May 4-5, 2019 Tusayan, Arizona

70's and sunny.

We hiked into a canyon looking for Indian rock art. John on the trail. We didn't find it a first and had a nice hike aways down the canyon. On the way back I decided to explore this overhang. The desert varnish is pretty. 

Then I happened into this overhang. The ceiling is black with cooking fire smoke. These red marks are hand prints. Some sheep that were pecked out the rock and painted, not sure what these two are. 

The rock art was pretty faded, had to look hard to see it. Some grinding holes, some old paint and desert varnish-pretty colors, cool holes in the rocks. Can't really tell what this is but the closer I look it looks like a rabbit. A mound of white flowers and two common buckeye butterflies mating.  

After our hike I relaxed in my hammock and read. I need to do that more often. Sunset from camp looking north.  

Sunset from camp looking southwest. Today we went down another forest service road past lovely Locket lake. 

We located the Arizona trail and hiked a few miles. On the way out we went by Grandview fire tower and climbed it. Those steep see through steps give me the willies. The view from the top of the canyon was worth it.

We stopped at the Tusayan museum and ruins. Around 30 people lived in this pueblo.The museum was interesting. We went to the Desert Tower. This was designed by the same architect Mary Coulter who designed the El Tovar Lodge and Hermits Rest. It is designed to look like indian architecture. 

I love the design in the rocks used to build it. Inside you walk up stairs past indian art and petroglyphs on the walls. It was open in the center to the top. Looking up. 

Some of the native american art on the walls. Looking back down.

The views from the Desert View tower. 

 John Moran pictured at Moran point. It is named after the famous artist Thomas Moran who painted scenes in many of the national parks.  His paintings pushed congress in creating many of the National Parks. A view from Moran point.

Wildflowers seen today. White flower, buckwheat, pink flower and pink phlox. Baby horney toad, a sign saying not to harm the snakes in 5 languages, a garter snake that was on the wall of the desert tower. Elk on the side of the road. 

The Arizona trail goes north and south through the state. Grandview is another entrance to the park from a dirt road. A picture through one of the odd shaped windows in the Desert Tower. 

May 2-3, 2019 Grand Canyon, Arizona

70 degrees and sunny today. We hiked east from the visitors center today to Yaki point, past the South Kaibab trailhead.  Less people on this trail

A lot more people at the Mather overlook today than yesterday. The stables at the Kaibab trailhead. 

This is the South Kaibab trail. Frustrated by years of legal battles over the Bright Angel Trail, the park service  built this in 1924 to provide free access into the canyon.  It is only 7 miles to the bottom, compared to the 10 miles down on the Bright Angel trail. I hiked this one a few times in college and after. Like it better, it is shorter and a lot less crowded. It is best to go down it, and up the Bright Angel. It is very steep with lots and lots and lots of switchbacks.  

A nice view of the Grand Canyon, John waiting patiently for me. 

We had lunch at this lovely point. It was straight down 1,000 + all along the rim trail here. From lunch here is a vista with the trail in the middle. It goes along the top of the ridge, then switch backs down again.  

Yellow mustard flowers,  yes I am loosing it but this pile of droppings looked like a tree to me, yellow sunflower, tortuous branching tree, vetch flowers, and another cool branching juniper tree.  This elk was by the bathrooms at the visitors center, surrounded by people taking it's photo.  Indian paintbrush, larkspur, Long leaf phlox, white phlox and purple mustard flowers.  

Sunset from camp during dinner tonight. The top part of Bright Angel Trail from the view point. 

A sign in 4 languages saying stay away from the edge.  People must not care, hanging off the edge with a 1,000 + foot drop off for photos. Phlox, senico, agave blooms and the Powel Monument. He was the first guy who successfully boated the grand to map it. 

A view of the river from Mohave viewpoint. If you look really close you can see Hermits rapid. Cool looking twisty rocks. 

 Our view from lunch today. Way, way down there is Granite Rapid. A huge, scary rapid. Doesn't look so bad from 5,000 feet above. 

 A big round sundog. Must be lots of moisture in the air, tiny purple flowers, a flowering bush and mallow. Shadows looking good at the end of the day. 

John and I at Hermits Rest. A nice man who did not speak english took it.  Sunset tonight from our dinner table. Love eating outside.

