Southwest Road Trip - Day Four

Today is the big day, The Grand Canyon! After and early breakfast we begin the 70 mile drive from our Hamton Inn hotel to the south rim. The drive on Highway 180 winds us through the Coconino National Forest, in the shadow of the San Franciso Peaks. We practically had the road to our selves this morning, a beautiful and relaxing drive. The traffic leading into the park was better than the 405 at rush hour, but not exactly delay free either. It took approx 20 minutes of stop and go to get through the entrance. Once inside we were reminded that it was spring break, tons of people and very hard to find a parking spot. After about 30 minutes of driving we found a spot close to one of the shuttle stops. We had a quick lunch of canned pasta and got our hiking gear organized before heading out to the shuttle. We made a pretty big mistake in deciding to take the shuttle around the village rather that walk the 0.3 miles to the rim. We were on a packed bus for almost an hour before we could get off anywhere close to the rim. I have to say the shuttle system in Zion National park is head and shoulders above the one on the south rim.

Finally off the flippin' bus we walked over for the boys first view of the Grand Canyon from the south. The boys were speachless as we walked up to the edge. No matter how many times you see this place, it does get pretty overwelming as you stand there and try to take it all in. It's just SO BIG! There is not a photograph ever taken that really captures the grandure of the canyon. The lighting on this side is much more dynamic than it is on the north rim. We hiked along the rim on for a mile and a half, stopping many times to soak up the sights and take pictures. It's amaizing how few people actually walk along the rim. I'd say it's less than 1 in every 100 or more. Once we arrived at the main village we stopped for a break. Around 5:00pm we set off for the Bright Angel trail. This trail actually takes you down below the rim, eventually going to the Colorado river and back up the other side to the north rim, a 30 mile one way hike. Since the sun was on its way down, we only hiked down about half a mile. The going down as not bad, but quite a bit harder on the way up. An even smaller number of people hike below the rim, we probably saw less than 75 people for the hour we were on the trail. It was a really neat experience, one that I heartily recomend.

Once we arrived back in the village, the boys were pretty tired. We got back to the car and headed out Tusayan the little town just outside the park. There was a cowboy steak house we had noticed on the way in. Alex and I split a plate of steak and ribs while Nik enjoyed an Angus burger and fries. The car was pretty quiet on the 90 minute drive back to the hotel. A long and rewarding day completed.