debtimsadventure

Grand Canyon was the fourth National Park we visited on our excursion. In visiting the five Parks , it was amazing how different each one was. I had heard how huge the Grand Canyon is, depth, width and length. But seeing it in person, I realized that what I imagined was not even close to the enormity of it. I know why it is named the Grand Canyon. Grand indeed. Winding, deep, long, and breathtaking along its route. It is 277 miles long and up to 10 miles wide. I never thought about just how large the canyon itself is. Enormous.

One stop along the way in the Park is known as the Desert View Watchtower. From here on I will refer to it as The Tower. Climbing the stairs in the Tower was in itself a visual treat. Each staircase and floor has artwork etched into the walls. These are the work of Hopi artist Fred Kabotie and artist Fred Geary. Fred Kabotie is a well known artist in the Hopi Nation. The view from each floor was wonderful. While we were at times looking at the same panorama as a previous floor, it seemed different because of the height we were now at, and the changing colors as the sun hit the sides of the canyon. I am convinced that nature is the ultimate artist.

While on our month long trip, we often had mentioned that the amount of wildlife that we encountered was very limited. Squirrels, birds. and one mule deer was what we had seen. Renee kept saying that she wanted to see elk, and it almost became a joke to us. We would call out the windows of our van for elk to show themselves. Never happened. But, finally, as we were very close to the gate of the Grand Canyon on our way out, ELK!! It is rutting season, and we came across two different gangs. The bulls had enormous racks of antlers, and stood guard over their ladies while seemingly being comfortable with humans taking pictures. We were a safe distance away, so we were not a threat to the elk. We thought it best to not be included in any newscasts about elks attacking people. So you won’t find us on the local news or any “Film at 10”!

We spent many hours visiting Grand Canyon National Park, and it just seemed to go on forever. It really is a remarkable sight, and one that none of us will probably ever forget. I have one park left to share our experiences with you. That will be my next posting, but not my last. One more after that to tell you about some places we visited and one that we stayed in, Cedar City Utah.

Now for some photos of our time at the Grand Canyon. Hope you like them.

The Tower and pictures from within, including the wall artistry I described earlier. The scene inside of the Tower was as amazing as the views of the Grand Canyon from the Tower itself.