Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon expectations were low, we envisioned Chevy Chase and the family pulling up to the rim, taking a picture and driving on.  However as we approached the first outlook, I noticed all five of us were running to get the first look. It was one of those moments that pictures can't do justice, we stared out at the canyon in awe of simply how vast and rugged the terrain was. We didn't arrive until the afternoon, so we planned our hike down for the second day. Thankfully we hit the National Parks circuit before the huge crowds arrive in the summer, but we still had to meander between visitors that loved to pose for what seemed like hours between pictures. The weather was remarkable but the food was not....we packed cliff bars and filled up the camelbacks as we headed into the canyon opting for the less travelled South Kabaib trail. The trail was marked well but one misstep and your dropping 2000 feet. Unlike a typical hike back home, descending first gives one a false sense of workload as the hike back up was fairly strenuous. The views were absolutely stunning, we needed stop often just to take in the raw beauty. Late in the afternoon we caught a glimpse of the endangered California Condor, sporting an impressive 9 1/2 wingspan. We dragged the kids to a ranger talk about the bird earlier in the day, so it was cool to actually seei one soar over us. The Grand Canyon is perfect for a day or two visit, on to Zion!

Jay