The wonders of the Grand Canyon cannot be adequately represented in symbols of speech, nor by speech itself. The resources of the graphic art are taxed beyond their powers in attempting to portray its features. Language and illustration combined must fail.
John Wesley Powell
"Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is to keep it for your children, and for all who come after you, as the one great sight which every American... should see."
Day and I, along with our friends S&D are going to the Grand Canyon for Christmas, so, just days away. I cannot describe the excitement I am feeling, the anticipation of seeing the Grand Canyon. Understand, it is more than checking the Grand Canyon off my list, it's more than being able to say, I have been to the Grand Canyon.
"Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is the chance that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living."
Mary Ritter Beard.
I would imagine, the beauty of the Grand Canyon stays with you, long after you leave, forever changed. With each new experience, I am reborn, a new person, and I like who I am becoming...
You can read all of my previous post Our Roots Grow Deep if you would like.
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| Our view from Bright Angel Lodge on the South Rim Trail |
The beauty of the Grand Canyon will stay with you, to say it is awe inspiring is an understatement for sure. We arrived at the canyon on Christmas Eve, and stayed at the Bright Angel Lodge. We got in a little late, it was dark and after a long day of travel we were ready for bed. Like a kid again, I lay awake on Christmas Eve in great anticipation of Christmas morning, and Christmas morning did not disappoint. This was our view, just 50 ft. from our lodge, it is big! The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, at its' widest point it is eighteen miles across, and on average, it is 10 miles across. The bottom of the canyon, the Colorado River, is over one mile down. The North Rim of the canyon is 8000 feet above sea level, and the South Rim is 7000 feet above sea level. The Grand Canyon National Park covers 1,217,262 acres, or almost 2 million square miles! The Grand Canyon was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 and is considered one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Five million people visit the canyon every year, four million of those are Americans, and four of them this year, were our friends S and D, Day and myself! To say the Grand Canyon is awe inspiring, is an understatement.
So the four of us at the Grand Canyon for the first time, it's big with tons of things to do, where does someone start? We only had four days there, so just enough time to get a taste of the canyon, and a great place to start is always the visitor's center. The visitor's center is at Mather's Point, east of Bright Angel Lodge on the South Rim. The visitor's center has a great movie about the canyon, and there is plenty of great staff that are happy to point you in the right direction. We were there in December and it was crowded, I cannot imagine that place in the summer, but I still think it is worth your time.
I had read that Mather's Point was the place to be for great views and seeing the sunrise, if you like taking photos, it sound like a must see right? So one morning we headed out early with plans on making it to Mather's Point in time for the sunrise and then to the visitor's center afterwards. I think we all enjoyed the brisk walk along the rim ( you can walk the South Rim from Pipe Creek Vista to Hermits Rest along the rim trail, approximately 13 miles long ). I have been eating healthy and exercising regularly and have recently lost 30 pounds ( which you could read about here at Fit at Fifty ). I feel great, and for the first time in a very long time, I loved all the walking and hiking we were doing, but to call the South Rim Trail a trail, is a little misleading. The trail is more like an unpaved sidewalk, and actually paved in some areas. I would imagine this is where most of the five million visitors spend their vacation. On one side of the trail are lodges, restaurants and other points of interest, on the other, the Grand Canyon and some spectacular views. Mather's Point is crowded, you do not need to go to Mather's Point for great views, they are everywhere!
We left Massachusetts on Christmas Eve and it was 50 degrees, we had to come to Arizona for a white Christmas. Anyhow, a trip to the visitor's center and a walk to Mather's Point and back to Bright Angel Lodge is a pretty full day. Back to our lodge for a nap, a shower and dinner after, with a game of Pitch to end the night. Tomorrow, Hermit's Rest.
Hermit's Rest is a snack bar and gift shop at the end of Hermit Road. Hermit Road follows the South Rim and the rim trail west, and is quite popular, so popular, it is closed to private vehicles during the summer months, and the only way to see it is to walk it, or take a bus. In the winter however, the road is open to private vehicles, and we opted to drive it.
