{"id":97192691,"date":"2017-11-22T19:15:35","date_gmt":"2017-11-22T19:15:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/?p=97192691"},"modified":"2019-07-05T10:27:46","modified_gmt":"2019-07-05T10:27:46","slug":"how-to-spend-a-couple-of-days-at-the-grand-canyon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/how-to-spend-a-couple-of-days-at-the-grand-canyon\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Spend a Little Time at the Grand Canyon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Can\u2019t the Grand Canyon be, well, just a little less grand?\u00a0 With a sigh, you might ask such a question if you\u2019re trying to plan a trip there.\u00a0 After all, the Canyon can easily frustrate a sightseer\u2019s basic desire to see everything, to want to take it all in, especially if the visit will only be for a couple of days.\u00a0 [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]But then no one really ever takes in the Canyon anyway; rather, it takes you in<\/em>.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

So to ensure that you\u2019ll be happily captivated, here\u2019s an overview of it and an itinerary for a brief, day-tripper visit to its South Rim.<\/p>\n

Where the Grand Canyon Is Located<\/h2>\n

The Canyon holds court (and sway) in all of its colorful grandeur in northwestern Arizona.\u00a0 Most people who visit it do so through Grand Canyon National Park and in particular through the Park\u2019s South Entrance where the main visitor center and the Canyon’s South Rim are easily accessible.\u00a0 Adding grandness to the already grand, UNESCO declared the Park to be a World Heritage site in 1979, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation designated the Grand Canyon a National Treasure in 2015.<\/p>\n

Sizing Up the Grand Canyon<\/h2>\n
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Man Standing on a Pillar of Kaibab Limestone on the South Rim of the Canyon Near Grandview Point. GRCA 14738. CIRCA 1899. Peabody. \/ Photo Courtesy of Grand Canyon National Park Service<\/a>.\u00a0 Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Here are some of the Canyon’s dramatic dimensions:<\/p>\n

\u25ba It’s 277 miles long<\/strong> as measured against the 1,450 mile course of the Colorado River, which runs westward through it, dividing it into its north and south rims.\u00a0 (Grand Canyon National Park, by contrast, is about\u00a0190 miles long<\/a>\u00a0by the same measure.)<\/p>\n

\u25ba It’s as wide as 18 miles<\/strong> in spots, but averages about 10 miles wide.<\/p>\n

\u25ba It’s about 6,000 feet deep<\/strong> from rim to river at its deepest point.<\/p>\n

Yet the Canyon\u2019s dimensions are still not technically set in stone<\/a> (wink) since the Colorado River, weakened though it is now by as many as fourteen dams on its main stem<\/a>, continues, against all odds, to steadily carve it out of the land, if much more slowly.<\/p>\n

So vast is the Canyon<\/a> then that Grand Canyon National Park, which ranges over 1 million acres, can’t contain it.\u00a0 Some of the Canyon lies outside the Park on Native American Indian reservations such as that of the Hualapai (pronounced Wal-lah-pie) located at its western end.<\/p>\n

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Indeed, to look upon the Canyon is to see an endless land whose otherworldly, dreamlike maze of mesas, buttes, domes, and spires has a beauty, mysteriousness, and romance that beckon to all.\u00a0 [\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

The Canyon Has a Big, Colorful Spirit Too<\/h2>\n
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Native American Dancer in Grand Canyon. \/ Photo by Don Graham<\/a>\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Like the massive stratified rock for which the Canyon is famous, the spirit of the Canyon has been forged over time, vibrant layer upon vibrant layer, by different groups of people who have brought to it their unique ambitions, values, talents, and traditions.<\/p>\n

To the Native American Indians, who were its first inhabitants, the Canyon has always been a sacred place, a hallowed homeland, and a source of a livelihood to be had in harmony with nature.\u00a0 The European settlers and pioneers who arrived later brought a spirit of adventure, exploration, conquest, and commercial exploitation that has clashed with some of the Indian tribes like the collision of tectonic plates beneath the Canyon long ago.\u00a0 And while artists have helped us to appreciate the Canyon\u2019s beauty through their creative spirit, scientists have helped us to understand its creation through their inquisitive one.<\/p>\n

But the Canyon\u2019s spirit is also reflected in the tourists who visit it daily. Just look at others looking at the Canyon.\u00a0 You\u2019ll see people who are dream lost, wonderstruck, humbled, triumphant, enraptured, and forever changed.\u00a0 [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]You\u2019ll see families picnicking in idyllic bliss, absorbed in the spectacle of color that unfolds each day in America\u2019s greatest amphitheater for Technicolor nature.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

