Grand Canyon , Zion, Bryce
5/31/06
Grand Canyon!!! We made it.
We finally made it to our destination. It has been worth every mile that we have driven. Words cannot describe the views, the feelings, and the wonder of nature.
The RV Park, Trailer Village, is within 1 mile of the rim. There are free shuttle buses that take you to major vantage points to view the canyon.
The camera cannot capture the wonder, beauty, depth or magnitude of this wondrous place.
The next morning, Monday May 22, Kathy and I got up at 3:30am to get to the rim to view the sunrise at 5:18am. It was well worth the loss of sleep. It was a little cool about 45 F with a wind chill to about 35F.
On Tuesday, May 23 we explored the west trails along the rim. We walked about 300 yards below the rim on the Bright Angles Trail. This is the same trail the mules walk to the bottom. No rails, just spectacular views. We then went to the Abyss and walked along the rim for a little over a mile. No people just us and nature and the views.
May 24 drive to Page Arizona (the birthplace of James "Jimmy" Porter)and Lake Powell. Short 140-mile journey. Stopped along the east rim to view the Colorado River from the Watchtower. The Santa Fe Railroad constructed the Watchtower. Then on to the Little Colorado River Gorge. The Gorge is very deep with sheer walls. It is on the eastern edge of the Navajo Reservation. This is a God-forsaken land. Hot and dry and rocky with very little resources to live much less grow crops etc for survival. The Native Americans did not get a good deal. We will spend two nights here and attempt to boat on the Colorado River.
Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Park, Page Arizona May 25, 2006
Had a beautiful day at the Glen Canyon National park on Lake Powell. We took a three-hour boat ride into two of the canyons on the lake.
The lake is the result of the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam. The dam was completed in 1963 and took 17 years to fill the lake behind it.
The lake feeds the Colorado River. The canyons have sheer walls reaching upwards of 500 feet above the surface of the water. The current water level is 100 feet below its high water mark, the white rock face line.
Note the boat at the very center of the photo and that will give you some idea of height of the canyon walls.
This lake is second in size for manmade lakes, falling just behind Lake Meade, which was created by the Hoover Dam. Again the photos cannot capture the beauty, colors or depth of the canyons. There are hundreds of houseboats in the area. One we saw contained 5300 square foot of living space. Lake Powell is 186 miles long and has 1,960 miles of shoreline and 96 major canyons to explore. We only explored two, Antelope Canyon and Navajo Canyon. Tomorrow we visit Zion and Bryce National Parks.
Bryce Canyon National Park Utah, May 26
Bryce Canyon was unique. Red sandstone eroded to resemble drip sand castles at the beach, called Hoodoos.
Note the HooDoos that look like drip sand castles at the beach.
The weather has been great no rain and the temperatures are ion the 70’s. This whole Colorado Plateau, which encompasses the Grand Canyon, Zion, Bryce and other geological formations, was formed some 350 to 400 million years ago. It does not fully register that you are looking at layers of rock, limestone, sandstone and minerals that were a seabed at several different times in their life span. The colors are the result of iron and manganese mixed with dissolved calcium carbonate create the unusually colorful limestone. Dinosaurs roamed some of these layers. It makes one seem so insignificant. Railroads played a big part in the awareness of these parks. The Union Pacific built a spur and the lodge at Bryce in the 1930’s for visitors to come and spend the night just as the Santa Fe Railroad built the spur and lodge at the Grand Canyon.
Zion National Park Utah, May 27
As different as each area is different from the next (Grand Canyon vs. Glen Canyon vs. Bryce), Zion is another very different and beautiful area. It has its own unique features and formations. From the checkerboard sandstone formations of white to the red limestone cliffs and sheer walls to the canyon bottom with the Virgin River
and waterfalls this is perhaps the most varied and beautiful with trees of lush green against the mosaic colors of the formations.
May 28th Sunday, a day of rest
We have taken day of rest between Bryce and Zion. We have stayed at this KOA in Glendale, Utah for three days visiting Bryce and Zion.
Note the HooDoos in the back ground.
Bill and Sandy Agee and Dennis cooking out against the HooDoo background.
Temperatures at this elevation of about 6,500 ft have been pleasant in the upper 60’s and windy at times. At night it drops to the 40’s. Sunday night it was below freezing, 25 degrees F. We sure have experienced a wide variation in temperatures on this trip. Phoenix as you recall was 105 and now to a low of 25.
Coral Pink Sand Dunes and the North Rim of Grand Canyon May 29
Today, Memorial Day we traveled along US 89A from Glendale, UT to Jacob Lake, Az about 100 miles up to an elevation of 8,000 ft. Along the way we stopped at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State park in Utah. Very fine sand coral pink in color.
The dunes do not cover as much acreage as the White Sand Dunes.
Many were running the dunes in their ATV’s. Temperature is about 70 and tonight it is suppose to get down to 22 here at Jacob Lake 30 miles north of the North Rim.
North Rim Grand Canyon, May 30
The drive to the north rim is about 45 miles. The drive is much different than the approach to the south rim. We are actually in Ponderosa and Pinon Pine forests to begin then into a mix of Spruce, Fir and Quacking Aspen. Both sides of this quite highway are lined with large meadows maybe ½ mile wide, up to the forest line. Here independent ranchers raise free-range cattle. Once at the north rim the views are spectacular, though limited compared to the south rim at this vantage point by the lodge.
The valleys seem closer and the formations exhibit lots of green vegetation. We walked to Bright Angel point. You might remember that we walked a portion of the Bright Angel trail on the south rim. The bright Angel trail follows a fault line that created part of the canyon and one can walk the trail from one side to the other given time, energy and desire, not to mention stamina. The hike down and back up is strenuous 7,000 ft to about 3,000 and then back up to 8,000ft. The canyon floor is at a much higher temperature in the upper 90’s to over 100.
These photos are only a sample of the gorgeous views we have experienced. A commemorative CD is available for bargain price of only $24.95 plus shipping and handling. This will help defray the cost of gas, running about $3.00 per gallon on average and getting 8.4 miles per gallon. No problems with the motor home or any of the camp grounds. It is truley the way to see the country, especially out west where we have been. You can go for miles and not see any people or facilities(gas, lodging, food etc)
Now it is on to Holbrook, Az and the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest.
Posted by PopDingle 17:37
