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Published: January 23rd 2011
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Many will say that is it not a good idea to revisit a previously hot spot, do you agree? Well I think it depend on the spot. I tend not to return to places I have visited before unless, I really love them. I have a few of those places, one such place is the Grand Canyon. Living in Arizona, makes it even easier for me to make return trips. When I first visited the Grand Canyon National Park 6 years ago, I thought I could never have the right words to describe it. Well I still don't. But after 6 visits, I can tell you sincerely, that it's grandeur is unmatched. Unlike many hotspots, the Grand Canyon has retained it's mysteries, no developments hammering away at it's lure and magic. A week into the New Year, my childhood friend, and best friend Agnes flew in to Arizona, from San Francisco, where she had spent 10 days attending a workshop for Abolition Academy on Human Trafficking. Christmas and New Years. We had agreed she would visit me for a week seeing as she had to return to Minneapolis where she is completing a Humphrey Fellowship Program at the Humphrey Institute University
of Minnesota.
Mark, Desire and I, traveled from Tucson, to Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix to pick Agnes up. The drive is about an hour and a half with flowing traffic, but during rush hour, it could take up to 2 hours. Mark was anxious to leave Tucson, while I was reluctant to go early because there is not much to do at the airport. Beside, I had an unfinished blog to write about the Mardi Gras themed New Year's Party. With Mark and Desire both nagging at me, I decided I was fighting a loosing battle. I succumbed and off we went. The freeway was not as busy as we had expected, even as we approached Chandler. We were at Sky Harbor 15 minutes before the plane landed. Agnes went through arrivals check point and was soon beaming at as as we run to greet her. Time was not on our side so we decided to catch up on the excitement in the car. We had a 4 hour drive from Phoenix to Flagstaff, it was 6:30 pm before we drove out of the parking garage.
Our bags were packed for an overnight in Flagstaff. We
will leave Flagstaff at the crack of dawn for Grand Canyon National Park. Mark pre-booked accommodation at the Ramada Hotel. I was particularly impressed with the rooms and the amenities. We paid a reasonable price for what would cost a little over a hundred dollars in New York or Washington. It had snowed the night before, so there there was snow on the ground, the air was dump and the temperature was below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. I was cold naturally (I'm cold when temperatures drop below 70 degrees), well I live in Arizona, it is the desert. We called it a night at 11:00 pm after I had warmed the room enough for Mark to get no sleep at all (smile!).
Nothing prepares you for what you see when you arrive at the Grand Canyon. After 5 visits, I'm still awed by the majesty of this Canyon. We had completed a short viewing of the Imax Grand canyon Movie which left Agnes feeling a little woozy, and Desire wanted to make snow balls from the snow at the Imax theater parking lot. It had snowed the night before and the previous night too, so the plough trucks had been
busy at the Park. We have a 1 year all National Parks Access Card, so we did not pay entrance fees. For $89, it is worth having the pass. The ages have worked their way on the land that is now the Canyon. Nature's forces working in combination have curved the walls in meticulous layers and colors that beam with the sun's rays. The Colorado river drained in many years ago, and still runs through the Canyon.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
You are an accomplished photographer
I really enjoyed your blog and can't wait to read more. I hope you will publish another one soon. You might enjoy joining some of the forums and add your comments. We have one on photography that I'm sure you would enjoy. Happy Travels, Merry Jo