Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

While we have visited the Grand Canyon at least twice before this trip, we have never hiked in the park. Since we have a few days to "kill" before Thanksgiving celebrations with friends in Lake Havasu City, we stop at this world-renowned destination to fulfill that wish, even though temperatures plummet. The Grand Canyon is at almost 7,000 feet and a cold snap with strong winds comes in the day we arrive. Temps drop to 23F overnight and only about 45F during our first day here (as you'll see from the photos of our hike on the South Kaibab Trail how bundled up we are), but thankfully rise after that to a pleasant 65F during the day and only around 40F at night. Thankful for our propane heater in the trailer.

South Kaibab Trail Hike

South Kaibab Trail Switchbacks The South Kaibab Trail leads down to the Colorado River, about one vertical mile below the rim on the canyon floor. You can hike down this trail and come up the Bright Angel Trail (another rim to river trail), or vice-versa or down and back up, but it requires a backcountry permit and a tent because you're staying overnight! The beginning of the trail is steep, hence these switchbacks.

Mule riders coming up the South Kaibab Trail This is simply cheating in my opinion. According to park staff, there has never been a fatality involving these sure-footed animals. The mules are purchased from approved suppliers when they are young and trained for 9 months. Those mules who successfully complete training work for 20 years before they are retired. An adoption program is available for retired mules and, believe it or not, there are more applications to adopt than mules. Nice to know they are well treated.

Mules packing out gear from the Phantom Ranch The Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon has closed for the season and these mules are bringing all the gear up. The ranch accommodates hikers and rafters.

Brad and I posing at Ooh Ahh Point Ooh Ahh Point (yes, it's really called that) is as far as we go down the trail, only one mile, but we don't expect the views to get better as we descend further. And there's always that climb back up. While this is our coldest day at the Grand Canyon, the wind hasn't found its way down into this part of the canyon and we're pretty warm with the sun shining. It's a lot colder up on the rim with 30 mph winds blowing.

Squirrel at Ooh Ahh Point Some of the local wildlife at Ooh Ahh Point. He's quite the poser and a bit of a beggar. Most injuries in the park are due to wildlife bites from people feeding them.

Brad enjoying the view at Ooh Ahh Point Another gorgeous view from Ooh Ahh Point.

The South Rim

Can you see the tiny people near top left? After hiking the South Kaibab Trail, we decide to hike back to the Visitor Center along the Rim Trail, about 1-2 miles. This is a view of Mather Point (which is near the Visitor Center) from the Rim Trail.

The Bright Angel Fault/Canyon That chasm from the middle to the top of the photo on the right side is the Bright Angel Fault looking towards the North Rim. The Bright Angel Trail is probably the most popular hiking trail in the park. The North Rim is about 1,000 higher than the South Rim, making it colder although snow hasn't fallen yet. The North Rim will close within a couple of weeks, by the first of December.

Finally a view of the Colorado River from Pima Point. A fantastic shuttle bus system takes visitors all over the park since it's such a busy, crowded park and parking vehicles would become impossible. Visitors can park at the Visitor Center and take the shuttle almost anywhere - to the campgrounds, shops, train station, hiking trails, geology museum, and rim overlooks. This part of the park (from the Village Transfer Route to Hermit's Rest) is one of the few routes that allows no other vehicles at all; shuttle buses only. This system, implemented in many busy parks, gives us a break from driving and time to enjoy the views. Conveniently, shuttles run every 10-20 minutes all day long.

We're so happy we finally get to hike in the Grand Canyon, Arizona's jewel. Next, we head west to spend Thanksgiving with friends in Lake Havasu City (elevation 600 feet instead of 6,000, so my head and lungs will be happy!) I won't be blogging about that, but be assured there will be a lot of eating, drinking, swimming, spa soaking, and general fun! My Facebook friends have already seen it!

Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona

Numerous times we have wanted to visit Canyon de Chelly (pronounced de Shay), but it has been snowing or too cold every time we were in the area. So we are excited for the unusually warm fall this year when we are passing through northeast Arizona on our way to Lake Havasu City for Thanksgiving.

Located on the Navajo Indian Reservation, this national monument is sacred to the natives who live here. The canyons are still inhabited by a few Navajo families following the old traditions. This gorgeous viewpoint at Antelope House Overlook shows Canyon del Meurto (Canyon of Death) on the left and Black Rock Canyon to the right.

The Antelope House ruins, built at the bottom of the Canyon de Chelly. While there are many side canyons, Canyon de Chelly and Canyon del Muerto are the two main canyons of the park.

Following the North Rim Drive along Canyon del Muerto there are three overlooks. The first is Antelope House, and the second is Mummy Cave shown here. This is one of the largest ruins in the canyon believed to have been occupied until 1,300 AD.

The final overlook on the North Rim is Massacre Cave, which has a brutal history. In 1805, about 115 Navajo thought they would be safe from a group of Spanish military by hiding in this cave. But when they were discovered, the Spaniards opened fire from the rim, killing everyone on the ledge. Their refuge became a death trap.

