The Grand Canyon Experience!

The Triceritops



Mushroom Tents of Many Colors



We set aside two days for out Grand Canyon experience spending two nights in Williams, Arizona instead of spending one night in Flagstaff and then going on to Williams. We were glad that we made this change in our itinerary as we were pretty tired after going through the Painted Desert. We found the Koa Campgrounds about half mile from the interstate and happily realized this campground was the find a perfect site only a short walk to the bathroom and showers. So we set up our tent in record time and checked the camp out. This Koa had a restaurant for breakfast and dinner, a large indoor pool, a theater to show movies, and a stage for entertainment. There were plenty of showers which were clean and well kept. Finally, there were running trails up the mountain that would be a joy to attack after a long ride. We were determined to work out every day and I brought my weights and exercise bands as well as my jump rope, but running outdoors or swimming laps have always been our first choice of fitness.

We set up our campsite among many dome tents and it looked like a colorful mushroom city from the Wizard of Oz. Our "Triceratops" seemed to fit right in. We then went into the town of Williams a small cowboy town. We passed under the large archway that pronounced, "The Gateway to the Grand Canyon." It was clear that many people there had been or were going to the Grand Canyon and this little town was making the most of getting the business with many quaint restaurants, curio shops, and gas that sold for $4.30 a gallon! We were interested in some kind of a sports bar to find out who was ahead in the U.S. Open so, we went into Poncho McGuillecudy's Mexican Restaurant. We ordered our meal and were surprised that it was the best Mexican food since eating at Pedros in Los Gatos.

As we were ready to leave, John asked the couple behind us for directions to the Canyon since we were planning to go first thing in the morning. As we got to talking we found out that Scott grew up in the bay area and knew some of our best friends. Small world! Both Scott and Sandy were teachers and liked to travel during the summers. They were about ten years younger and were still teaching, Bob teaching Special Ed. and Sue was teaching Kindergarten. They enjoyed their jobs but were not happy about the system and had plans to change things. He came into teaching after being a policeman and Sue had been working the computer field with Atari when it first materialized as a game computer in schools. They too were writing a blog and so we exchanged e-mails and blogs so we could stay in touch.

Early the next morning after breakfast at the Camp Diner were made our way up the hill for the drive to the canyon and soon we were joined by tour busses, cars of every description, motorcycles, and even bicycles. It was about a fifty mile drive with little to see until we got near the canyon. Then we saw hotels and a regular village adding to this all the building that harbored the welcome center and gift shops. The south rim if the canyon was definitely suited for tourism. Judging from all the different nationalities of people there, the sight was popular all over the world. Several groups were accompanied by their own guides and spoke in their language explaining about different attractions. We followed the group in the welcome center and went in to see the prepared film that would set the stage for us when we made our way around the rim. It was very enlightening to find out how the canyon configuration came about and to power of the Colorado River as it carved the canyon revealing for us the thousands of years of layers of rock. The fact is that this natural phenomenon is presented like an open book for everyone to see and examine. People see it on many levels. To some it is a challenge to scale down its path and reach the river. To others it is the beauty of the ever changing colors as different light shines its colors, so artist and photographers study the canyon in different lights. To geologists it is a wonder to explore its many types of rock and how they accumulated throughout the billions of years our Earth has gone through change.

On top of the world!

John and I left to explore the rim. If we were younger or planned for the altitude change, we might have wanted to scale down Angel's Path but we were not prepared for it. Our young friends from New York back at our campsite spent the previous day hiking down the Kobab path which was more difficult and they noted that it was not a piece of cake. It was very narrow and a steep drop to the side. So we decided that was not for us at least on this trip. We went around the rim and observed the unbelievable rock formations below and took pictures that would never do justice to natural light. We followed the billion year walk that would take us close to the end of the rim and touched the different rock samples along the path. My father, a mining engineer, imprinted on such the love of rocks as he had a wonderful collection and loved explaining about them as if they were real living things. Seeing the many samples and where they were in the canyon each telling their stories, they seemed a part of the living planet that we must learn to preserve.

Another group of people that feel the same way about the canyon are the Navaho Indians who live near the canyon. The Navaho House stands near the end of the rim walk. In it is their beautiful artistry in their jewelry, basketry, and clothing. Their spokesman presented us with the importance of the natural world and how the Navahos believe it as a sacred part of life. They presented us with their dances and being a teacher of dance of other cultures through the IB program; I was fascinated by the beauty of the choreography and the style and measured rhythms of their dances. The first dance presented was the dance of the hunt. They presented this dance as the Navahos do it and also the variations as done by the Utes and the Piute's. The second dance added girl dancers and they did the dance of the basket. This dance showed how the basket is used and the importance of it in everyday life. These baskets are woven with such perfection and they can even hold water. Finally, the spokesman asked his parents to come and dance. As the elderly couple walked on the stage with great dignity, they performed a movement dance with the father moving about in sprite jumping steps while the mother moved in a slow repetitive touch-step sequence with beautiful straight posture and elegance. To end the program the narrator emphasized how important it was to make sure the young never forgot about their Indian heritage as well as the importance of the natural world such as the Grand Canyon.

By the time the sun was starting to set we were enriched with so much natural beauty that we set for home to our campsite fulfilled with our experience at having seen such a great Wonder of our World.