May 23 Grand Canyon

 May 23  204 miles as we take a side trip to the Grand Canyon

Flagstaff is one of the few places we have reservations for 2 nights.  That decision was driven by our desire to take a side trip up to the Grand Canyon, a place neither of us had ever been.  Having seen a couple of canyons on the trip so far we weren't sure what to expect.  All I can say is we were not disappointed.   It is no doubt the grand daddy of them all!  The ride is about 1-1/2 hours from Flagstaff so we left early and arrived about 9:30.  Weather is crazy here - it was 29 degrees this morning but at least sunny and calmer.  The past couple days we've had wind gusting up to 50 mph and dust storms! 

Finally bought my senior lifetime park pass to gain entry - should have gotten it before we started the trip. Then spent the entire day there, not leaving until after 4.   Had a nice lunch at the El Tovar Hotel which sits on the south rim of the canyon. It's another of the old Harvey House Hotels.  This is a very early example built in 1905 in a much more rustic style than his later southwestern style hotels like the La Posada we saw yesterday in Winslow. In fact, this one has the style that eventually evolved into the Park Service rustic architecture. On to the canyon pictures!