avoidance! But I wouldn't rule out beating one to death with my backpack if it was him or me! After looking at the Indian ruins, we headed west to look at some of the viewpoints we'd missed.

We once again marveled over the views and were so glad we decided to make this last trip into the park. This view shows a stretch of rapids on the Colorado. That river trip is still on my Bucket List!

And this view shows the Colorado River as it meanders into the canyon.

This is the Grand View! And here are a few other favorite photos from the trip.

And one last amazing view! (Above, not below!)

On a lighter note, here's a photo of a species observed more than several times at the various viewpoints in the park. I'll term it the horse's ass. One of its repeated slogans was "What is this, the god-damned United Nations or something?" It was usually stated loudly and right in front of the offending 'foreigners.' I'm laughing here. Americans want to visit other countries and be treated well, but we get offended when world travelers spend their money to come to the U.S. and view one of the world's great wonders? Oh well.

After we were sufficiently overwhelmed with the scenery, we headed out of the park back to Tusayan to have some dinner. There was a new Mexican restaurant having a grand opening. This bandito was guarding the door. Pretty cool! The food was fairly good too.

Our only regret from the trip was not doing more hiking. So I guess we'll need to plan another trip!

Grand Canyon -- Below the Rim

Friday morning, Day 2, came early, and I was not too enthused about getting out of bed. Craig had decided that we should hike the first part of the South Kaibab Trail down into the canyon. I was feeling lazy and a little hesitant after hearing a lot of warnings from people who had walked too far down and then exhausted themselves on the climb back up. We finally got going and after figuring out how to use the shuttle bus to the trailhead, we started down the trail a little after 9 a.m. It was a cool morning with cloud cover -- thank God! The beginning of the trail was a steep descent by way of switchbacks through a narrow canyon. The views were breathtaking (and so was the trail -- ha!).

About halfway down through the tight switchbacks, we both noticed a frozen figure underneath a rock overhang up ahead. Dark-skinned and dressed in a large hat and layers of odd clothing, the figure almost looked like a petrified man. We were slightly freaked out as we approached. It turned out to be an older (Eastern) Indian woman dressed in traditional clothing with pants underneath. She looked like a Bernie type figure (Weekend at Bernie's), propped up in a standing position against the canyon wall. As we passed, we said 'Good Morning', but there was no response -- no facial or body movement. I really wanted to take a picture, but I always miss the really good one's because I don't want to be rude. But I told Craig on the way back up if she was still there, I would take her picture and he could take her pulse.

Once through the switchbacks, the trail continued with a slightly more gradual descent. Several times, large ravens flew overhead. Their wings make an audible noise like scissors slicing through the air. Very strange. We stopped at several points along the way to drink some water. Each time, one of these creatures immediately approached and usually stood on hind legs and begged. I never feed them because it's against the rules in national parks. Besides that, I was always taught as a kid if a squirrel approaches it's probably rabid. (We didn't have tame squirrels in Oswego, Kansas. Probably because no one FED squirrels!)



After about an hour of steadily descending through the canyon, we reach Ooh and Ah Point. The views and drops were breathtaking. We definitely stopped here to smell the roses. Notice who else is admiring the view!



After hanging out for 15 or 20 minutes, we decided that this marker would be a good place to turn around and start the climb back up. I didn't want to risk overdoing it. In February, I had an almost 911 experience hiking South Mountain in Phoenix, so I'm a little hesitant to go balls to the wall and test the equipment. (Especially in a location like this!) We also knew the trail was fairly steep all the way back.



Craig took the lead. We took short water and photo breaks on the way back up and really had no problem. We stopped here to take one more shot of the view down because the tight canyon was just ahead.

We looked for Bernie at her spot in the switchbacks, but she was gone. I always miss the good shots! By the way, she didn't appear to be in any distress, or we wouldn't have left her on the way down. I'm guessing the rest of her group went on from there and she had just claimed that spot to admire the view. But she was spooky! Here's one more photo looking up in the tight canyon.


I forgot to mention these signs and the subsequent land mines that litter the trail. I can almost smell it as I write. Ha! They run the famous mule trips down these trails. The photo of the mules is at the stables up above on the rim. I bet they love their day off!



We were back at the trailhead about two and a half hours after we began the hike. And no worse for the wear except for the fact that our feet hurt. If we ever hike in the Grand Canyon again, we'll definitely wear hiking boots. The rocky trails really beat up the feet in running shoes. My dogs were really barking!

We both regretted after the fact that we didn't go further down into the canyon. But hindsight is 20/20. We definitely plan on a return trip to do more hiking. And we both agree that we'd never really 'seen' the Grand Canyon before. Going below the rim was very enlightening. It's hard to describe, but hiking down made both of us feel like we were a part of it this time. The experience just isn't the same from up on the rim. I think being down in the canyon gave us a better sense of how vast it really is. And also how small we are!

Grand Canyon -- On the Rim

It was so nice to get out of town! We watched the outside temperature gauge in the car drop as we climbed out of Phoenix and the temp was down 20 degrees by the time we hit Flagstaff. We were at the Grand Canyon in about four and a half hours (we stopped a couple of times). We checked into the hotel in Tusayan, and then drove into the park. It's $25 for a 7 day pass. A tremendous deal considering the views, hiking, and exhibits! We pulled over at one of the first main viewpoints and parked. They have a paved walking trail that runs all along the rim, so we just walked and took in all the views. It's so vast, it's hard to capture the true beauty with photos.

After taking in the views, we headed on towards the Grand Canyon Village area to visit the old hotels and studios along the rim there. Lookout Studio below, built in the early 1900's, is a favorite viewpoint.

Once inside the studio, the views out of the old windows were breathtaking. On the lower level of the building, they had an exhibit which seemed especially poignant given the current financial implosion of the last few weeks. "It Saved My Life" described the Great Depression years and the role that FDR's Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) played in providing jobs and a new life for hungry jobless Americans. The display just really hit home and made me wonder if current economic conditions in the U.S. will again lead to this type of devastation. Actually, a lot of the financial statistics listed in the write-up looked extremely familiar.

The cases above contain some CCC memorabilia. Mess kits, books, banners, etc... The Conservation Corp built many of the stone structures, trails, and park facilities not only in the Grand Canyon, but also around the United States. The corp gave a lot of destitute people a new purpose (not to mention food!) during the 1930's.

We took a little hike down the Bright Angel Trail, which was also built by the CCC during the Depression era. The views once you drop below rim level are outstanding.

Back up on top, we strolled along the walkway toward the hotels to have a look in the lobbies of Bright Angel and El Tovar Lodges. The little cabins below are located right along the rim walkway. Not a good place for sleepwalkers to stay since the drop is right outside your door, but I'll check this out for any future trips. The view from the room would be unbelievable!

We walked into Bright Angel lobby to have a look at the historic structure. The lobby's log walls are highlighted by Indian art and moose and elk heads.

Craig in front of Hopi House.

El Tovar Lodge Sign

At this point, the light was dimming without a sensational sunset and the lodge restaurants were packed, so we decided to head back to Tusayan to watch the Palin/Biden debate on television. Back to ugly reality? We stopped at Pizza Hut and grabbed a supreme to eat in the room.

Stay tuned because Craig drags me on a hike tomorrow!