The Grand Canyon, Day Four of my Southwest Road Trip.

After spending the day exploring Arches National Park and spending a second night in Moab it was back on the road well before dawn. My next goal was Grand Canyon National Park. On the way I drove through some fascinating scenery, at least it looked like it after the sun finally came up.

On the way the road was long and lonely. Much of the drive was through the Navajo Nation.

Just before I hit the Arizona state line I got my views of Monument Valley including this shot from “Forest Gump Hill”. Fans of that movie will remember the scene.

Time was of the essence so I snapped a couple of quick photos from the turnouts and headed to my real destination.

I rarely take photos of the entrance signs to the various parks I visit. Usually there’s a crowd of tourist posing in front of them so I skip it. Coming in the east entrance of Grand Canyon National Park, I was surprised that the turnout was empty so I said what the hell, why not.

Once I used my America the Beautiful pass to enter the park I stopped at what is called First View. Here at the bottom of the canyon is the mighty Colorado River. In much of the rest of the canyon the river is not visible from the rim.

The collection of tourist facilities at the east end of the park is called Desert View. The National Park Service has constructed some very interesting buildings in the southwest style including this watch tower. As to be expected the place was very busy and it took some creative camera angles to get shots without tourist milling all around. I used the facilities and headed west on Desert View Road to find less crowded views.

The first few turnouts had lots of folks checking the views. It took a little jockeying to get a parking spot in a couple of them. The views were nice though.

Looking across the canyon I believe the formation that looks like a small volcanic cone is Cedar Mountain.

Heading west the canyon gets deeper and the rim becomes less desert like.

To be honest the views all start to look a lot a like after two of three stops. The Grand Canyon is impressive but I was looking for a little more solitude.

At one of the turn outs, I had a nice view towards the south away from the canyon. In the distance are the highest mountains in Arizona near Flagstaff including the tallest peak in the state, Humphrey’s Peak.

At Navajo, Lipan and Moran Points, spur roads lead to parking areas. Away from the main park road, I was able to walk off trail along the rim to a few view points without company and enjoy the views unbothered.

The harsh conditions on the South Rim causes the vegetation to become stunted and twisted. Most of the trees are either pinion pines of junipers.

When I walked away from the turnouts and found my own views the only company I had was of the avian variety.

A couple of scenic turnouts had trailheads for hikes that lead down in to the canyon. I wasn’t interested. Climbing a mountain is one thing. The hardest part comes first and then you have the reward of a commanding view. Going down in to a big hole and then having to climb back out to where you were anyway to enjoy the view seems like a waste of effort and time.

Heading west the park road passes through a very beautiful open pine forest. I came across a herd of elk being harassed by dozens of turons. I refused to take part in the circus. and instead continues to Grandview and Shoshone Points.

It was a nice day to enjoy the views. I was glad I wasn’t the only one doing so.

Nearing the park headquarters I parked at the Pipe Creek Vista and walked on the Rim Trail to the Kaibab Trailhead where another trail leads down in to the canyon. The road to the trailhead is closed to private vehicles and access is either by hiking of the park shuttle buses.

I returned to the Pipe Creek Vista and followed the Rim Trail to Mathers Point. It was the nicest walk I came across in my short visit. It is amazing how few people will walk more than a couple hundred feet from their cars.

Part of the trail passed through an area that experienced a wildfire a couple of decades ago. Forest recover very slowly in this type of environment. The habitat looked very much like scrublands I was familiar with in Central Florida.

At Mather Point which is right next to the visitor center I encountered hoards of tourist again so I turned around and enjoyed the one and a half mile hike back to my car. On the way I noticed this rock feature. Kind of looks like the head of a griffin to me.

The shadows were starting to lengthen and I still had a long drive to Flagstaff.

After taking one last picture from the canyon rim, I drove through Grand Canyon Village before I left the park. I was not impressed. It was over built and crowded.

The Grand Canyon is a very beautiful place and has always been on my bucket list. The views are outstanding and the scenic drive is amazing. However like most national parks there are always crowds. I’m very glad I finally saw the place but truth be told I’d rather find another hidden gem to explore than to return here.

All together I probably walked less than five miles in the park. If I do go back again I would definitely take advantage of the efficient mass transit system in the park in order to have time for a longer one way hike. The Rim Trail between Kaibab and Mather Points was the highlight.

I made the last hour of my drive to Flagstaff in complete darkness including going over an eight thousand foot pass at the base of Humphrey’s Peak with my low fuel light glowing. I was very relieved to get back to civilization. Driving through Flagstaff I was surprised how dark the city was. Outdoor lighting was minimal. I later learned this is because of the close proximity of Lowell Observatory.