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The Grand Canyon on our ownOct 30, 2006
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Monday, we went back to the Grand Canyon to see it "on our own". What a fantastic day!! Since it was a Monday, there were hardly any tour buses, a lot fewer people, and a lot less conjestion. We decided not to take the helicopter ride. Just didn't want to part with that much money this time. Our friends who had taken the copter ride said it was well worth it. We felt there were too many other things we wanted to see at this time. We will be back. We will take the copter flight at a later date, as well as the mule ride to the canyon floor.
We began our day at the Canyon View Visitors Center. Got some maps and parking info etc. We then walked across the road to Mather Point, where we proceeded to spend the next 2 1/2 hours! This is the way we wanted to see the GC. We walked the entire 1.5 mile trail and spent time at every overlook, just taking in the view (and lots of photos). It was nice to be able to sit on a bench or a rock and just LOOK. What a fantastic place! We loved it!! We also wanted to drive to the east end of the canyon, but time was running out. We opted to drive all the way to the east entrance and follow the sunset back. We arrived at the Watchtower just 30 minutes before it closed. If you go to the GC, don't ignore the east end, called the Desert View. It is even better than all the publisized points. The views were great, even though we didn't get a good sunset shot. Grandview is the best in my opinion. We considered staying another day, but we really needed to get on our way. It would have been great to see that Desert View in the full daylight. Anyway, you'll just have to look at the photos.
I have learned one thing about the Grand Canyon. No photo or picture will ever tell you how beautiful and absolutely mind-blowing it is. You just have to go see it for yourself.
