The Grand Canyon as a “Quick Get Away” Trip?

Well, if you live as close to the canyon as I do, then yes.  It is a quick day trip.

A fun little panoriamic of the canyon from the South Rim

The Watchtower at Desert View. Can't believe I got the shot with nobody in the frame!

Several days ago I just needed to get out of town.  Where to go?  Flagstaff?  Red Mountain?  Sunset Crater?  Somewhere in Sedona?  Yeah, the options were limitless.  So what I did was to start driving with a place in mind.  As I got closer I started thinking about other opportunities.  I went through 4 plans in the span of 45 minutes.  And finally it struck me……..

Head to the Canyon!

So, that’s exactly what I did.  In total about 400 miles of driving that day.  It could have been shorter but I decided to follow the southern rim back to route 89 and then swing by the Sunset Crater area on the way home.  Definitely tacked some extra miles on there, but it was worth it.  Things I’d never seen before!  It’s always nice to discover something new!

One thing I haven’t done on any of my trips to the Grand Canyon was a stop by “desert view.”  It’s basically at the South East entrance, and it’s something I’d never had time for before.  This trip finally addressed missing that stop.  Glad to have made it by finally too.

It really is a desert view there.  All the majesty of the Grand Canyon laid out in front of you.  To the East the desert working toward the canyon.  Pretty interesting contrast in landscapes to be sure!  It makes you wonder what people thought as they approached the canyon so many years ago.  Probably a lot of, “What the heck is that?” going on.  🙂

The trip worked out well, and let me deal with my “get out of town” feelings.  Amazingly enough there were great puffy clouds all day.  Cool temperatures which actually required a light jacket to feel comfortable in.  And the tourist crowds at the canyon weren’t so bad.  Well, at least nobody tried pushing me over the edge (unlike other trips there).

Cloud cover made for interesting shadows in the Grand Canyon

So, if you live in the Prescott area keep in mind……The Grand Canyon is a pretty quick drive up.  In 2.5 hours you can be enjoying something totally different.