We woke up in Flagstaff. We made it! For those of you who don’t know, Jenn and I have been researching Flagstaff as a possible new hometown and the whole family is happy to be here today.
As usual we all get our work done in the morning. Business calls, emails, homeschooling and of course breakfast. Then we headed out around noon on our adventure. By 2pm we were at the Eastern entrance to the Grand Canyon South Rim. We immediately stopped at the Desert View Watchtower (just a 1/4 from the entrance gate to the park). This viewing point is more like a visitors center with bathrooms, a cafe, market place, gift shop and the Desert View Tower (which is very cool). I attached a picture below.
We planned our trip to the Grand Canyon for today. It’s about a 1.5 hour trip North from Flagstaff so, we have a full day ahead of us.
The view from the Rim never fails to blow me away. This is my 5 visit to the Grand Canyon and the first for my family. I love the view of the Canyon from all directions but, sharing it with my Wife and Kids was priceless. I watched as there eyes opened all the way up and they cautiously approached the railing to take it in. It’s so big and vast that you can’t accurately capture it with a camera lens. To see it with your own eyes is the only way to truely experience its majesty. We climbed up the stairs of the Desert Tower and got an even better view from 4 flights up. It’s mind bending to see the 277 mile canyon, realize it drops a mile to the river bed and realize what nature is capable of creating. Wow!
We grabbed a bite to eat and drove the South Rim from Desert View Tower to the South Rim Visitors Center which is a 30 minute drive with lots of pull offs and viewing points along the way. It was incredible to see the views between the trees as you drive the road along the South Rim. I kept hearing ohs and ahs from the back seat.
The South Rim Visitors Center had the most incredible views. There were walkways that jutted out into the canyon and provided a beautiful place to “take it all in” and snap off some incredible photos. We sat on the Rim for quite a while and walked the entire 1/2 mile section of the Canyon Rim to see the views from each point.
With the kids getting tired we decided to pack it in and head back to Flagstaff. After all, we had a long drive back.
We saw several Elk on our way out of the park and mistook them for Moose. They were huge and, after researching them, found that they are often mistaken for Moose. We pulled over and watch 3 of these huge animals eating leaves and other plants just a hundred feet from our car.
About an hour and a half later we were back in Flagstaff. The views of the Whitecaps coming into Flagstaff were welcoming. We can’t get enough of the mountains around Flagstaff. We went into historic downtown for dinner and found a great little Latin restaurant. The historic downtown area reminds us of Huntington village. Lots of small shops, great food and a happening bar scene (supported by the local college).
As you can image we slept well after that day of adventure.
Luke's Journey Across The USA 