At Grand Canyon

Sing along:

At Grand Canyon at Grand Canyon
You can hike you can hike
Without getting tired without getting tired
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha

This is a song Lorie learned when she visited the Grand Canyon with Randy twenty-three years ago. We sung about being safe at the Grand Canyon as we drove in today. It was very hot and there was an extreme temperature warning in effect. We were not planning on hiking or anything like that, but we had our water, sunscreen, and hats ready for our sightseeing.

We started our day with viewing the IMAX film that is sponsored by National Geographic. We had all seen it before, but Elizabeth was a young child when she saw it and did not remember it at all. It had been several years since Lorie and I had seen it and we both had forgotten a lot. It is very well done and an excellent introduction to the history of the canyon. It really struck me today, thinking about how the first people who saw it must have felt. Here they are, walking through a desert terrain with trees and suddenly, the Grand Canyon. I wonder if they thought they were at the end of the world?

After the IMAX film, we drove into the canyon. There is a free shuttle that takes you around the park to the different locations. It was very busy today, but people were remarkably kind and patient. It was amazing. We rode on the blue line to the Grand Canyon Village where the hotels and restaurants are. From there, we transferred to the red line that takes you along the South Rim, stopping at various locations. Because of the crowd, it took waiting through three buses to get on a red line bus. It was extremely hot (although the buses are air-conditioned), so we decided that I would get off at Powell's Point (where you can transfer to go back) and Lorie and Elizabeth would ride up to the next stop, get off there, and hike back to me - only 3/10ths of a mile. This would let Elizabeth get a little hike and let us all see some of the canyon. When Lorie and Elizabeth came back to me, we would all ride back to the Village and eat lunch.

Our plan worked out fine. We ate lunch at the restaurant at Bright Angel Lodge. Our lunch was excellent and the service was fantastic. We really enjoyed ourselves. By the time we left the canyon, we had been there over six hours - we had not thought we would stay that long, but we did and there were so many more things we could have done.

We drove up the road to Kingman for our last night. We are enjoying the hotel room and talking about the wonderful trip we have had.

Elizabeth just came back from trying to get a snack from the vending machine. As with everything else on this trip, she had an adventure. She put in her first dollar and did not receive anything. She put in her second dollar, pushed the button for a Hershey Bar and got a Twix Bar. She put in another dollar, pushed the button for a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup and got two Milky Way bars. She put in another dollar, pushed the button for an Almond Joy and got a Snickers. Finally, she tried one more time to get a Reese's and she got a package of Hostess donettes. She decided that she had enough snacks for all of us and there had to something there that everyone would like and she returned to the room, snacks in hand and story on her lips!

Henry texted Elizabeth this morning and said, "I miss you. I miss Mom. I miss Auntie. Come home now." Throughout the day, he texted "Will I see you in 24 hours now?" Yes, Henry, you will see us soon.