I saw the Grand Canyon and lived to tell about it
The Grand Canyon
My young daughters didn’t want to go to the Grand Canyon. They were afraid that we, especially me, would fall in.
They had read and heard stories of people dying at the Grand Canyon. It didn’t help that on the week before our trip a man drove his RV over the south rim. Maybe it was a Thelma and Louise thing.
But I insisted. If we were going to be that close on our drive to the beaches of sunny southern California for vacation, we were going to take a sidetrip to the Grand Canyon.
I just wanted to see it, I explained. It’s not like we were going climbing, mule riding or even hiking. We would strictly be tourists.
We would be five of the 4 million tourists that visit the Grand Canyon each year. It seemed like a million were there on the day we went.
And some would get precariously close to the edge. But not me. My girls made sure of that, although I did slip off and snap a few photographs beyond the restraining wall, but not much beyond. I didn’t go to the edge. Didn’t want to risk falling 600 feet.
Thunderstorms and lightning made our day at the Grand Canyon shorter than expected, and I was disappointed that I didn’t get to see more of it.
If I ever go again, I will plan to spend more time. While there, it struck me that to really appreciate the Grand Canyon, it should be explored, not seen by the eyes of a tourist just passing through.
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Comments
I’ve got a book that’s called “Death in the Grand Canyon.” The author researched every death in the canyon, then categorized them by chapter and told the stories. No. 1 killer is plane crashes, though most of the plane crash deaths come from one incident back in the 50s.
my boyfriend’s dad is cheif of maintainence there…people die all the time lol. but mainly because they go down in the canyon unprepared. if you go hiking, you must take plenty of water and food, and tell someone when you’re going and when you’ll be back. it is really beautiful though, because they live a mile from the south rim and can bike to see it everyday.
Ed, my family and I shared similar thoughts as did you on our recent vacation to sunny California. The Grand Canyon was one of the highlights of our trip. It was our first time seeing the canyon and we truly enjoyed the view.
Hiked to the bottom and spent the night with my 2 sons at Phantom Ranch. Steak dinner that night awesome breakfast and pack lunch they gave us. Beats any other trip I can think of.
Ed, You really do need to spend a couple days there. It’s truly one of Mother Nature’s most splendid works. You need to either raft the Colorado, or take a mule ride from the rim down to the river, preferably, both!