Grand Canyon Road Trip, South Rim: October 16 - 19, 2022

View of Grand Canyon from the South Rim (Phantom Ranch is within the trees)

The four days we were at the North Rim we usually had hazy skies and barely saw a cloud. That changed yesterday when a storm came our way through the Bright Angel Canyon and creek to where we were standing in the Village on the South Rim. The clouds appeared to be lower than the rim height. The elevation of the South Rim is about 7,000 feet (2133 meters). 

The Bright Angel Trail to Phantom Ranch is visible on the left

By noon most of the rain was gone leaving only clouds behind and it was time to explore. From where we were staying at The Village, we walked east along the Rim Trail and the Geology Timeline.

Fluffy clouds lingered during the balance of our South Rim stay. We continued our walk east along the Rim Trail to Mather Point and the Visitor Center stopping at every viewpoint along the way. We noticed that where viewpoints could be reached via busses/cars there were always many more people. From the Visitor Center we continued east on the shuttle bus to Yaki Point then we shuttled back to the Village. 

Taken from Mather Point looking northwest

View of Cape Royal, Wotan's Throne, and Vishnu's Temple

One evening we took the shuttle bus to Hopi Point to watch the sunset. It didn't disappoint. Great clouds, great shadows, and great colors. 

A glimpse of the Colorado River from Hopi Point

On our last day and for our last hike we took the shuttle bus to the farthest point west to Hermit's Rest and walked back to our hotel. It is about 7 miles from the shuttle bus stop to Hermit's Rest. There is a slight downhill from Hermit's Rest to the El Tovar Lodge. But, we followed our usual pattern of meandering to all the viewpoints and taking photos and by the time we got back to the lodge we had logged in about 10 miles and my legs were achingly tired. We could have gotten on the shuttle bus at some of the viewpoints, but by then we were determined to finish under our own power.

Monument Creek Vista with a bit of the Colorado River

View from near the Village (the red is a small maple)

I didn't investigate whether or not the Village Store actually sells film, but "film" is rarely seen on any sign anywhere. This is where we picked up a few food items for our hiking lunches. We had a curious and persistent guest on one day.

Everything about the Grand Canyon is grand: its vast size, the colors, the shapes, the textures. When I was a kid, we drove through the Grand Canyon but I didn't understand its grandness from a brief stop. I am so glad we made this road trip and were able to spend time on both rims. It is truly a spectacular place.

Next stop: Oro Valley to visit a friend