Sunday, June 1, 2014

Three Men and a Dog: Days 1 and 2

Grand Canyon National Park

May 24 & 25, 2014



I spent Memorial Day weekend down at the Grand Canyon with my son Sam, my friend Jim and my dog Pongo.  We hit Sequoia National Park on the way home as well.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
We bombed all the way down to the canyon from the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday.  The drive took about thirteen hours.  Sam followed a couple of hours behind us.  He wouldn't be returning directly back to the Bay Area, spending a few weeks in Las Vegas instead, so we took separate vehicles.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Pongo woke me up at sunrise on Sunday morning.  I guess he was eager to get things going.  Sunrise in May at the Grand Canyon is around 5:00, if you're wondering just how early that is.  No one else was moving that early, so Pongo and I drove to the rim to see the early morning light over the canyon.  It wasn't the most breathtaking of experiences.  I mean, within context.  It was still a sunrise over the freaking Grand Canyon, but I'm sure there have been more interesting sunrises in that place.  The sky was a bit overcast and perhaps hazy from nearby fires, casting everything in a blue light.  Better pictures would come later in the day.


Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
When we got back to the campsite we found Jim sitting semi-aware in his chair.  He mumbled that he'd heard me start the car and had tried to get out of his tent to go along but the zipper on his tent was stuck.  At least, I think that's what he said.  It's always hard to tell with him until he's had his morning coffee.  We immediately set about getting some caffeine into his system.  Sam awoke soon after.  I have never seen Pongo as excited about something as when he saw Sam come out of his tent.  We had pancakes, eggs and bacon for breakfast then set out for our first adventure on the rim of the canyon.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Our first stop was the Bright Angel Trailhead on the South Rim.  From there, we hiked about a mile and a half to Maricopa Point.  Pongo saw a lot of lizards on the trail.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
After wrapping up that hike, we headed back to the campsite for lunch and a nap.  We were all pretty tired from the previous day's drive, the hike and having gotten up at the crack of dawn.  Pongo and I took a walk around the campground.  We found elk droppings about ten yards from Sam's tent.  We also saw a hairy woodpecker.  Later in the afternoon an elk walked through the campsite next to ours.
White-breasted Nuthatch -- Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
After a nice long rest, we decided to head out to Desert View to watch the sun go down.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
The views at the East end of the South Rim were spectacular.  The sunset wasn't dramatic, but it lit the Eastern wall up nicely.  Pongo stepped on a cactus.  Poor dog.  He wasn't too happy.  He tried to attack the cactus we saw the next day.  Payback or something.  He also got to see a few elk from not too far away, so hopefully that made up for it.

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ
Grand Canyon National Park, AZ



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