Another beautiful day with the same beautiful woman! We tried to get our film developed at two one-hour places, but neither could get them done today, so we decided that the fates were against us for this project. We ate breakfast and headed up Oak Creek Canyon again. The sun was shining today, so we decided to just enjoy the scenery and not be taking a lot of pix today until we got out of the canyon. We stopped at the lookout at the north end of the canyon and got out the camera again, though.

There had been a couple of girls in a convertible following us up the road, and we conversed with them a little, and exchanged cameras and took each others' pictures. I'm really anxious to get these pix developed and scanned!

We hit Flagstaff ( we both want to call it Falstaff?) and stopped and got gas and cappuchino and then headed to Williams and the Grand Canyon road.

About 10 miles north of Williams on I-40, you could see the snow-covered North Rim on the Grand Canyon, and I had a flashback to 1951? 1952? and my father pointing this out to us when we were on the same road... Dad, Mom, Dan, Linda and me in the '48 Ford woodie. Going to, or coming from, California, I forget which. Give me a break, I was only five!

We got to the Imax Theater shortly after the 12:30 show started, so we bought tickets to the 13:30 show. Karen went to the gift shop and I'm sitting here writing in my journal in the lobby. I sure do love being here with Karen... she is such a wonderful woman!

Later....

The show, The Secrets of the Grand Canyon was great, I can see why everyone who has seen it recommends it so highly. And the Grand Canyon itself is, of course, as great as it is advertised. We stopped at the first turnout, Mather point, and we were properly amazed.

My main problem here is... I'm afraid of heights. And this bothers me a lot. Even with very very solid rock beneath my feet, my stomach gets all queasy and my knees get weak. O'yeah, I still go right up to the edge, overcoming my fear with each step. And my grip on the iron railing is as strong as it is on the dentists' chair... but the beauty is so great that I must crowd my limits, get as close as I can.

And it is worth it.

We are staying at the Bright Angel Lodge, but we do not have a room with a view, and it is a non-smoking room, like the one last night. There is no TV, but we do not have to share a bathroom... the lady pointed out that this makes it a very good room...

By this time, we were both famished, and went to the restaurant at the lodge and had a sandwich. Refreshed, we walked along the canyon trail to the Bright Angel trailhead. It doesn't really look that hard, but we're gonna pass on it this time... neither of us are in good enough shape for it. It'll take me a year to get in shape physically, and then there is the mental part to overcome. But I would love to be able to do it.

The trail itself doesn't look hard, really, and it's the easiest trail here. There are several good places to stop and turn around, it's not like you have to go all of the way down. And it is so cool to look down and see the people hiking down... really makes me want to do what they're doing, see what they're seeing.

Some day soon...

Karen and I went back to the room and unpacked and stretched out on the double bed. We are used to a king bed, this one is simply a double and we are going to have trouble with it, I just know it... anyway, Karen dropped off, and I was restless, so I went out to the rim to smoke and enjoy the view. The sun will set in about an hour, and I want to get some pictures then. Karen is fast asleep, but I'll wake her and we'll watch the sunset together.

Facing one's own fear is hard in the best of times... and the Grand Canyon, like the night sky, points out how insignificant we mortals are. The film we saw depicted a tribe that lived in the canyon and disappeared, leaving only the faintest signs of their passing... a whole race, gone. Our civilization may or may not survive... I wonder what our descendants in a thousand years might find to let them know that we were here... assuming that there are still people here, of course...

Later...

Alas! Not much of a sunset, and it's cold and the wind is blowing and we left our winter coats in Kansas! Dammit, this is Arizona, supposed to be a warm place! We didn't do our homework very well... live and learn, I guess. I always learn things the hard way.

On the way up here, Karen and I would just look at each other and laugh, we were so excited. Two hicks from Kansas... like a couple of kids in a candy store! This world is such a wonderful place, and Karen is so much fun to travel with... to be with. We've never had a bad trip together, and we never will!

We're thinking about doing a bus tour tomorrow, and walking/bussing the rim from west to east from Bright Angel. Tonight, we are both pretty well worn out... a lot of walking today, and I think that the altitude is affecting us too. We won't miss the TV tonight, there is nothing that will keep us awake, but I miss knowing what the weather will be up here tomorrow...