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Published: October 21st 2012
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Not only is Sweetie still alive but out of the bed for a Sunrise Walk in the Canyon. We head to Mather Point - the far east part of the Southern Rim where we're staying. Light truly dictates the view at the Canyon. Had to head back to the room for a short while - the cold air was killing Sweetie's head.
After a couple of hours, it was time to head out for breakfast. We decided to skip the cafeteria style and head to Bright Angel Lodge at the rim. We both scored big with a great meal for a change. Sweetie had a Huevos Rancheros Skillet with blue corn tortillias, refried beans, green chiles, scattered hash browns, cheese and eggs over hard. I had a country fried steak skillet with country fried steak, scattered hash browns, cheese grits (great grits), poached eggs, country gravy and a biscuit. Yummm, Yummm! I felt like I was at home - it was so good (ate the whole thing)!
We were off to burn this delicious breakfast off. With a quick stop at Lookout Studio which is now a museum store with incredible views. This building was designed by Mary Elizabeth
Jane Coulter who is just an amazing talent and one of this country's first woman architects. In addition to the Lookout Studio, she also designed the Hopi House, the Bright Angel Lodge, the Desert Watchtower and Hermit's Rest - all still accessible in the Park today. Her gift was to create buildings from the surroundings. They blend into the landscape vs. the European/Victorian styles that were generally preferred at the time.
Our next stop is Kolb Studio which was opened in 1904 by the Kolb Brothers who sold pictures to tourists who hiked the Bright Angel Trail. Today, it is a souvernier shop and art studio with paintings of the canyon by different, talented artists. The picture of the projector on the blog today is the one they used to show their film documentary of their trip down the Green and Colorado Rivers through the Grand Canyon. It was shown at the Studio when they expanded to include an auditorium. It holds a record that still stands today of the longest continually run documentary. From here, we head to the bus stop to board the sightseeing bus (an attempt to keep Sweetie going so she could stay awake for
8:30pm dinner reservations!) We stop off at Powell Point to view the canyon from here and took some pictures and made the short trek to Hopi Point. This is where you get to see the largest part of the Colorado River, without hiking down to it. Again, the beauty of this canyon is beyond description. From here we hike to Mohave Point along an unpaved path right next to the rim. Ahole moved quickly on this part of the trail. We didn't want to over do it so we took the bus back down to visitor transfer. We do a little shopping at Hopi House and Verkamp's Curios and head back to room for even more R&R (also known as college football). Sweetie naps and I watch Florida destroy South Carolina, Alabama dismantle Tennessee, and KSU whup up on West Virginia. Also, kept up with Bulldogs lackluster performance against Kentucky. I don't have a good feeling about next weekend in Jacksonville...
We had made reservations at El Tovar, the king of all the dining rooms on the south rim. Sweetie, still not feeling up to speed, ordered French Onion soup for starters and I had a Classic Caesar Salad.
Her soup was delicious and my salad would have been better if it had not been pre-made. My wife ordered Veal JaegerSchnitzel, breaded veal cutlet with mushroom demiglace and seasonal vegetables. Not so much for the JagerSchnitzel!!! I ordered a filet mignon rare and hey, they got it right...it was tasty! We also had an Oregon Pinot Noir made specially for the El Tovar by Henry Vineyards - it was very good and we are so glad Tim turned us onto Oregon Pinot Noirs! Belgium chocolate ice cream for dessert went down smoothly with a double espresso.
It's almost 10pm and Sweetie is still upright! Tomorrow, we leave the Canyon and head for more Route 66 and Alburqurque!
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Cam Ron
Cameron Brown
Absolutely spectacular. You guys are the most awesomest!!!