9 April 2017 – Grand Canyon, AZ
We woke up on Route 66 in Seligman and went to breakfast at Lilo’s Westside Cafe. The kids shared two stacks of enormous pancakes, Sherrie enjoyed Texas-sized french toast, and I had a chili omelet filled with jalapenos.
Grand Canyon South Rim Panorama
Lucas, Aurelia, and Giluliana build a rock cairn in Grand Canyon
From breakfast, we drove 1.5 hours into Grand Canyon National Park and the South Rim. We parked outside the Market and after a quick restroom break walked the short distance to the canyon rim trail which is an easy paved walk with great views. All along the route, there were samples of rock and descriptions of the geology. The canyon allows one to see 4.5M years into the history of the Earth. The uplifted strata, limestone, sandstone, and granite were visible and the kids enjoyed being able to touch and see the rock up-close.
We walked the 1.5 miles to Bright Angel Lodge. The views were spectacular but still, we couldn’t see to the bottom of the canyon and decided to hop on the bus taking us further into the canyon with better views of the Colorado river.
Family photo at Grand Canyon
A short wait for the bus and a 20-minute bus ride to Mojave point was worth it. Based on the suggestion of a park employee you can see the Colorado river snaking it way through the canyon (and apparently on quiet days hear the rapids below). We took the bus back to Bright Angel Lodge but instead of waiting for the shuttle to the Market we decided to walk back from there. The kids were not doing well – hungry and tired of walking. They obviously need to get their hiking endurance back!
We got back to the car and enjoyed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. However, after sandwiches, they were still hungry. So, we stopped at Williams, AZ and Station 66 Italian Bistro. Interestingly, the kids didn’t seem that hungry….
