Grand Canyon Day
June 17, 2022 - Reading time: 10 minutes
I woke up at 4:30 this morning, too excited to fall back asleep. Breakfast at the hotel didn’t begin until 6:30. We were first in line to grab eggs and pancakes and then we were off!
We arrived at the National Park entrance before 8:00 with only 2 cars ahead of us. There are several parking areas near the visitor’s center, so we opted for the exact spot as the night before so we’d remember where we were, knowing the lots would fill up by day’s end. Our goal was to hike the South Rim Trail, a 2.5 mile, mostly paved and flat path with several lookout spots. It begins at Mather’s Point, which allowed us to see how different the same area of canyon looked in the full daylight versus the evening before. 
We completed the trail in a few hours time, stopping at each lookout along the way. We were surprised by all the pine and Juniper trees along the path as we both had preconceived notions about The Grand Canyon opening up along the edge of a barren, desert-like terrain. This was not the case. We spied spotted squirrels, ravens and giant California Condors. What a place for them to call home!
With noon approaching, we sat on a shaded bench to enjoy a protein bar and several swigs of our water bottles. The temperature was climbing with us, so we were happy to complete the next section of canyon aboard the free, air conditioned shuttle bus system. This section stretched an additional 14 miles to a place called Hermit’s Rest. There were seven stops along the way and we disembarked at them all.
One of the busiest was Grand Canyon Village, consisting of a few hotels, restaurants and gift shops. We popped into most of them to look around, with the most iconic being The Hopi House, designed in 1905 by renowned architect Mary Colter as a nod to the Hopi natives whose history in the region dates back thousands of years. Their pottery work is nearly as impressive as the canyon with incredible hand sculpted and hand painted details. 
A few hours later, we had hopped on and off the shuttle buses at each and every lookout point along the trail to Hermit’s Rest. All of the views were stunning. Earlier in the morning, James and I noticed a group of hikers descending The Bright Angel Trail to the bottom of the canyon. They were the size of ants in the distance, but from our view point atop we could also easily discern the trail of switchbacks. It’s 8 miles long with an elevation change of 4380 feet. The trail looked reassuringly wider than I expected, but the thought of a return trip back up already had me tuckered out. The Park Service advises that no one should expect or attempt to go round trip in one day.
Speaking of the Park Service, I can’t say enough about how well marked and well kept they have maintained this natural wonder. In 9 hours time we had explored just under 20 miles of trail (a fraction of the canyon’s 227), encountering the most friendly people from park rangers, to ice cream salesmen, to the crew of retired shuttle bus drivers who informed us of historic landmarks and kept the dad jokes flowing throughout the afternoon.
It’s cliche, but true however: photos, paintings, videos…none of the above can do justice to the experience of being there, immersed in the presence of billions of years of rock layers and hearing the wind whooshing through the walls and flora. Two applications of sunscreen and several water bottle refills later we were wiped, but in the best possible manner. We drove away from the parking lot full of fresh air, sunshine and the wonder of what millions of years had accomplished at a magical place on planet Earth. 
We returned to the hotel sun-swept and tired, but also hungry! Turns out the little town of Williams, Arizona, smack dab on Rte. 66, has some cozy local places to grab a bite. A few wood fired pepperoni pizza slices and a glass of white wine later, consumed on an outdoor patio in the coolness of the early evening off Main Street, was just the ticket to top off one of the most memorable days of our lives. 