From the South Rim, a view of the White House ruins, built and occupied about 1,000 years ago. The name comes from the white plaster wall in the upper dwelling.

The White House Trail is the only access into the canyon and ruins without a native guide. The trail is not difficult and is only 2.5 miles round-trip, although it descends about 600 feet into the canyon, and of course 600 feet back up. Many horses roam through the canyons.

White House from inside the canyon. Brad is pictured with Sam, a young girl from Texas who asks if she can hike this trail with us since she is traveling alone and a bit nervous hiking into the canyon by herself. Of course, we are happy to have her along.

Just a beautiful shot of the cottonwood trees along the dry creek at the White House ruins.

Spider Rock is at the end of the South Rim Drive. The spires climb 800 feet from the canyon floor.

Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Only 3 hours from Moab, Utah in the southwest corner of Colorado, we take a quick side trip to Mesa Verde National Park.

The park and the ruins are over 1,000 feet above the valley. The Mancos Mountains are snow-capped, and it is much cooler here. The highest elevation in the park is over 8,400 feet. Mesa Verde contains some of the best preserved cliff dwellings in the world built by ancient pueblo people, the Anasazi, who populated the Colorado Plateau starting about 1,500 years ago until about 800 years ago.

Of over 4,500 archeological sites, only 600 are cliff dwellings, like this most famous ruin, Cliff Palace. Unfortunately tours have ended for the season and that's the only way to get a closer look. During off-season, only the rim drives are open with overviews of most of the ruins.

It is mind-boggling to imagine how the Anasazi accessed these homes. Many dwellings have evidence of toe and finger holds carved into the cliff walls. While these incredible builders lived in this area for 700 years, no one knows what caused them to leave in about 1,200 AD, but the cliff dwellings have been vacant since that time.

Near the very informative museum is Spruce Tree House. Mesa Verde NP also contains numerous sites of pit houses built on top of the mesas, but the cliff dwellings are the most intriguing. Pit houses and villages were built prior to the cliff dwellings, but were dangerous places, many succumbing to fires.

Moab, Part 3 - More Great Stuff around Moab, Utah

Still in the Moab area, we find some beautiful places to explore outside of Arches National Park. We don't really even venture into Canyonlands National Park as we spent a full week hiking here a few years ago. And there's so much other new stuff to do and see around here...

Highway 128 along the Colorado River

Castle Valley - The Priest and Nuns We take the La Sal Mountain Loop Road just south of Moab. The views above the city are beautiful, but the photos are not as they're into the sun. This view of the rock formation called the Priest and Nuns in Castle Valley at the end of the loop drive is the best from our day.

Morning Glory Natural Bridge An easy, 4-mile hike up Negro Bill Canyon (aka Grandstaff Canyon) leads to Morning Glory Natural Bridge. Its huge expanse is hard to capture in a single photo.

The beautiful Colorado River A beautiful resort with at least 50 cabins along the Colorado River near Castle Valley. Some cottonwood trees are still bright yellow, contrasting with the red rock.

Potash Road and the Shafer Trail

Brad overlooking the Colorado River We spend a full day driving Potash Road from Moab. Here's Brad at Thelma and Louise Point, technically called Fossil Point for its marine fossils found in the rocks 1,000 feet above the Colorado River.

Thelma and Louise Point The final scene of the movie, Thelma and Louise, was shot here. The car was ejected over the cliff just beyond the promontory in the middle of this photo.

Me overlooking a tributary along Potash Road We started our drive on Potash Road in Moab just before lunch, and stopped to enjoy the views so often that it is getting dark by the time we get to the spot where it intersects with the Shafer Trail leading us back up to Canyonlands National Park and our campsite on Dubinky Well Road. This tributary, when there's water, falls about 400-500 feet over this smooth, rocky waterfall and joins the Colorado River just around the corner.

As we ascend the steep switchbacks of the Shafer Trail, it's fully dark and we are surprised by a group of bighorn sheep who run across the road in front of the truck and disappear over the cliff's edge.

The switchbacks of the Shafer Trail On another day, we start down the Shafer Trail late in the morning to retrace our drive backwards towards Potash Road since it was dark when we finished that previous drive and we missed some great views. These are some of the switchbacks that descend the steep cliff and lead to Potash Road and the White Rim Trail, the latter a 100-mile dirt road that follows the rim above the Colorado and Green Rivers, and is a popular backcountry 3-4 night trip for cyclists.

Panorama at the Gooseneck on Potash Road We have lunch at the Gooseneck below Dead Horse Point State Park and spend a couple of hours just enjoying the view and soaking up the sun. The road (Potash Road at this point) is fairly well travelled by all types of vehicles although parts of the road from here to the Shafer Trail are fairly rough.

Fisher Towers and Onion Creek

Climber at Fisher Towers About 20 miles east of Moab on Highway 128 is the Fisher Towers trailhead and small campground. This trail is popular not only with hikers but also climbers. There are several climbing routes in this rocky ridge, but this one seems to be the most popular.

