The Grand Canyon - A River Runs Through It

The Grand Canyon -

We arrived at the Grand Canyon in time to get our first look just as the sun was setting. BEAUTIFUL.  There was an approaching storm, which I loved, that made for some great photos. It's hard to believe how big the sky is in the West. You can see storms approaching and then you can see it raining and it may never get to you. In Tennessee, if you see a storm coming, you'd better take cover because chances are, it's going to hit you.

The lodge where we stayed was right on the South Rim of the Canyon. There was a small rock wall between the lodge yard and a huge drop off.

This is the building in front of our lodge. It is actually one of the first buildings here. It is quaint and very authentic....which means no tv and no air.

And that is why I am glad we stayed in this lodge which was air conditioned and did have tv. Still no internet, but this was a nice change.

Day 2 - Helicopter Tour of the Canyon

Just outside of the South Exit of the park is a small airport that has a couple of companies who do helicopter and small airplane tours of the canyon. We went for our ride on the first morning of our stay.

They seat you on the helicopter based on weight distribution. Peyton sat opposite Doug and me.

In our headphones they played music and a recording of some facts about the Canyon. Only one of my ears worked so I kind of got shafted on that. I do know that the first song that played was the Darth Vader theme and that they also played some "Top Gun" music. I think Doug called ahead to resquest his favorites.

I was surprised that the Grand Canyon is surrounded by the Kaibab Forest.  I guess I never pictured Arizona having a forest like this. Great wildlife habitat though.

Pretty impressive coming to the edge of the Canyon in the helicopter.

And this is really the only view of the Colorado River we had while we were there.

Final view from the helicopter ride.

Ohh Ahh Point

So there are several trails you can hike in and around the Canyon. You can also take a mule ride to the bottom of the canyon and spend the night. We took a couple of canyon rim hikes and one into the Grand Canyon. We hiked to Ohh Ahh point which is about a third of the way down. It was really hot and steep and yet again a storm was brewing. Major cool event.....hearing thunder roll through the canyon when a storm is bearing down. WOW! It rolls and echos like crazy. I loved it.

 Here are some of the switchbacks leading down the canyon.

Here is the storm rolling in. Even with the storm this close, we never got wet. This was from Ooh Ahh Point.

Yay, we had a full family photo! Another hiker took this one and got us and the canyon in the picture.

 

And Now, the Animals of the Grand Canyon.

Here is a California Condor. A few years ago there were fewer than 20 left in the wild. Now, after putting them on the endangered species list and human intervention, there are over 200 in the wild. This is one of them. Condors are a type of vulture and really ugly.

Until they take flight and then they are amazingly graceful. This one has a wingspan of about 12 feet.
Need a closer view...try this.

How about this? Still too far away? Ok, how about this next photo?

 Yeah.....this is how close this gigantic bird came when it flew over me. It was like a huge

Pterodactyl.  You can see a tag number. If you are close enough to see the number, you can keep up with which ones you have seen before. Because they are endangered, they are tracked carefully.

I know this one is a bit dark and blurry, but really, he did not have to stick his tounge out at me...how rude!


And so we left the Grand Canyon having been thoroughly surprised at the enormity of the sight. I would absolutely come back here and spend more time hiking. Oh by the way, we tried to be more prepared for these hikes and we carried more water, which is good because all over the park there are photos of people who look like they are in wonderful shape and very athletic who died hiking the Grand Canyon. Happy thought.