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Two Tourists Raise the American Flag in Tribute to the Canyon, A National Monument. \/ Photo Courtesy of Joseph Decibus.\u00a0 All rights reserved.<\/p><\/div>\n

Why Go to the South Rim?<\/h2>\n

Most people visit the Grand Canyon\u2019s South Rim<\/a> for the following reasons:<\/p>\n

\u25ba It\u2019s easier to get to<\/strong>, being closer than the North Rim is to the towns of Tusayan and Sedona and the cities of Williams, Flagstaff, and Phoenix.<\/p>\n

\u25ba It\u2019s open all year round.<\/strong> (The North Rim is only open from May 15 through October 15.)<\/p>\n

\u25ba It has been hosting visitors since 1905<\/strong>, and has plenty of facilities such as visitor centers, lodges, restaurants, restrooms, museums, stores, etc.<\/p>\n

\u25ba It has a long, continuous trail called the Rim Trail<\/a><\/strong> that you can easily hike for about 13 miles, stopping at its many lookouts for spectacular views. (The North Rim has separate trails to its lookouts.)<\/p>\n

\u25ba It has a free shuttle bus system<\/strong> that you can take from lookout to lookout on the Rim Trail and to other areas of the Park.<\/p>\n

Two-Day Itinerary<\/h2>\n

This itinerary takes you to the western end of the Rim Trail for some lofty, dreamy Canyon views, then to the middle of it to dig deeper into the Canyon\u2019s geological history, and finally to the Canyon\u2019s eastern end for some up-close views of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers.\u00a0 While you won\u2019t come close to seeing the whole Canyon, you\u2019ll at least feel like you\u2019ve covered a good bit of ground.<\/p>\n

Day 1 \u2013 Bike the Hermit Road; Hike the Trail of Time<\/h3>\n

9:30 a.m. – Bright Angel Bicycle Tour of the Hermit Road<\/h4>\n

Arrive at Bright Angel Bicycles<\/a> in front of the Grand Canyon Visitor Center, which is about five miles past the South Entrance Ranger Station\u00a0just off the South Entrance Road<\/a>.\u00a0(Reservations for the tour should be made in advance via their website.)<\/p>\n

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Two Tourists at Bright Angel Bicycles Get Ready to Bike in Grand Canyon National Park. \/ Photo by Kristen M. Caldon<\/a> for Grand Canyon National Park Service.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

About the Tour<\/h4>\n

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Hermit or no hermit, the\u00a0Hermit Road and Hermits Rest<\/a>, which date back to the early 1900s, are beloved by all.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

The road parallels the western end of the Rim Trail for about 7 miles where there are 9 lookouts with stunning Canyon views.\u00a0 Hermits Rest<\/a> is an adorable earthen, cave-like structure (a hermit\u2019s kind of a home), which was designed by Mary Colter,<\/a> at the end of the road.\u00a0 It\u2019s built of stone and timber, which was sourced from the Canyon, in a style that\u2019s now known as Park rustic.<\/p>\n

The Bright Angel Bicycle tour takes you in a van from the Grand Canyon Visitor Center up onto the Hermit Road, bypassing its steepest part (6% gradient), which is known as the \u201cSoul Crusher.\u201d\u00a0 So you begin biking at Hopi lookout, which is popular for its expansive views, located about 1.5 miles up the road. You’ll bike from there for about 5.5 miles to Hermits Rest, stopping at lookouts along the way.\u00a0 The tour guides tell you about the Canyon\u2019s flora and fauna and geology as well.<\/p>\n

Biking along the Hermit Road is a beautiful, breezy, and fun way to meet the Canyon and to cover about a third of the Rim Trail quickly.\u00a0 It\u2019s a very quiet area (a hermit\u2019s kind of quiet) of the Park where you can contemplate the Canyon.<\/p>\n

The Scenic Scene<\/h4>\n
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Grand Canyon in Full Rainbow as Seen from Pima Point on the Hermit Road. \/ Photo by Michael Quinn<\/a> for Grand Canyon National Park Service.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

From the lookouts along the Hermit Road, you\u2019ll see sunlit mesas and buttes rippled with long, horizontally layered bands of color, ranging from beige to light pink to red to purple-red \u2013 stacks of color like huge versions of Van Gogh\u2019s or Monet\u2019s haystacks.\u00a0 Some bands are thick, others thin; some bold, others subtle.\u00a0 Mineral green and powdery rouge rock studded with black schist elegantly ring parts of the mesas and buttes.\u00a0 [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Overall, the Canyon is a florid feast for your eyes, a quiet fire for your soul.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

