We really meant to publish this post a week ago, but our traveling schedule keeps interfering with our blogging schedule! We just got back late last night from our latest adventure and we want to take advantage of a couple of days of down time to try and catch up again.
After we left Tucson, we drove up to the Grand Canyon by way of Flagstaff, Az. We thought Flagstaff would be a really cool town to visit for a few hours because: (a) it has that Western aura to it; (b) it's a college town - the home of Northern Arizona University (Go Lumberjacks!) [Lumberjacks? Really?]; (c) historic Route 66 runs through the town; and (d) it's the home of several important aeronautical and astronomical facilities, including the Lowell Observatory, where they are abundantly proud of discovering Pluto, but much less proud of Pluto being downsized to a dwarf planet.
Perhaps it was the great time we had in Tucson, or our excitement about going to the Grand Canyon, but Flagstaff did not, frankly, do much for us. Having said that, we do have some obligatory type pictures to share:
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| Historic Downtown District (Four Blocks of Bars, Restaurants, and Gift Shops selling Native American Tchochkas (that's an ancient Navajo word, if you care to look it up) |
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| Yep, they took down the main street signs and put up signs that read Route 66; otherwise it looks like any other four lane road through a downtown area, but the signs lets them sell Route 66 Tchochkas (see last caption) |
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| The outside of the observatory where Pluto was discovered |
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The inside of the observatory where Pluto was discovered- the most exciting thing to us whas the boxing glove on the protruding stick; before it was covered, some scientist, obviously lost in deep thought over discovering Pluto, walked right into it and it "knocked him out"
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We are sure Flagstaff is a perfectly nice town; we even had a decent vegetarian lunch there; we think we were just very anxious to get to the Grand Canyon before sunset.
So, we should spend a minute setting the scene. We have been very fortunate in our lives to have seen many, many, landscapes of incredible beauty; we have been to, among other places, Yosemite, Zion, Bryce, Moab, the Arches, the Smokeys, all over Alaska, all over California including the scenic drive up the Coast, the granite cliffs in Maine, the glaciers in the Canadian Rockies, the mountains in the Blue Ridge, the beaches of Cape Cod, and, of course, the beauty of our own state, from Kensington to Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes to Charlevoix to Pictured Rocks and many many places in between. We had never taken the time to visit the Grand Canyon, though, mostly because, in both of our minds, it would be one of those places where you look, you say "How Nice", and then you find the nearest Ripley's museum. We really thought it would be like, say, Niagra Falls (which we know has a natural beauty but after viewing it for five minutes, what else do you do if you don't have a barrel?). We took this attitude with us while planning the trip to Arizona, and on the drive from Tucson through Flagstaff, and into the park itself. We took this attitude with us as we parked in the visitor center, making snide remarks about how we were going to spend our two days after we spent our five minutes looking at the Canyon. Although the attitude was a little shaken, we took this attitude with us even as we were walking on the path from the visitor center to closest viewing point, Mather Point, and we came across this fellow right on the path:
We kept this attitude all during the ten minute stroll from the visitor center to Mather Point.
And then we saw the Canyon.
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| All our first views from Mather Point- this is about 90 minutes before sunset |
After we picked up our jaws, which had dropped to the floor, we immediately agreed that we had to cancel the rest of our trip and spend the time we had remaining at the Canyon. So long, Painted Desert and Meteor Crater. So long, Petrified Forest. So long, even, believe it or not, sleeping in the Concrete Wigwam on Route 66; we couldn't see any point in doing any of it if it meant leaving the Canyon earlier than we had to. We think the word is overused a lot these days, but the Grand Canyon is, truly, awesome.
Pictures can't really do the Canyon justice; it is the scale of the Canyon, the enormity of it, the complexity of the geological layers; the incredible play of light against the sides and faces of it at various times during the day that gives it its beauty. It is the history, both natural and modern, that is so facinating. It is the way that the National Park Service, to their great credit, actually paid attention to the words of Teddy Roosevelt, who, upon first viewing the Canyon, said:
"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. I want to ask you to keep this great wonder of nature as it now is. I hope you will not have a building of any kind, not a summer cottage, a hotel or anything else, to mar the wonderful grandeur, the sublimity, the great loneliness and beauty of the canyon. Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it."
Almost every structure at the Canyon in the Park, all the hotels, all the paths, all the facilities, from the benches to the grandest hotel, were constructed in keeping these words in mind; they fit wonderfully into the natural beauty of the surroundings and don't detract from the Canyon or surrounding areas at all. Prices are reasonable (because the Park Service dictates what the licensee can charge for everything) and you won't find a Ripleys or schlock anywhere in the park or the Canyon.