The idea of getting on a tour bus does not excite me, but there are many places to pull off, all having great views, so bus or walk, Hermit Road is a must. Hermit's Rest however, was just ok but, I guess you might as well go all the way. We had fun, we stopped often to take pictures, well S and I took pictures. I should say S has been our friend for almost twenty years, our good friend, and I had a great time with her.
We horsed around, teased each other as always, and photographed the shit out of the Grand Canyon. And the four of us wandered about, enjoying the views and each others' company. Here are a few photos of our day on Hermit Road...
More pictures of Hermit Road and my beautiful wife...
One of the things I liked most about the Grand Canyon was, there were no fences. Personal responsibility, you had better be careful, it's one mile straight down. S has a fear of heights, haha, we teased her of course.
I am pretty sure that is Day laughing at poor S.
The colors of the canyon are amazing, and change throughout the day. We must have been on Hermit Road at just the right time, because it was beautiful. The canyon was purple, absolutely breathtaking...
This post has more pictures in it than previous posts, but words alone cannot describe the beauty of the Grand Canyon. There you have it, another day at the canyon. Tomorrow we will hike down!
Yes S, we are all very excited to hike down into the canyon. If you are a hiker, the Grand Canyon must seem like heaven. It takes 8-10 hours to get to the bottom and twice as long to get back out. There are trails everywhere, we decided on the Kaibab Trail at the east end. Obviously we are not going to the bottom, so we set our sights on the first rest stop, an hour down. An hour and a half if you are afraid of heights. Now, I know I have a friend who is reading this thinking, you only hiked down for an hour? Well, like I said, we were only here for four days, just long enough to get a sense of the canyon. It is so big and there is so much to do, you would have to come back many times if you really want to enjoy the Grand Canyon. A hike to the bottom, camping for a few nights and a two day hike out would be on my list, along with rafting the Colorado River. But today, just three or four hours of hiking.
For those of you wondering why it takes 10 hours to hike down one mile to the bottom, it is one mile straight down. The Kaibab Trail is 7.1 miles of switchbacks on an almost shear rock face.
We took our time, meaning we waited for S. We enjoyed the views and had fun on our way to the first rest stop.
Amazing right? This turned out to be a great day, the hiking was fun now that I was 30 pounds lighter. We were able to tease our friend who is afraid of heights, and the views were great. This is a great time to say how much I enjoyed Day. Day and I hadn't spent much time together this past year. I had just spent a year on a job, which kept me in a hotel Mondays through Fridays. We needed this, and we had a great time together, at least I enjoyed her.
Not the bottom, but for us, our goal, the first rest stop. We spent about a half hour here, before we began our hike up and out, soaking in the views. The mules are beginning to look like a great idea. A Mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse, if you wanted to know. Anyhow, our Grand Canyon trip ends here. We hiked out and were heading out to Sedona for the final 3 or 4 days of our vacation. Sedona will be another post, another time.
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| Its big, really big |
I had read that Mather's Point was the place to be for great views and seeing the sunrise, if you like taking photos, it sound like a must see right? So one morning we headed out early with plans on making it to Mather's Point in time for the sunrise and then to the visitor's center afterwards. I think we all enjoyed the brisk walk along the rim ( you can walk the South Rim from Pipe Creek Vista to Hermits Rest along the rim trail, approximately 13 miles long ). I have been eating healthy and exercising regularly and have recently lost 30 pounds ( which you could read about here at Fit at Fifty ). I feel great, and for the first time in a very long time, I loved all the walking and hiking we were doing, but to call the South Rim Trail a trail, is a little misleading. The trail is more like an unpaved sidewalk, and actually paved in some areas. I would imagine this is where most of the five million visitors spend their vacation. On one side of the trail are lodges, restaurants and other points of interest, on the other, the Grand Canyon and some spectacular views. Mather's Point is crowded, you do not need to go to Mather's Point for great views, they are everywhere!