April 30-May 1, 2019 Grand Canyon, Arizona

High 60's, sunny and windy today.

We left the caverns and drove to the edge of the Grand Canyon National Park. We passed through this lovely green country on Route 66. We went through Seligman, the birthplace of historic route 66, the world famous roadkill 66 diner, the famous historic Snow Cap drive in, Route 66 historic  Seligman Sundries, with the end of a plane sticking out the front, Angel and Vilma's Route 66 gift shop. Along the road were many of the Burma Shave ads. This one said Attention Insured, Remember Kiddo, They don't pay you, They pay your widow. Burma Shave. 

Then through Williams. founded 1881, Gateway to the Grand Canyon, Route 66 Grand Canyon Gift shop with a Teepee out front, Williams, the last town bypassed by I-40, route 66  Arizona Motel, Cruisers Cafe 66 bar and grill and Route 66 Diner. Beautiful, historic downtown Williams. 

Here we are boondocking (free camping, no hookups) on forest service land  right outside the Grand Canyon. We will venture in tomorrow. I finished this cute basket. The center is a stone my friend Kat's found on the beach in Oregon with glass copper colored seed beads. The edge is done with the leaves from a ponderosa pine, with glass beads with a copper sheen over the top edge. I am pleased with how it came out.  

Sunset tonight from camp. Today we went to the Grand Canyon  National Park, south rim. The high temp was 59 degrees with a breeze. It is at almost 7,000 feet and again I am not acclimating well to the altitude.

The south rim is very crowded. It amazes me the the number of people who have never seen the grand canyon. John taking a photo.

If you look closely you can see the beginning of the Bright Angel Trail switch backing down.  I went to college in the Flagstaff and we used to hitchhike out here and hike it to the bottom. As we were standing there this guy was saying- look there is that one mile trail down. I had to correct him, it is 10 miles down and a mile (5,200) of elevation change, a very rigorous hike. A woman with him said, well what is down there? Like why bother.  John says the river, and she says well how do you get out?? Hike back out. . . I guess you have to go down into it to understand. The Hopi house. It was built by Fred Harvey to house Hopi Indians to show case their art work and way of life. It is built to look like a pueblo.  Back in the day indians lived here. Now it is a huge gallery and shop of Indian art. 

Looking down toward the Tonto Plateau, it is about half way down. The greenery is Indian gardens, a big campground. We used to camp there. Looking at Lookout Studio build right on the edge. It is a big gift shop and overlook.  

After we overlooked at the Lookout the door knob came off in John's hand. We thought we were locked out, but John got it opened. Looking back at the historic El Tovar lodge on the edge with it's peaked roof. . It was also built by Fred Harvey as a luxury lodge. We went in to the cocktail lounge to have refreshment. We must have been invisible because no one waited on us, so we left. Very lovely building. 

The brown building is Kolb Studio. The Kolb brothers lived there and operated a photography business, guide service  and any thing else that would earn them a living there. There is a museum there now about them. Their photography recorded life at the canyon in the early 1900's. They were very adventurous men. This is near the top of the Bright Angel trail today. Clogged with people taking photos of each other.  A view near the top of the Bright Angel trail where you go through a tunnel. 

The round globe is really a screen they showed a movie about the canyon on it, it looked like it was turning, very cool. The Beautiful  painting is in the El Tovar. The fireplace in the Bright Angel Lodge was designed by Ann Coulter, the famous architect who designed the famous buildings on the rim here. It reflects the natural strata of the Grand Canyon, using rocks from the geological strata in the canyon. I was looking at this elk listening to people saying, it is a mule deer, they are really big. . . I told them it was an elk. It is amazing to me how many people don't know their animals. Guess I was lucky to grow up with them. The beginning of the Bright Angel trail, it says ice, use crampons. A big beetle back at camp. A sign in many languages saying don't feed the squirrels, they carry plague. And an unhappy squirrel that i was not feeding. Another sign saying don't throw coins, the condors eat them and it kills them. A blooming wall flower. 

A picture of my friend Katy and I in the early 70's at the top of the Bright Angel trail. We met in college because she wanted to learn to backpack. We are still friends today and have done many, many backpack trips and much more. Sunset at camp tonight.