Grand Canyon: Monday

We hit the road at 5:00 a.m., driving with very few stops.  We arrived at Grand Canyon National Park at 3:30 p.m., Mountain Time.  Amazingly, there was no line at the entrance, and no cost!  The Senior Pass is a beautiful thing!

 We made a brief stop in Needles, CA, to pose with our reptile friends. 

I almost lost Gail to this rattlesnake!

We reserved an historic cabin at Bright Angel Lodge.  One is always being greeted by a raven at the Grand Canyon.

The entrance to Bright Angel Lodge.

The Lobby of Bright Angel Lodge.

This is our historic cabin.  We couldn't have been more pleased!  We quickly unloaded and then walked the 50 yards to the rim - my first look.

Nothing prepares you for the first look out over the canyon -  all the superlatives are true. The Canyon is also a truly international melting pot. 

The ravens own the place.  Their aerobatics and antics seem to mock us humans.  A ranger told us that he once watched several ravens taking turns sliding off a ramp of snow from a rim boulder, which could only be described as play.

It is hard to stop taking pictures, as the light, colors, and shadows are constantly changing.

We walked along the rim trail until dark before getting some dinner.  The elevation on the rim is almost 7,000 feet. Down at the bottom on the Colorado River it is about 2,400 feet.

 After dinner, we bundled up and hiked a ways down the Bright Angel Trail to do some night photography.  The full moon really lit up the rocks.  Only after we saw this picture and the next, did we realize that we had captured the phantom of  Phantom Ranch.  See him in the clouds?

 "Boo! I am the Phantom."

 The moon and lights from the village.

This is almost midnight, see the stars?  Long exposure can make the night turn into day - not the effect I was trying for.  Well, time to go get some sleep, as we want to get up for sunrise in the morning.