On Monday, we returned to the Canyon on our own and traveled the rim from east to west. Our day began at "Desert Vista" where we climbed to Watchtower and got our first glimpse of the Colorado River.
Making our way west, we stopped at several vista points; and, at Grandview (the former location of one of the first hotels at the Canyon) we hiked down into the Canyon about a quarter-mile (I thought it was more
like a half-mile, especially on the trip back up, but my family is convinced it was the shorter distance!).
like a half-mile, especially on the trip back up, but my family is convinced it was the shorter distance!).
We hopped on the Shuttle Bus back in the Village, as it's the only way to get to the western side of the Rim Trail. Here are few picture highlights from that end of the Canyon:
We broke camp and hit the road. Including today's drive, we've traveled 784 miles (344 mi. from home to Barstow; 315 mi. from Barstow to Williams, AZ).
Today was a short drive, but we had a number of fun stops along the way, beginning with Walnut Canyon, a National Monument just east of Flagstaff that is an amazing display of Indian cave dwellings.
http://www.nps.gov/WACA
http://www.nps.gov/WACA
After exploring Walnut Canyon, we continued East to Meteor Crater, a 4,000 ft. diameter crater created about 50,000 years ago. http://www.meteorcrater.com/
Then we continued west, and couldn't resist a stop to take pictures "Standin' on a Corner in Winslow, Arizona."We then rolled on to our final destination of the day, our campground in Holbrook, AZ.
Day 6, Wednesday, June 17th
We had quite an adventure on this day. Our intention was to spend the day exploring the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, which we did. However, getting there was half the fun. You may recall our navigation unit that couldn't find our first campground. Well, it played a role in the story. We plugged in "Petrified Forest" and were pleased when the unit "found" our desired destination. We were a little surprised at the direction it recommended, but we 
knew there were two entrances to the park, and we just figured it was taking us to the one at the far end. The highway signs clearly said that the Forest was 10 miles ahead, but the nav unit instructed us to exit. We did, and it put us on a frontage road for about 5 miles. Okay. Slower, but okay.
knew there were two entrances to the park, and we just figured it was taking us to the one at the far end. The highway signs clearly said that the Forest was 10 miles ahead, but the nav unit instructed us to exit. We did, and it put us on a frontage road for about 5 miles. Okay. Slower, but okay. Then the road turned and there was a sign "Pavement Ends." Feeling adventurous, and noting that the road was so well graveled and driven that it was very nearly paved, we decided to see where the nav unit would take us. The scenic route, we hoped. There wasn't much scenery other than vast, flat fields, but we did see an antelope, which was cool. There were a couple other vehicles on the road, so we weren't too worried. However, the nav system led us to cross a railroad crossing. There was a train passing, and 
there was also a Santa Fe Railroad truck waiting at the crossing. We talked to a very kind gentleman who chuckled when we told him that our nav system had directed us this way, and he pointed across the road and told us that the Forest was just across the tracks but that "we couldn't get there from here"! So we turned around, retraced our steps and followed the highway signs. (Later in the park, we found the access road that led to the RR tracks, and it was marked "authorized vehicles only"! So I suppose we could have continued and entered the park; although it was probably best to do so through the front gate.).
there was also a Santa Fe Railroad truck waiting at the crossing. We talked to a very kind gentleman who chuckled when we told him that our nav system had directed us this way, and he pointed across the road and told us that the Forest was just across the tracks but that "we couldn't get there from here"! So we turned around, retraced our steps and followed the highway signs. (Later in the park, we found the access road that led to the RR tracks, and it was marked "authorized vehicles only"! So I suppose we could have continued and entered the park; although it was probably best to do so through the front gate.).The Petrified Forest was amazing. We attended a ranger program that all
owed us to go off of the trail and look for fossils and other interesting items. Then we drove through the park, stopping at designated points to walk through the Forest, see Indian ruins and examine petroglyphs. We completed the day with a drive through the Painted Desert. http://www.nps.gov/pefo
owed us to go off of the trail and look for fossils and other interesting items. Then we drove through the park, stopping at designated points to walk through the Forest, see Indian ruins and examine petroglyphs. We completed the day with a drive through the Painted Desert. http://www.nps.gov/pefo
1 comment:
We enjoyed your posting and your Christmas 09. It’s been a long time since we havr seen you.
Rita & Joe
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