Grand Canyon South Rim

 Mr. Cactus and I just got back from a little

2-day trip to the

Grand Canyon

 Now that we live in the Phoenix Metro

it's only a 3 1/2 hour drive to get to the

South Rim

 As many of you know, the

Grand Canyon is one of the 

7 Natural Wonders of The World

It's one of those places you must see for yourself

because pictures cannot capture the 

vastness, magnitude or 

immensity of the experience.

 We wanted to do some hiking.

I voted  to start with the easy

13 Mile 

Rim Trail

that winds along the top of the canyon .

 Most of this trail is paved,

and you always have the option of 

hopping on a Shuttle bus

that will take you to the next lookout point.

We did a mixture of hiking and riding,

which made for a very pleasant morning. 

 Layers of the Grand Canyon reveal 

40 % of the Earth's history.

Trail of Time markers

are set a meter apart

along the trail,

signifying 1 million years

of Geologic history.

Our National Parks are very family oriented.

We visited with people from all over the world

who came from long distances.

We heard many languages being spoken

from French to Italian to German.

In fact, very rarely did we

hear our native language of English

as we stopped at lookout points.

 There are 6 major overlooks

along the Rim Trail.

The South end of the Grand Canyon 

sits at an elevation of

7,000 feet above sea level.

 The deep fissures were carved by the 

Colorado River below.

 The Grand Canyon chasm is 277 miles long

and up to 18 miles wide.

 The monument to John Wesley Powell

at Powell Point

made us think a little bit of 

the Mayan El Castillo at Chichen Itza in Mexico.

 Powell was the first to explore the 

Grand Canyon in 1869

 This is

Monsoon Season

in Arizona

and as we traversed the trail

huge rain clouds began forming overhead.

Lightening strikes can be very dangerous

so the park began lining up shuttle buses

and requested everyone move off the mountainside.

I didn't mind much.

We headed to the Lodge restaurant with a

spectacular overlook

 and waited out the storm.

We dined leisurely on a very nice late lunch

while a torrential downpour

blanketed the skies.

I love a summer thunderstorm :)

Once things cleared up a bit,

Mr. Cactus was looking for a more rigorous hike

and  headed down part of the

Bright Angel Trail.

His descent of more than 1,000 feet was a little 

much for me so I stayed back and 

read, 

napped 

and enjoyed the most breathtaking views.