Our first big stop on the way down to Flagstaff was Horseshoe Bend, right outside Page, Arizona. It felt great to be out of the car and walking/climbing around:

We didn’t know it then, but this was our last warm moment of the trip.

We’d been there for maybe 20 minutes when the other Lewises caught up with us.

I think this position ended up being most advantageous for photographing the whole bend, but I think maybe I like the more dynamic lighting in the earlier shot (up there^) better?

First views of the Grand Canyon the next day from Mather Point. Even under the midday, overcast sky it was still impressive:

Luckily, he survived this:

Starting down the South Kaibab trail towards Skeleton Point. I picked this to be our one major hike because I heard it had killer views:

Enjoying Ooh Ah Point even with the bland lighting:

The descent was undertaken with a lot of cheerful energy (aren’t those 5 hikers in a line adorable?):

Once we were below the lip of the canyon things were much less windy. The temperature was just about perfect for hiking:

A gigantic yucca beside the trail. I had Max stand next to it for scale:

At the destination/end of how far we were intending to go—Skeleton Point (about 3 miles down the South Kaibab Trail and 2,000ft down into the canyon. Going all the way down to the river would’ve been another 2,700ft of descent over another 4 miles. Fun to see the green of the river winding through the bottom of the whole thing since you can’t see it from the top/Mather Point:

As the overcast sky broke up and the lighting got more dramatic, the real majesty of the Grand Canyon started to reveal itself. It was much easier to see (and appreciate) the scope, dimensions, and layers of the canyon by getting down into it:

Max was the only child disappointed that we didn’t do MORE hiking:

The energy level on the journey back up was a tad less buoyant (Jojo—and everyone—did great, she’s just the one in the picture). I agreed with them that doing hikes the traditional way is preferable—climb at the start, finishing with the descent. The hope of In-N-Out back in Flagstaff kept everyone moving forward:

The first of many panoramas (just wait ‘til the bottom) of the scenery. Watching the light/day change and moving through the Grand Canyon really helped the awesomeness of it all sink in (I remember being really unimpressed when I saw it as a kid—13?—on the way to Tucson):

A dramatic/vertiginous look back at the path we’d taken:

By the time we met up with the rest of the crew at the visitor center, things were getting dark. But I did get this panorama from Mather Point. I actually really love how it turned out, but I’m glad I didn’t know it then or we may not have come back the next evening.

The next day we walked down into Walnut Canyon (15 minutes outside Flagstaff) to see the Native American cliff dwellings built there in the 1100s to 1200s:

The inhabitants didn’t excavate these rooms, this strata of rock was naturally softer and eroded away creating a perfect, human-sized gap to build walls around and make dwellings that were safe from the heat and weather:

Dozens and dozens of these dwellings were located all around the canyon on both sides at almost the exact same level/strata in the rock:

After having lunch at MartAnn’s Breakfast Palace (which was super good), Amanda, Max, Eleanor, Callum, and I headed back to the Grand Canyon to see if we could catch more views at sunset (having narrowly missed it the night before). Everyone else did some shopping and went on a house tour (which Chris and Laura said was neat).

On a re-do of the Grand Canyon, we would’ve stayed closer than Flagstaff. That said, Flagstaff was beautiful (we would totally live there!) and we enjoyed having more restaurant options available.

This time we entered on the east side of the park. Desert View Watchtower:

The late afternoon sun made for some really dramatic lighting and some stunning views. You can see that the canyon isn’t near as deep on this end (still very impressive) with the winding Colorado River easily viewable from the edge:

Looking west, deeper into the canyon:

After finishing at Desert View Watchtower, we hustled down the rim of the canyon to the visitor center to catch hotel shuttle to Yaki Point for sunset. The views and evening light did not disappoint (notice the trail we took the previous day snaking along in the lower left of this picture):

Aaaaaand here’s just a ton of pictures as the sunset progressed towards night at Yaki Point.

The other freezing people watching the sunset:

My only regret was spending all of my attention and effort taking pictures as the light kept changing and not getting to just stop and soak it all in (though it was VERY cold and windy, so maybe that wouldn’t have been that nice):

We drove home the next day, making a quick stop at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes, which (as you can see) was a bust:

Then, to add insult to injury, the Beaver Creamery had just closed before we got there. Listening to Anne of Green Gables on audiobook kept everyone in good spirits, though. Luna was overjoyed to see us and had a lot of meows and purrs to share.