The tag line for Arizona is – The Grand Canyon State. And truly the Grand Canyon is one of the wonders of modern world. I recently spent two days in the Canyon and would love to go back to it – again and again.
Before my visit – in spite of reading about it, for me the Grand Canyon was just a big ''gadda'' in the ground. How utterly ignorant I was.
Detailed information of the Grand Canyon is obtainable from their websites which gives information about the history, geography, chemistry, physics, biology, zoology … sorry, got carried away and enumerated some subjects of my high school years. I submit before you my personal experience of the Grand Canyon.
What is the Grand Canyon?
This is the single most instance of the effects of erosion on the surface of the earth spanning billions of years. The first glimpse of the Canyon and your jaw drops and you are awestruck at the various play of colors. It reminded me of this song by Mukesh:
Yeh kaun chitrakaar hai, yeh kaun chitrakaar - translated as, who is the painter ?
There are two rims – the North Rim and the South Rim. The South Rim is more popular and friendly to visit.
The closest main town is either Flagstaff or Williams – both of them are on I-40. To reach the South Rim from Williams takes about an hour though narrow two-way lanes. The entire Canyon falls under the jurisdiction of the National Park Systems and hence are well maintained.
Where do you Stay?
The best place to stay is on the Rim itself – there are several lodges run by Xanterra Resorts – reasonably priced, but have to be booked well in advance. A typical room costs about $100 / night. Accommodation is available outside the park in a place called as Valle or in Williams / Flagstaff – but then you waste about an hour each way just to get to the rim and hence I would not recommend it.
Duration of Stay
Plan to stay for at least a day and half to two days. Anything more than this is a bonus and anything less than this – you will not be satisfied. The two days time is sufficient to see all the points and also the sunrise and the sunset.
Of course, longer duration is required in case you are planning to trek to the bottom of the canyon or do some river rafting.
A tentative schedule:
# 1. Arrive towards late evening and take proper rest (assuming you have booked in a hotel on the rim itself) as it can be grueling physically the next two days.
# 2. Next day morning get up early and have a quick breakfast at any one of the local restaurants – there are plenty of them
# 3. Your first stop is the Visitor Information Center which is on the Blue Line (Shuttle Bus). A description on the local transport (Shuttle Bus) is in order here.
The entire South Rim is served by local shuttle buses which are run by the park and are convenient and free. They are designated as Blue Line, Red Line and Green Line and the routes are well documented.
Obtain information about the various day programs / talks which may be of interest to you. Personally I did not find them interesting and made my own plans.
# 4. Visit the Yaki Observation center. and the Yaki Point. The observation center is an enclosed area with glass from where you get a good glimpse of the Colorado river – which appears all brown and muddy. Interestingly one can see points like Vishnu Temple, Shiva Temple and Brahma Temple – I am not sure of how they got these names. The center also has a gift shop – and this is the place to buy those small gifts / curios as this is a non-profit shop and the prices are very reasonable compared to other shops on the rim.
# 5. Next begin visiting the various points which are on the Hunters Rest Trail – on the Red Line. There are totally eight points and each one is worth getting down and spending time admiring the Point. The shuttle buses are constantly plying – so one can catch the next one in a short time.
- The Trailview Overlook gives you a birds eye view of the trail used by the trekkers to go to the bottom of the canyon and then coming back. The way is well paved – the only word of caution is not to do this trip in one day – it is recommended to stay inside the canyon overnight and then trek up during the day time.
- The Maricopa Point provides some excellent views of the Uranium mines which was an active mine years ago – some of the mine shafts are still in tact and visible.
- The Powell Point is a dedication to Powell who was the first to cross the Colorada river by raft.
- The Hopi Point is the best place to see the sunrise and sunset.
- The Mohave, Abyss and Pima Points gives good view of the Colorado river along with the Rapids. Since the Canyon is almost a mile deep and the Colorado river runs through it – it is very difficult to see the Colorado river and it is visible only at places.
- The Hermits Rest has a unique stone shaped arch – it is amazing
# 6. After completing the west rim, one can take the Green Line and go on the east rim towards Desert View. This gives another magnificent view of the canyon.
All the above would take you the rest of day one.
Then hop onto the bus and go to Hopi point and see the sunset (find out the sunset time). Do the same thing the next day for sunrise after enquiring about the sunrise time.
The Sunset and Sunrise
The Sunset is more charming and stunning than the sunrise. The various structures within the Canyon undergo changes in color with hues of red as the sun is setting down and the interplay between shadows and light is truly breathtaking. And as soon as the sun goes down, it starts to become cold.
The sunrise is inspiring just for the brief second when the sun bursts through the horizon.
I have tried to capture as much as possible on film but the best feeling is standing on Hopi Point with the breeze blowing on your face and you are looking down into the canyon and you become philosophical – everything else pales into insignificance.
Hari bhari vasundhare pe neela neela yeh gagan
Ke jispe badalon ki palki udda raha pawan
Ke jisne phool phool pe, kiya shringar hai
Yeh kaun chitrakaar hai, yeh kaun chitrakaar?
A chance in a lifetime to watch nature at her best.
