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Day 40 - 8/24/2004 - The Grand Canyon
We knew we were still tired from yesterday. We slept in until 8:30, grabbed some breakfast, and headed off to the Grand Canyon. Throughout the southwest portion of the trip, Hunter has been pouring over the scenery in search of a cow skull. Today he got his wish. In the little town of Valle is a trading post with a small shack at one end called - what else - the Skull Shack. And let me tell you this is THE Skull Shack. Cows, bison, elk, something we could not figure out and we were too scared to ask about - they have it all. The prices are pretty reason reasonable, especially considering all of the TLC that goes into the process of extracting intact bones from the head of something that was once alive.
We did not feel like carrying a skull for another 5000 miles, and it would have gotten "buggy" tied to the front grill, so we moved on. Besides, that's all the Federalies would need to hang us on a gaff line. Biohazard bins and a dead mammal skull strapped to the roof - don't sign me up for that scene!
We got to the canyon around lunchtime, and it was everything I remembered from my last trip in 1979. Hunter had not seen it before, so we spent the afternoon taking in the colors and looking for a good spot to catch sunset. We also collected info on camping in the canyon, and Phantom Ranch (for a future trip). We had originally hoped to hike to Havasu Falls, but the logistics and timetable just would not permit it (see picture at bottom of page).
The rest of the afternoon was relaxing, snapping pics, and exploring. We drove east along the south rim and ended up at Desert View about 5 pm. This looked like a good place for sunset and a quick bite. We walked to the watchtower and waited for dusk. We were not disappointed - however the pictures below don't begin to touch the colors and the beauty of the canyon as the last rays of light creep up the walls toward the rim.
After dark, we headed back to Flagstaff. Wednesday is Phoenix and to visit my old buddy Craig!
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