A VERY GRAND CANYON

Well, finally the time has arrived to visit this Natural Wonder of the World, The Grand Canyon. When we were back in Australia planning this trip we basically just gave ourselves a brief outline of what we must see along our journey. We kept the plan very basic and have just followed our nose so to speak. For our USA part of the journey we have always said we must see New York, tick, Niagara Falls, another Natural Wonder of the World and another tick, and Grand Canyon. Over these past months we have seen so much incredible beauty it is with trepidation that we have been approaching the Grand Canyon. Will it live up to the hype that surrounds it?

Five million people from around the world visit this geologists’ dreams come true, and one of the few geological features of the world visible from space, every year. The Grand Canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, up to 18 miles (29 km) wide, though averages about 10 miles wide, and attains a depth of over a mile (6,000 feet or 1,800 meters). Recent studies have concluded that approximately 17 million years ago the Colorado river and its tributaries chose their pathways to begin carving through the nearly two billion years of geological layering that make up this part of the uplifted Colorado Plateau. For all these years this mighty river has channelled this spectacular landscape and will continue to do so forever more.

The canyon is contained within and managed by Grand Canyon National Park, The Hualapai Tribal Nation, the Havasupai Tribe and the Navajo Nation. Descendants of these Indian Peoples have inhabited the canyon since as far back as 500AD. They were largely left in peace until the mid 1500’s when the Spanish made some exploration in the area but quickly left them alone until the 1800’s when the West was invaded and new settlers arrived. Once ‘discovered’ the canyon has been a hive of activity ever since, including mining exploration. The first bill to create Grand Canyon National Park was introduced in 1882 by then-Senator Benjamin Harrison, which would have made Grand Canyon National Park the nation’s second, after Yellowstone National Park. Many times the bill was reintroduced to preserve this natural world for future generations but it was not successful until 1919 under the direction of President Theodore Roosevelt, and in 1979 UNESCO dedicated the park as a World Heritage Site.

This has saved the park from disasters such as mining and damming but it is a constant juggling act to save the park from the effects of projects going on outside its boundaries. This diverse eco system has taken some hits along the way and management are constantly working to minimize our impact. A seemingly successful project to date has been the long slow process of saving of the critically endangered Californian Condor. Air quality is another interesting factor facing the park, as is uranium mining outside the park, all things requiring much research and debate. Minimizing the impact of tourism is another issue on the agenda that park officials must handle on a day-to-day basis. All in all this is a Grand Challenge.

Over the years the Canyon has taken its revenge so to speak. About 600 deaths have occurred in the Grand Canyon since the 1870s. Some of these deaths occurred as the result of overly zealous photographic endeavours, some were the result of airplane collisions within the canyon, and some visitors have drowned in the Colorado River. Of the fatalities, 53 have resulted from falls; 65 deaths were attributable to environmental causes, including heat stroke, cardiac arrest, dehydration, and hypothermia; 7 were caught in flash floods; 79 were drowned in the Colorado River; 242 perished in airplane and helicopter crashes (128 of them in the 1956 disaster where two flights collided over the canyon); 25 died in freak errors and accidents, including lightning strikes and rock falls; and 23 were the victims of homicides. Our Park Ranger at the Black Canyon had warned us of the care required to visit this park. This is a harsh environment that must be respected, especially when the weather is hot.

Our visit begins as we approach from the East to take in our first view from Desert View Watchtower. The top of the tower is 7,522 feet (2,293 m) above sea level, the highest point on the South Rim. It offers one of the few full views of the bottom of the Canyon and the Colorado River. WOW, WOW, WOW. What a view to begin our experience. When we arrive our view is obstructed by low cloud, though spectacular to see its disappointing to think we will not get a clear view, but, as always our luck prevails and over the next hour that we spend here the cloud lifts before our eyes to unveil the whole splendid vista from this interesting tower.

It is jaw dropping amazing to look out over the magnitude of this creation. It takes time to soak in the sheer size of this wonder. The river below that looks like a slender ribbon at the base is actually at least 90ft wide and rushes along calm at times and churning rapids at others. That first view will be embedded on our memory forever as well as the feeling of the sheer size of what we are seeing.

Our day is a progression of vistas, each different from each other but still the same, absolutely amazing. Our favourites are decided, the first and the most eye opening, Desert View, closely followed by both Hopi and Pima outlooks. We are unable to walk down into the bottom of the canyon, as this is a two-day overnight experience and time does not permit (also snow is predicted tonight), so spend our day taking various trails along the rim. We are so glad we are here in winter when the tourist numbers are somewhat lower.