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The Grand Canyon: Fact or Fantasy? (Sometimes You Have to Pinch Yourself.) \/ Photo by Alan Eng<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n

Indeed, the Canyon is so quiet and still that it seems almost to be in awe of itself.\u00a0 Sometimes it even seems like a fantastic static image projected before you from Kolb Studio, such is its strange, unreal quality.<\/p>\n

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Immersed in the vision of the Canyon, you may find that that question returns:\u00a0 Can\u2019t the Grand Canyon be, well, just a little less grand?[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

For time is fleeting and you must be moving on, but just how do you leave, how do you turn your back on such an incredible sight?\u00a0 Such is the powerful pull of the Canyon.<\/p>\n

1:00 p.m. Picnic at Hermits Rest<\/h4>\n

Bring a picnic lunch with you to eat at the tables just beyond Hermits Rest; or, buy lunch at its snack bar.\u00a0 Then take the shuttle bus to the Yavapai Point and Geology Museum, which is the next stop in the itinerary.\u00a0 (Alternatively, return to Bright Angel Bicycles in their van, have lunch in their caf\u00e9, and then walk over to Yavapai Point.)<\/p>\n

3:00 p.m. Hit the Trail of Time<\/h4>\n

Arrive at the Yavapai Point and Geology Museum<\/a> on the Rim Trail, just west of the Grand Canyon Visitor Center and Bright Angel Bicycles, and then walk west along the Rim Trail towards Grand Canyon Village.\u00a0 You\u2019ll soon see the Trail of Time<\/a> welcome sign.\u00a0 The Trail of Time runs for about three miles right on the Rim Trail to Verkamp’s Visitor Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Beginning of the Trail of Time. \/ Photo by Michael Quinn<\/a> for Grand Canyon National Park Service.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

About the Trail of Time<\/h4>\n

This geoscience exhibit is a timeline that lets you experience, with each step you take, how long nature took to create the Canyon.\u00a0 You begin by walking 1 million years of human or shallow time and then transition into geologic or deep time where you experience the 2 billion years of the Canyon’s geological history.\u00a0 Some 50 samples of Canyon rock have been placed at their \u201cbirthdays\u201d along the timeline; and, related \u201cviewing tubes\u201d let you see where the rocks are located in the Canyon.<\/p>\n

The trail is a great opportunity to look deep into the Canyon while you think deeply about deep time and deep rock.\u00a0 Even if you’re not into geology, it\u2019s worth taking the trail for its incredible views.<\/p>\n

5:00 p.m. Catch the Sunset at Yavapai Point.<\/h4>\n

To return to Yavapai point, just hop on a Park shuttle at Verkamp\u2019s Visitor Center.<\/p>\n

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Tourists on the Edge of Ecstasy as They View the Sunset at Yavapai Point, Grand Canyon National Park. \/ Photo by Michael Quinn<\/a> for Grand Canyon National Park.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Day 2 \u2013 The Eastern Approach \u2013 Visit Little Colorado River Gorge; Go All Along the Watchtower<\/h3>\n

10:30 a.m. Arrive at Little Colorado River Gorge Overlook<\/h4>\n

You take AZ-64 \u2013 east if driving from the Park<\/a>; or, west if coming from the Cameron area<\/a> – to the Little Colorado River Gorge Overlook.\u00a0 (You’ll have to have a lot of self-discipline to not let this scenic drive delay you.)\u00a0 The Overlook is about 22 miles or so outside the Park’s East Entrance on the Navajo reservation.\u00a0 There\u2019s a very small, easily missible sign for it, just before the turn off.\u00a0 You\u2019ll see a tiny toll booth on the road to the Overlook where you donate to the Navajo before entering.\u00a0 You park and then take a somewhat rocky walk to the Overlook.<\/p>\n

About the Gorge<\/h4>\n

The Gorge, which the Little Colorado River has been carving out of the land for tens of thousands of years, runs for about 45 miles through the Painted Desert.\u00a0 It\u2019s entirely on the Navajo Indian Reservation, which is the largest Native American reservation.<\/p>\n

The Scenic Scene<\/h4>\n
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The Little Colorado River as Seen from the Gorge Overlook. \/ Photo Courtesy of Joseph Decibus. All Rights Reserved.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Gorge and the Grand Canyon are like discordant echoes of similar, mostly bygone geological forces, and are associated at the confluence of their respective rivers.[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]While the Canyon is obvious, expansive, brilliantly colorful, if sometimes distant; the Gorge is hidden, narrow, monochromatic, and always perilously proximate.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

