November 8
(Wednesday)
A full day of
sightseeing at Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful day with no clouds. A bit cool
(39 F/ 4C) when we got up to the Canyon, but it warmed up through the day. Not
much wind either. Just right for sightseeing!
We stopped at the
Watchtower first as we wanted to get a different perspective with the morning
light versus the afternoon light from yesterday. Honestly, regardless of time
of day or weather conditions there just are no bad pictures of Grand Canyon.
We bypassed most of
the stops we made yesterday as we wanted to get to the Visitor Center at Grand
Canyon Village before the crowds got too big. Even at 9:30 the parking lots
were filling up. And this is a cool November mid-week day. I can't imagine summer.
We looked at the exhibits at the center and then watched a short video on the
history, geology, and people of the region. Went to the gift shop, then more of
a look-see. Saw a very tame elk in the visitor area, and of course lots of
people trying to get pictures and tempting fate by getting a bit too close to
the animal.
A quick lunch back
at the truck then walked to Mather Point. Another breathtaking view of course.
We went back to the truck and drove to Yavapai Point and Geology Museum. Very
nice views and the exhibits in the museum were very informative on the geology
of the canyon. We also listened to a Ranger do a talk on the geology of
the canyon from a less scientific perspective. It was very well done.
We drove into the
heart of the village, and had a brief look around, but parking was at a premium
and we were getting a bit tired of walking around, so after a quick stop for a
coffee we headed out of the touristy part and off towards Cameron.
On the way we
stopped at the Tusayan Museum and Ruins. This was a nice distraction away from
the Canyon and more about the people that lived near the Canyon thousands of
years ago. The site had the remnants of a Puebloan village they believe was
built prior to 1200 AD. The stone structures were living quarters, storage
rooms and the Kiva or ceremonial circular structure. This reminded me a lot of
the villages the Indians of the Pacific Northwest built and that we saw on
Vancouver Island.
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| Yes, I was looking! |
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| Mt Humphries through the smoke. They are doing some prescribed burns in the area. |
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| Museum and gift shop. |
It was almost dusk
when we got back to the campground in Cameron. We had spent a day and a half at
Grand Canyon. Just enough time to see what we wanted to, but not everything
which means a repeat visit is in the future! Tomorrow we head to Flagstaff.
That was Our View From Here......
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