Photographers that we are (
kuno), we decide that we need to take pictures of the Grand Canyon at sunrise. That means we're up at the ungodly hour of 5am (luckily, because of our jet lag, that really meant 8am EDT). Then, since we didn't want to depend on the shuttle schedule and maybe because we were in an adventurous mood, we decide to bushwhack the half mile to the canyon rim from our lodge. It was really fun hiking through a basically unmarked trail, just going in a general direction and following some light trails of other people who had done the same. We hit the rim in about a half hour and start taking in the sunrise:
The weather in the desert can be really surprising since there's a 30 degree difference between the daytime and the nighttime. It was a little nippy that morning and the coffee we brought was just perfect.
After a big yummy breakfast at Yavapai Cafeteria, we take the green bus to South Kaibab Trailhead to start the real hike. On the bus, we meet an elderly couple who are doing the same trail and I start to worry about whether or not I can actually do this.
Na-pressure ako :-). I don't really know what to expect as we start and I see a pretty steep (for me) switchback trail:
We start the twisty, turny (my technical terms) 1.5mi hike down the canyon. We see some really amazing vistas. The standard tourist points can't really compare with the view from inside the canyon:
I have a hard time on the climb down because of the cliffs, especially the part where there was a cliff on both sides. I'd have to stop, close my eyes and will myself to go on because I was so scared of slipping off the cliff. I knew it was irrational but I guess hadn't totally gotten over my skiing accident (I felt the same way about the cliffs while skiing last winter, I think I might need horse blinders :-) ).
We decide that we would turn around at the earlier stop called Ooh-Aah point since I was having such a hard time. We keep hiking down and people coming up tell us that the stopping point is just a few turns ahead. We see mules coming up and start to feel the noontime sun beating down on us:
When we get to the big ledge overlooking the canyon, we see the sign saying we'd actually made it to Cedar Ridge! That's where we had originally planned to go. It turns out that we'd passed the Ooh-Ahh point a ways back already. I felt so good since we didn't have to cut our hike short on account of my scaredy-cat-ness.
Cedar ridge is a pretty cool spot for a break, great views all around, plenty of shade against the noon sun, and even a bathroom, hehe.
There was a raven flying around just asking for pictures, and there was a rescue copter too, which went down the canyon to save a woman who had gotten hurt on the trail. Luckily, she didn't seem too badly hurt.
Looking up from Cedar Ridge, I could see that we had a bit of a height to climb but it didn't feel as scary as the climb down. We just went slowly and steadily and stopped a few times and made it without much ado. It turned out that the climb up was way easier for me than the hike down. Yey, I had made it, even before the elderly couple too!
It's now time to start our drive down to Sedona. But first, we drive across the Grand Canyon on Rt 64 and stop at Lipan point to take a few pics:
Next we start our drive down to Sedona. We see some spectacular views on the way: canyons, forests, deserts and the unexpectedly snowy San Franscisco peaks. The variety of landscapes is just amazing. We even make an unplanned stop at Sunset Crater Volcano and take some great sunset pics. The drive was so interesting that I wouldn't give up the wheel.
We pass through Flagstaff on the way to Sedona and decide to get dinner at Racha Thai at the Monte Vista Hotel where we had initially planned to stay. We take home some duck, extra rice and chopsticks to pack for the hike the next day :-). We then drive to Sedona on 30 miles of dark, scary and very winding mountain road. And at about 11pm, we're just glad to finally get checked in and catch some shuteye after the long eventful day.
Continue to
Day 3.