The Gorge lookout is only about 1,000 feet above the Little Colorado. \u00a0So it\u2019s an up close yet dizzying view from atop the spine-tingling sheer walls of the Gorge.\u00a0 You can see the Little Colorado River well as it flows from the Painted Desert.\u00a0 Turquoise-colored in spring and summer, it turns muddy red in the fall, after the monsoons, as it runs from deep in Indian territory, through the Gorge to join the Colorado River in the Canyon further west.<\/p>\n

After seeing the Gorge, head to the Navajo Indian jewelry market to chat with some of the Navajo and pick up some of their handmade necklaces and bracelets at very reasonable prices.<\/p>\n

1:30 p.m.\u00a0 Lunch in the Desert View Area of the Park<\/h4>\n

Get on AZ-64 east, go through the East Entrance of Grand Canyon National Park, and head for the Desert View area.\u00a0 This is a very scenic part of the Park in which you can have a picnic lunch that you bring at one of its many picnic spots; or, you can buy lunch in the cafeteria at the Trading Post.<\/p>\n

3:00 p.m. Visit the Desert View Watchtower<\/h4>\n

About the Watchtower<\/h4>\n
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Desert View Watchtower Aspires Skyward. \/ Photo Courtesy of Joseph Decibus.\u00a0 All Rights Reserved.<\/p><\/div>\n

Like Hermits Rest, the Watchtower was also designed by Mary Colter.\u00a0 It was built with unworked, handpicked rocks and other materials from the Canyon.\u00a0 It\u2019s a strikingly beautiful, 70-foot-tall tower that rises majestically yet organically above the Canyon, appearing to belong to it like one of its rocky spires even as it stands apart from it.\u00a0 It\u2019s a sort of grand totem pole of resplendent golden rocks from which to look at and reflect upon the crimson Canyon below.\u00a0 Commanding views of the Canyon are yours from its windows and reflectoscopes, which are like black mirrors that you adjust to see the Canyon from different angles.\u00a0 Magically, they give you the feeling that you\u2019ve got the whole Canyon in the palm of your hand.<\/p>\n

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The Grand Canyon Reflects Well in a Watchtower Reflectoscope. \/ Photo Courtesy of Joseph Decibus.\u00a0 All Rights Reserved.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Scenic Scene<\/h4>\n

From the Watchtower, you can see for miles and miles and miles from the east on to the west.\u00a0 You can see the vast Painted Desert in all of its beautiful barrenness, and watch the Colorado River bend west as it slices its way through the Canyon.\u00a0 This is one of the best places on the South Rim to see the river. \u00a0And these are some of the most exhilarating views of the Canyon that you\u2019ll ever see.<\/p>\n

As the sun sets, the hollows and depressions of the Canyon fill with a rich, inky blue that seems to seep up and spread from subterranean vents, extinguishing the Canyon\u2019s fiery colors before your surprised, bewildered eyes.\u00a0 Unbelievably, the crimson Canyon becomes totally tangled up in blue (to borrow from Bob Dylan again).\u00a0 At about this time, you might find that that question comes a knockin\u2019\u2026you know the one:\u00a0 Can\u2019t the Canyon be just a little less grand?\u00a0 After all, the hour is getting late\u2026the wind is beginning to howl.<\/p>\n

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Sunset at Desert View, Grand Canyon National Park. \/ Photo by Ahinabu Basu<\/a>.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Have you visited Arizona<\/a> to see the Grand Canyon yet?\u00a0 If so, let us know your favorite spot or activity.\u00a0 If not, tell us what part of the Canyon you’re looking forward to visiting.[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n

[Feature Photograph:\u00a0 Canyons Everywhere.\u00a0 A View of Grand Canyon from a South Rim Lookout \/ Photo by Scott Taylor<\/a>.\u00a0Creative Commons License 2.0<\/a> ]<\/p>\n

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Can\u2019t the Grand Canyon be, well, just a little less grand?\u00a0 With a sigh, you might ask such a question if you\u2019re trying to plan a trip there.\u00a0 After all, the Canyon can easily frustrate a sightseer\u2019s basic desire to see everything, to want to take it all in, especially if the visit will only […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":97192693,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1416],"tags":[2928,2930,2931],"class_list":["post-97192691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-guide","tag-best-grand-canyon-vacations","tag-how-to-plan-a-short-trip-to-the-grand-canyon","tag-how-to-sightsee-at-the-grand-canyon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97192691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97192691"}],"version-history":[{"count":180,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97192691\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97206315,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97192691\/revisions\/97206315"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97192693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97192691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97192691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cheapoair.com\/miles-away\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97192691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}