We spend time at the visitor’s centre taking in a wonderful movie, learning lots and particularly enjoy the footage of the Californian Condor, what an amazing bird this is. It is almost sunset when we take our last look into this abyss that is the Grand Canyon. It is aptly named, as it is the biggest and grandest of all the holes in the ground that we have visited. But is it our favourite? We all agree that even though it is spectacular and a must see in any ones lifetime that we have preferred other spots, and in direct comparison of vast drops down into this wonderful earth, we would put the Canyonlands and Black Canyon and Bighorn up the top of our list.

Is this unbelievable that we could not rank it Number 1? Don’t hold it against us! I think our preference has a lot to do with the fact that our favourites were experienced, for the most part, totally alone, when we could take in the grandeur in tranquil peace with time to reflect on the magnitude of that moment in time. Considering this we decide we would like to return to visit the North Rim, closed to us due to snow, and get a more lonely experience. We also have to come back to get to the canyon floor and we have decided the way to do this best is to take a ride down the amazing Colorado River, an adventure requiring a much higher temperature. More for the bucket list.

Photos can be found on our Facebook page in the album ARIZONA.

MONUMENT VALLEY

We wake up to more rain than we have seen in quite some time, and it seems more than this part of the country has seen in quite some time also. Can’t complain, it is winter after all. We are planning a driving day anyway so off we go. We are in a place called Cortez, where the desert meets the mountains, heading into the desert. Moving through this part of Colorado it is dead flat boring, but still amazing and different, until we cross into Utah again, guess what, we magically hit the dramatic world of rock buttes, valleys and gorges again.

We are taking a route that snakes its way along beside the San Juan River and is just beautiful. We are actually in the area known as Four Corners, where four states, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado, meet. We are on the south side of the very influential Colorado Plateau now and heading for Monument Valley, not a designated National Park, but a part of the Navajo Reservation, the largest reservation in the US. This is the unique world that got away from Utah, the Navajo Tribal Park being just inside Arizona.

The rain has stopped but when we get to the valley it is completely shrouded in dense wet cloud. Though a sight well worth seeing with its haunting veil, we decide we still need to explore the area on a clear day so elect to stay on the Utah side of the road at Goulding Lodge. Harry Goulding and his wife “Mike” (real name Leone) purchased this property in 1921 and started trading with the Navajo people out of a tent, later building a brick trading post with their living quarters above. This building is still standing and is the Museum within the Lodge grounds for visitors to explore. When the depression hit both the Gouldings and the Navajo hard, Harry came up with the idea of approaching John Ford, the movie director, to get some money to the area. The rest is history as they say, John Ford fell in love with the area and shot the first of many Western Classics, “Stagecoach” starring John Wayne, here. That was the beginning of a long movie making history, the Monument Valley area giving the perfect backdrop to the ‘Western’ genre. The tradition continues with films like ‘Forrest Gump’, ‘Thelma and Louise”, ‘Mission Impossible’ and ‘Back to the Future III’ having shot scenes here.

This spectacular area has in fact been used in many genres of movie making, computer games, music videos, TV productions including cartoons and many advertisements. Harry started a lifetime of photography that has helped the area thrive. The Gouldings continued their association with the Navajo all their lives and even today the Lodge is a major contributor to the people. We are loving the atmosphere of this very comfortable and interesting place to spend the night. The complex is built beneath the towering rock cliff that one can look back across to the first buttes of the Valley from your balcony, a view we manage to catch at sunset when it is lit brightly, especially gorgeous with the cloud cover today. We enjoy a movie relating to the area in the theatre building and follow this with dinner served at the restaurant, yum.

Our day begins slowly but eventually we head out into the magnificent Navajo reservation area that is Monument Valley. We take the road down into the valley and start our self-guided tour to view the magnificent mesa,buttes and spires. It is truly beautiful with its colours ranging from sand to orange to deep reds. It is mainly dark red however and it is stunning. The recent rain seems to have made the valley green in only a day, it is somehow different from the day before. It is interesting to read the Navajo explanation of the different formations giving significant meaning to this spectacular landscape. Along the way we stop to meet some Navajo people and chat with a mother and daughter about their way of life living on the reservation without power and water and all the conveniences that come with it. They are selling jewellery that they have made from the local gemstones, predominantly turquoise and buffalo bone and juniper berries. It is interesting to get a small understanding of this life.

We finish our time in the valley all the more rich for the experience. We head back to the hotel and spend some time in the museum that was the original trading post and home of Harry and Mike Goulding. It is an excellent display mainly left in its original condition with the added bonus of movie memorabilia and Indian information. Once again we are richer for the experience. They even have John Wayne’s cabin that was used in his movies. Another day comes to an end. Our time is over in this truly amazing part of the country.

Photos can be found on our Facebook page in the album MONUMENT VALLEY.