A bigger view of the rock ridge. Note the formation being climbed in the previous photo is the second "peak" from the left. The hike is fairly easy (if you're not afraid of heights), but longer than it looks as the trail follows the canyons created by erosion - in and out, in and out. From the viewpoint at the end of the trail, the parking lot is barely one mile away as the crow flies. We have hiked 2.2 miles. Oh well, the views make the trail worthwhile.

Brad overlooking Onion Creek Below Brad is Onion Creek Road, which we drive on another day trip. It's a lovely drive through the canyon, then through and above Fisher Valley, eventually climbing North Beaver Mesa and looping back to the highway through Castle Valley.

This dinosaur trackway is not advertised on our map so is a nice surprise to find along Polar Mesa Road just before we descend into Castle Valley. There are numerous tracks found in this location with a short interpretive trail, and fabulous views of Bull Canyon and Fisher Valley if you follow the social trail along the rim.

Moab, Part 2 - Arches National Park, Utah

Barely a few miles north of the town of Moab, Utah is Arches National Park. It is one of five national parks in southern Utah; not the biggest nor the smallest; certainly one of the most visited; and one where it is fairly easy to see the incredible red sandstone formations southern Utah is known for. It has one of the highest concentration of naturally formed arches in the world.

Me standing beneath Delicate Arch Delicate Arch is probably the most iconic symbol of Utah, and is used in many publications and tourism brochures. The hike to the arch is considered difficult with a pretty steep climb up the sandstone rock, an elevation gain of 480 feet and a narrow ledge to traverse in the last few hundred feet.

Balanced Rock Balanced Rock is visible from the main road through the park, although a short trail circumnavigates its base. The La Sal Mountains (unusual to have so little snow on the peaks in late October) make a majestic background.

The jumbled maze of Fiery Furnace This is Fiery Furnace as seen from a distance. The eroded fins create a maze of passageways with towering walls on each side. Ranger-guided hikes through the Furnace have ended for the season, so we purchase a permit (it is the only area in the park requiring a permit other than for overnight backpacking) and attempt to navigate it on our own.

Me standing inside the tiny arch Somehow, we stumble across this tiny arch in one of the dead-end passages of Fiery Furnace, but we never manage to penetrate into the interior of this maze. Next time, we will hire a private tour guide, or return during guided tour season as our hiking day is a bit disappointing.

(L) South Window; (R) North Window The North and South Windows from the backside on the Primitive Trail. These windows are huge; if you look closely, you can see people standing in North Window on the right.

Me standing inside the North Window A view of Turret Arch taken through the North Window, again from the backside where few people wander.

Ok, Brad's almost invisible because he's wearing blue! Brad standing inside one of the arches of Double Arch, also in the Windows Section of the park. (Brad is standing in the bottom right corner of the arch at the bottom left.)

Along the short hike in Park Avenue, so named as the canyon resembles the famed New York street lined on both sides with towering buildings. These are nature's skyscrapers.

Me in the bottom arch with a view of Colorado in the top arch Arches National Park has many other beautiful arch formations which we've seen on previous trips, like Double-O Arch near the end of the Devils Garden Trail. This photo is from our trip in 2009, pre-retirement.

Another photo from our 2009 trip of Landscape Arch, which we think should be called Delicate Arch because it's so thin. Only a few years ago, a huge chunk of rock fell from the underside on the right.

Moab, Part 1 - With Friends, Utah

Southern Utah - our favourite place on earth! How can we resist spending some time here, especially with friends Nancy and Dave, and new friends Dori and Ken. Two national parks are nearby - Arches and Canyonlands - as well as several other remarkable hikes and views. We spend only the first four days of our three week stay in Moab with our friends before they continue on their previously planned journey.

Corona Arch

The train "tunnel" at the beginning of the hike along Potash Road outside of Moab.

Dave (top), Nancy, Ken, Dori, me and Brad Here we all are posing at the one small ladder to climb along the hike to the arch which is behind us. On the left of the photo, you can see a pothole.

Corona Arch Four of us contemplating the sheer size of the arch. See the couple hugging on the right? He has just proposed to her and their dog is waiting so patiently while they are locked in this embrace for at least 5 minutes, maybe even 10. How romantic.

Spring Canyon Road

Overlooking Spring Canyon from the top of the steep road that leads down into the canyon and to the Green River.

Driving down Spring Canyon Road Most of the fun is driving these roads. They are narrow, only allowing 2 cars to pass in a few spots. They are rugged, built on the edges of the steep canyon walls. Like I said - fun!

Mineral Bottom Road to Moses & Zeus

Nancy, Dave, me and Ken hiking out to Moses and Zeus (Dori must be behind Brad the photographer). The two tall spires ahead of us are the aptly-named formations.

A view of Taylor Canyon looking towards the parking area from the base of Moses and Zeus. Ken, Dori and I are about to make our way across the narrow ridge near the bottom left.