The Grandest of Canyons

Can you spot the figure?

Well, what a long but fabulous day!

It started at 4:45pm when I had to wake up, grab breakfast and be ready for S to drive me into Vegas to board a coach for a trip to the Grand Canyon. She had a busy day of OU exams ahead of her and I did feel bad making her get up so early but she offered saying it would give her day a kick start! I think she was being very gracious and has definitely earned some brownie points!

The coach journey took five and a half hours, with a couple of very quick stops for restrooms and lunch but it passed amazingly quickly as we travelled from desert, through large hills made up of big boulders, to flatter land with a bit of spasmodic greenery and finally to a hilly landscape complete with tall pines reminiscent of parts of Scotland. I actually found the forested landscape quite a surprise because the driver had told us that we were very near the canyon and it was not until the coach had stopped and I walked a short distance signposted to "the Rim" that my mouth literally dropped open at the sight before me. The land simply fell away for miles ahead of me, stretching north, east and west into an enormous valley studded with the incredible stacks of multi-layered pink rock that is The Grand Canyon. As you may imagine, my camera went into overdrive as I tried to capture the immensity of nature's astonishing work of art.

Towards the end of the allotted time I found a cafe and bought a couple of muffins as the driver had warned that on the return journey he would not be stopping except for a quick re-fuel. I put the muffins down, still complete with their wrapping on, while I sat and took another couple of photos and then I noticed with horror that a grey squirrel was edging up to the muffins with its paw outstretched. Quick as a flash I retrieved them from under his nose remembering too late the driver's warning NOT to feed the squirrels as they could bite! I was lucky and escaped unscathed .... And I did get a photo of the rascal although it wasn't the chosen blip. Instead I wished to try and show those of you who, like me until today, hadn't seen the canyon just how vast it is. Please go large and you will see a figure on the promontory on the left hand side and hopefully this will give you an indication of the enormous scale. Deep down in the valley I just managed to make out a relatively small grey patch, sandwiched between two stacks, which on closer inspection was the Colorado River and it was humbling to realise that it was this same river which had powerfully carved out this incredible landscape over the years when it is in spate following ice melt further upstream.

The journey home was trouble free and it was dark by the time we crossed over the new bridge by the Hoover Dam and the driver slowed down so that we could see it all lit up. S kindly came in to collect me from the drop off point at Planet Hollywood on the Strip and I was home by 10pm. The excursion had been an early birthday present for me from the family - and what a brilliant present it turned out to be.