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| That's a fun "selfie" |
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| Haha, nice faces |
We left Massachusetts on Christmas Eve and it was 50 degrees, we had to come to Arizona for a white Christmas. Anyhow, a trip to the visitor's center and a walk to Mather's Point and back to Bright Angel Lodge is a pretty full day. Back to our lodge for a nap, a shower and dinner after, with a game of Pitch to end the night. Tomorrow, Hermit's Rest.
 |
| Hermit's Rest |
The idea of getting on a tour bus does not excite me, but there are many places to pull off, all having great views, so bus or walk, Hermit Road is a must. Hermit's Rest however, was just ok but, I guess you might as well go all the way. We had fun, we stopped often to take pictures, well S and I took pictures. I should say S has been our friend for almost twenty years, our good friend, and I had a great time with her.
We horsed around, teased each other as always, and photographed the shit out of the Grand Canyon. And the four of us wandered about, enjoying the views and each others' company. Here are a few photos of our day on Hermit Road...
More pictures of Hermit Road and my beautiful wife...
 |
| "Tada" |
One of the things I liked most about the Grand Canyon was, there were no fences. Personal responsibility, you had better be careful, it's one mile straight down. S has a fear of heights, haha, we teased her of course.
I am pretty sure that is Day laughing at poor S.
The colors of the canyon are amazing, and change throughout the day. We must have been on Hermit Road at just the right time, because it was beautiful. The canyon was purple, absolutely breathtaking...
This post has more pictures in it than previous posts, but words alone cannot describe the beauty of the Grand Canyon. There you have it, another day at the canyon. Tomorrow we will hike down!
Yes S, we are all very excited to hike down into the canyon. If you are a hiker, the Grand Canyon must seem like heaven. It takes 8-10 hours to get to the bottom and twice as long to get back out. There are trails everywhere, we decided on the Kaibab Trail at the east end. Obviously we are not going to the bottom, so we set our sights on the first rest stop, an hour down. An hour and a half if you are afraid of heights. Now, I know I have a friend who is reading this thinking, you only hiked down for an hour? Well, like I said, we were only here for four days, just long enough to get a sense of the canyon. It is so big and there is so much to do, you would have to come back many times if you really want to enjoy the Grand Canyon. A hike to the bottom, camping for a few nights and a two day hike out would be on my list, along with rafting the Colorado River. But today, just three or four hours of hiking.
For those of you wondering why it takes 10 hours to hike down one mile to the bottom, it is one mile straight down. The Kaibab Trail is 7.1 miles of switchbacks on an almost shear rock face.
We took our time, meaning we waited for S. We enjoyed the views and had fun on our way to the first rest stop.
Amazing right? This turned out to be a great day, the hiking was fun now that I was 30 pounds lighter. We were able to tease our friend who is afraid of heights, and the views were great. This is a great time to say how much I enjoyed Day. Day and I hadn't spent much time together this past year. I had just spent a year on a job, which kept me in a hotel Mondays through Fridays. We needed this, and we had a great time together, at least I enjoyed her.
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| S is tired |
Not the bottom, but for us, our goal, the first rest stop. We spent about a half hour here, before we began our hike up and out, soaking in the views. The mules are beginning to look like a great idea. A Mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse, if you wanted to know. Anyhow, our Grand Canyon trip ends here. We hiked out and were heading out to Sedona for the final 3 or 4 days of our vacation. Sedona will be another post, another time.
Surreal is a word I might use to describe the Grand Canyon, but...
"the wonders of the Grand Canyon cannot be adequately represented in symbols of speech, nor by speech itself."
John Wesley Powell was absolutely right. The words I have written in my blog could never describe what I saw, or the awe I felt as I stared in amazement at the Grand Canyon. As I write that, the Grand Canyon, I think, it truly is, The Grand Canyon. I can only hope my post, might entice you to go, and see it for yourself. Powell went on to say,
"The resources of graphic art are taxed beyond their powers in attempting to portray its' features. Language and illustration combined must fail."
It is hard to take a bad picture of the Grand Canyon, and I believe I took some great ones, but pictures can never do the Grand Canyon justice. You must see the Grand Canyon yourself.
"it is the one great sight, which every American should see"
Theodore Roosevelt
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