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| The El Tovar- the Grand Hotel at the Grand Canyon (we stayed at the Maswick which is in the park but not on the rim although less than 5 minutes from the Rim and 10 from El Tovar) |
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| Porch at the El Tovar |
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| Hopi House; used for Native American Ceremonies and Crafts |
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Inside the Yavapai Geological Museum; built to have incredible views of the Canyon
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| Wall built by CCC during the 30s |
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| Hermit's Rest; people would ride in stagecoaches for hours to this far end of the Park and then rest inside; it's a great place for a picnic on the porch |
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| Fire;place inside the Hermit's Rest rest stop |
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| Arch at Hermit's Rest; walk underneath for good luck |
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| Typical bench constructed by CCC during the 30s |
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| typical retaining wall; a lovesick CCC employee added the heart |
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| Mule Pen built by CCC ; riding mules down into the Canyon is a tradition but you need to book it a year in advance and be prepared for at least an 8 hour ride, if not a two day ride |
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| Ruth resting on the Mule Pen |
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| Ruth resting at El Tovar on the porch; much more comfortable! |
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| Lookout Studio; where the photographers Kolb Brothers sold their photos; it has beautiful views of the Canyon |
So now here is our dilemma; we took hundreds of pictures; we took them at sunset (we saw 2 of 3- we were too hungry to see the third), sunrise (all 3), all during the day, after the sun went down, from every point in the park, from every angle, using five different settings on the camera, and since we weeded it down to the best 250 or so, we want to share them all. But my guess is that out of the dozens and dozens of readers of this blog (or maybe there are just 6 of you- we're not real good at reading the counter yet) there may be three of you (and yes I'm talking to you Steve, you Leah, and you Danny) who may actually want to (feel obliged to) see them all. Here's what we think we are going to do; we will post a bunch (surely too many) on the blog; and we will also figure out how to include a link to our Picasa site where the actual album resides in cyberspace. That way those of you who just flip through the blog can see some of the best of what we saw; those actually interested can see the whole kaboodle.
Here's how we spent our time at the Canyon:
Watching Sunsets and Moonrises:
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| Yavapai Point |
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| Yavapai Point |
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| Yavapai Point |
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| Hopi Point |
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| Hopi Point |
Watching Sunrises (Alan 3, Ruth 1)
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| By Bright Angel Trailhead |
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| At Yavapai |
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| Yavapai |
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| Yavapai (that's smoke not fog; its' from a "maintained" forest fire set by the Rangers to clear forests |
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| Bright Angel Trailhead |
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| Bright Angel Trailhead |
We went "Flightseeing" in a plane for 19 people
We hiked along the rim (which is mostly a level, paved surface; I think the more appropriate word is "walked") and took in a Ranger lecture on the formation of the Canyon
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| We were amazed at the number of people who went out past the guard rails and stood right on the ledge; many would make stupid poses while having their pictures taken. A Ranger told us that young athletic men are the most likely to fall into the Canyon doing stupid things; most women who fall into the Canyon are doing a "Thelma and Louise" suicide and use a rental car. We were also reminded that falling into the Canyon has never killed anyone; landing in the Canyon has killed a good number of people. |
We took the free shuttle bus along the "Hermit's Route" which stops at nine points, each with a distinct view:
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| Trailview Point (Looking at Bright Angel Trail-more on that later) |
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| Powell Point |
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| Hopi Point at Sunset (Notice the Colorado River) |
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| Maricopa Point |
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| Mohave Point- good views of the Colorado |
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| The Abyss |
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| Pima Point |
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| Pima Point |
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| Hermit's Rest |
If you are counting (if you are still reading!) We didn't take any pictures at Monument Creek Vista; no reason why; but we will both remember it because a couple were spending the morning there sitting on a bench, reading the New York Times to each other, and ignoring all the other tourists and their cameras. Very cool
We saw lots of wildlife; lots of birds; lots of mammals; including deer, elk, and mountain goats.
We ate a nice dinner at the Bright Angel Lodge looking into a sunset; we had a great dinner of appetizers and drinks on the porch of the El Tovar on an unseasonably warm evening night; we saw lots of stars at night (including the Space Station streaking across the sky) because the park makes it a point of keeping dark at night so the stars are vibrant. The biggest thrill of the stay for Alan, however, was his chance to actually hike into the Canyon along the Bright Angel Trail; he only went down 1 1/2 miles and 1,000 feet drop in elevation (there are rest stops at 1.5 miles, 3 miles, and 5 miles, and it is 9.3 miles and 4200 feet in elevation drop to the Canyon floor, which is a 2 day hike) but it was fantastic; and he has pledged to hike to the floor and back by the time he is 60. He set off before sunrise and was back 2 hours later, with some great pictures:
On the way back. Alan ran into the Mule train coming down; a happy bunch of riders!
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| Finished with this one; can't wait for the next! |
Ruth decided she wanted to try a little, so later in the day we climbed down far enough to give her a taste
While we didn't want to leave the Canyon, on our last day we took a drive along Desert View Drive, which gives even more different views of the Canyon and ends with a stop at "The Watchtower" which was constructed by Architect Mary Colter (she did many of the buildings in the Grand Canyon) in a Native American style
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| Native paintings inside the Watchtower |
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| Looking down from top floor of the Watchtower |
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| On the terrace of the Watchtower |
As we drove back to Phoenix, we passed by the start of the Painted Desert, so we stopped at a Native American crafts stand (there are a lot of them around this area) and took a few pictures
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| We had a nice chat with the people working the booths, but didn't wind up buying anything |
We drove to Phoenix, where we had a relaxing evening eating at one of our favorite restaurants and sitting in the Hotel bar watching the Tigers end their great season, and then we flew home the next day.
The Arizona trip was fantastic; we are having a ball during these six months and the Canyon will clearly be one of the highlights!
Next stop: Abe, Harry, and Buddy!!!
