Heading to the North Rim Grand Canyon

 

Before heading back out on the road I headed to Sunset Crater, which was only about a mile from where I camped last night. Even though I've been here before it's probably been 20 years. It's an old Cinder Volcano full of hiking trails and it was still pretty cool this morning to enjoy the view. I decided to drive the loop road, which eventually took me to Wupatki National Monument. A series of adobe-style Indian dwellings in the middle of nowhere. The sky was a mix of rain clouds, puffy white clouds and bright sunshine. It's just amazing how open and truly uninhabited this area is. I was able to hike up into the Indian ruins and enjoyed the red dirt and sagebrush. A visitor showed me a few Pottery shards that he discovered!

By now it was already over 100 degrees, and since none of our national parks allow dogs on any of the trails I had to leave Jo Jo in the RV with the AC and generator running. I felt a bit guilty making such noise in this pristinely quiet area but there's not much I can do otherwise. I still had about 3 hours and 45 minutes to reach the north rim of the Grand Canyon. I managed to cross over the navajo bridge near Glen Canyon, just as I watched a flock of vultures flying directly overhead. Fortunately I was holding on to Jo Jo, safe and sound, as temperatures were already 110°. We only spent a few minutes here to capture the view before I went on to Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. A beautiful series of cliffs in the colors that you would see in the Grand Canyon. I shortly came upon an interesting outcrop of rocks that looks sort of like mushrooms, very precariously balanced with a narrow stem. They looked as if they could topple right over. From there I got gas before finally arriving at the north rim to find fire road number 611. I had read about camping in this area right along the edge with a view of the north rim. Needless to say it was still quite a drive on this dirt road which took me almost 45 minutes. The road became narrower and narrower and I did find one spot that was rather tricky to squeeze into. There were still a lot of trees in the way of a view so rather than staying, I continued on a little bit further until I found an area that was much more open. I can't believe the view that I see right from my parked spot. I've already been here a few hours and am just in awe of the way the sun and the shadows, and the colors, are constantly changing. It's profoundly cooler hear about 75 degrees, and it's already a tad chilly. What a refreshing change from the valley!






















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

At home now… from the great 2023 Alaska Road Trip!

Image
​ Jo Jo and I are home, from the trip of a lifetime! 106 days, 11,539 miles, 675 gallons of gasoline, a ton of fun, beautiful views, and amazing experiences. Other than a brief head cold, no other mishaps, except my souvenir windshield chips. The Sylver Gypsy performed wonderfully. She kept me safe and warm. My last days were drive heavy, but I managed a quick stop at Bryce Canyon National Park. My last night was in the Coconino Forest near Flagstaff, where I also made a brief stop at Sunset Crater. I’ll need a few moments to adjust being back to reality, but it’s nice to be home!
Read more

Bryce Canyon National Park, then almost home

Image
​ A great night in the Utah desert, and a rather chilly morning, surprisingly, but I got up and hurried out of there with the intention of getting to Bryce Canyon National Park. I wondered if I would have enough time and decided it was only 20 minutes one-way, out-of-the-way as I continued on my route home. This would be my third time visiting Bryce and I’m so glad I did. As with any National Park, there are some new changes and the Ranger told me that because I’m over 20 feet I would have to park in the main parking lot and take the shuttle bus in to see the viewpoints. She gave me a tag to hang in my window. My heart sank to the bottom, since I know the shuttle buses will not except pets, and I was not willing to leave Jo Jo. However, upon examining the tag, it indicated vehicles over 23 feet to park and shuttle. My Travato is 21 feet. Hmmmm, I was annoyed. So I ignored the directions and went straight to the parking area at the sunrise amphitheater and not only did I see other campe...
Read more

Montana to Blackfoot, Idaho

Image
​ Well, other than spending the day driving I didn’t do much else. Unless you consider the excitement of filling up my gas tank for $80.00. It’s the first time in a long time when I looked down I saw my gauge in the red and the yellow warning light came on indicating low fuel. I never do these things, but I must’ve been in “the zone” while driving. Either way, I made it to the next gas station and I also have 2 gallons as a spare mounted to my ladder. I wound up staying in the same place that I stopped in May, as I was traveling up north. It’s Rose Pond Park near the town of Blackfoot, Idaho. I even recall exactly where I stayed and it was open and available. However, there was a radio concert going on right around the corner. I wasn’t into listening to the “boom boom.” I found another spot just as a truck came with three ATV, mini bikes and kids who spent the next two hours driving around, mostly in the parking lot. I was actually concerned that they would come by too closely or lose ...
Read more