Road to Paradise: Grand Canyon, AZ: a worldly wonder

After a much needed night of relaxing in Phoenix, we trekked over to Phoenix International Airport to pick up our wonderful mother. Our mom has wanted to see the Grand Canyon her whole life, and since we took her car, we couldn't object to her tagging along for this portion (kidding, we couldn't have been more excited to have our mom with us)! A short 4 hour drive north and we were face-to-face with one of nature’s most beautiful and amazing feats.

Thanks for taking over the driving, Mom!

The first view of the rim

After getting an uncomfortable night sleep thanks to the some poorly located rocks and sticks, we took off to hike Kaibab Trail, a 3 mile path down into the canyon. What is tricky about hiking the Grand Canyon is that hiking down is easy, it is the hike back up that hurts. “Hiking down is voluntary. Hiking back up is mandatory,” was a motto we saw posted frequently throughout the Canyon. The views from within the Caynon are unbelievable, the colors and vastness is semi-overwhelming.

Don't fall off the edge!

Our lunch destination

One thing we learned very quickily is that July is not the ideal time of year to visit the Canyon. From about 11am to 4pm it is too hot to hike and almost every afternoon and evening there is a very high probability of rain since it is monsoon season. So we spent the mornings doing our outdoor activities and afternoons visiting the many musuems, information centers, and taking some much needed naps.

Day Two started with a 3 hour mule ride through the forested areas of the Canyon. Mule riding dates back to the Canyon’s early years as a vacation destination. Our mules - Zug Zug, Maude, and Charlie (who only had two speeds, slow and slower) – were wonderful, albeat slightly smelly, guides. We then spent the afternoon visiting the historic village of the Grand Canyon and went on a short walk to year 900 year-old pictograms (drawings painted onto the stones). After a delicious dinner, thanks to the Maladra’s trusty camping stove, we worked our way back to the Canyon to catch the sunset. Unfortunately, everybody else in the Canyon had the same idea, so it was pretty crowded. While we did not have the best spot, seeing the sun set behind the Canyon is a sight not to be forgotten.

Yup, this happened.

You can't tell from here but we are looking at ancient Native American pictographs

Enjoying our afternoon hike

Makin' dinner

This elk was always grazing right near our campsite!

Grand Canyon at dusk

Reflection of the sunset on the canyon

Amazing view

On Day Three we decided to rent bicycles and ride the entirety of the South Rim. Riding bicycles is one of the best ways to see the rim because you can cover so much more ground than hiking or shuttle buses allow. During our ride, we found a few less crowded viewing points that provided breathtaking views of the Canyon.

Admiring the views

Being our last night, we wanted to catch the sunset one last time, however a fairly threatening thunderstorm was moving quickly through the Canyon and after we were told the road was closing, our survival instincts and fear of getting struck by lighting forced us back onto the shuttle. Moments later, the sky opened up – luckily we were safe and dry on the shuttle.

The beginnings of a sunset in the rain

Because we never caught the full sunset, we woke up at the crack of dawn (4:35am to be exact) to see the sunrise. It was so beautiful and the colors or the sky and Canyon made waking up that early totally worth it.

Sun salutations yoga at sunrise

After four nights in a tent, with dirt, sweat, and the smell of mules layered on our skin, we were all very VERY excited for our fancy hotel in Scottsdale. Relaxing by the pool, being served fresh fruit on the hour, unlimited hot showers, we could definitely get used to this life. A delicious meal and live music topped off our night and after the week of hiking, biking, mule riding, we were completely exhausted and ready for bed at 9pm. And so came the conclusion of our Grand Canyon adventure!