Grand Canyon National Park South Rim

After spending a few days in the Valley of Fire State Park, we added the Nevada state sticker to our USA map and headed back to Arizona and the Grand Canyon. This time it was the South Rim. Even though it was my third visit, the view still takes my breath away. Lee had only been to the North Rim before this, so I was eager to see his reaction. He was blown away by the magnitude. You get a much better sense of the enormity of the canyon from the South Rim.

On our first evening, we watched the sun setting on the canyon.














We took a bike ride through the park and along the rim of the canyon. There were several miles of paved paths. The views were great.

























The next day, we planned to hike down into the canyon on the South Kaibab Trail. What started out to be a 3-mile hike, turned out to be 6 miles. Once we got started, we didn't want to stop. I have a fear of heights, but I was not at all nervous on the trail. Here are some photos from the hike.

Some switchbacks to start off the trail

Lee oohing and aahing!

Ooh-Aah Point, our first stop

Cedar Ridge, our second rest stop and our original turn-around spot.











Several other hikers told us how beautiful Skeleton Point was, so they convinced us to keep going.

Pack horses along the trail

We made it to Skeleton Point! The views were spectacular. Definitely worth the extra 3 miles.

We could see the Colorado River and Phantom Ranch from here.

Time to turn around and head back up.

Two wranglers, each leading pack mules up the trail, passed us on our way up. When they pass hikers, the mules have the right of way. Hikers are told to step to the inside of the trail and stand quietly while the mules pass.

These are the switchbacks that were at the beginning of the trail. It was fun watching the mules as they climbed.

We followed the mules to the top. We made it! This was a spectacular trail with so many beautiful vistas.

On our way out of the park on our last day, we drove to the end of Desert View Drive to climb the Desert View Watchtower. From the top of the tower, you have a 360-degree view of the canyon, Colorado River, and surrounding landscape.

The walls and ceiling of the inside of the tower were painted with Native American art. These are some examples.

One last look at the canyon and the river and then off to Sedona.