Sunday, January 10 Grand Canyon, AZ; The trip from Phoenix to Grand Canyon takes about 3 hours. So we get a very early start around 10:00am...Well, we meant to get an early start. Taking Interstate 10 out of Phoenix, there is a variety of terrain and flora as we climb up from the Sanoran desert with Saguaro Cactus and century plants to the evergreen forests around and beyond Flagstaff. Road climbs steadily upward from Phoenix and is well maintained. It is a pleasant drive but beware to keep the speed limit! There was a lot of police activity the day we drove
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Flagstaff is a medium-sized college town famous for it's record-setting snow falls. Making the interchange from I-10 to I-40 then taking I-40 west out of Flagstaff we drive about 20 miles and make the turn up State Route 68 to begin the 55 mile straight drive to the Grand Canyon National Park. As we get closer to on either side of the road. the canyon, Bob points out the many miles of flat terrain running to the edge of the horizon in both directions. It seems like we have been driving for hours with nothing taller than low shrubs and sage brush on either side of the road. You don't actually realize you are actually on the top of a high Mesa with level terrain and a straight road seemingly leading to no where. It isn't until we see the Ntl Park Svc signs that we realize the Canyon must be nearby. Following the signs, we weave our way into one of the many parking areas and begin to follow the crowd of silent pilgrim headed toward... what? This forested and flat terrain does a great job of masking the surprise ahead. People begin to slow and move off to the various viewpoints as the first glimpse comes through the trees. Nothing can prepare you for what happens next.
As the trees thin to nothing you find yourself standing on the edge of the very world itself. The terrain drops away from you in an undulating but unbroken line left and right only to re-appear hundreds, or is it thousands, of feet below you and in front of you. It stretches as far as the eye can see around the mesa to your right, then peering off to the left it follows the valley out of sight up the canyon of the Colorado. Way, way, way below you can catch a fleeting glimpse of the khaki-green Colorado river on its way to being gobbled up by the cities of Southern Arizona and California. It doesn't matter how many pictures you have seen, or how many movies or Ken Burns' specials you have watched nothing can describe the feeling of standing at the edge of that precipice. Use any adjective you can think of ...Link them altogether if you wish and still you will have failed to describe this place, this moment. We spent three hours just looking, walking, taking pictures, with our own camera and the cameras of others, scouring the Visitor's Center to learn as much as we could in the brief time we had to enjoy this most special of places. Although it was cloudy when we arrived, as we were leaving we were treated to the late afternoon sun which plays in the shadows and highlights the many layers which make up the Canyon. What a treat and what a day! The three hour drive home is quiet and uneventful with some favorite tunes on the MP3 player and a brain chocked full of those once in a life time visuals of the first time you see the Grand Canyon.
Listen to us... Put this on your list of places to see before you die. It's not easy to get here Las Vegas is 400 miles away and Phoenix is not many miles less but it is worth every mile to see and experience this place. If you can do it, try to spend a few days in the Canyon or the village to really enjoy this grand place.
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