The views speak for themselves at the king of natural wonders
“In time and with water, everything changes”. That’s a quote from on of the maps I got at the Grand Canyon. The sights and sounds of the canyon are breathtaking. Seeing a sunrise or sunset over the jagged, colossal sides is sure to be burned into your memory forever. But for me, going to the canyon was a realization of scale. The sheer amount of time that matter has existed here on earth, and the sheer amount of time that it takes for these geological formations to come to be. Earthquakes, floods, and storms made this canyon the way it was, but it’s not like anything has changed since the Grand Canyon Village was built, or the railroad up there, or all the museums, shops, and restaurants precariously close to the canyon edge. Maybe a couple more million years and we need to think about moving some stuff around.
That being out of the way, our destination was Grand Canyon Village, and we were ready to take in the amazing sights. Our trip there from Page was mired by a snowstorm! And it was still snowing when we got there! We got nice and settled into our hotel room at the lodges and managed to get out again for amazing sunset views, though.
The next day was more relaxed in terms of weather, and we thought to check out the most famous trail “Bright Angel”. This however made me realize that while the canyon as a whole doesn’t shift in a million or even two million years, the trails we make venturing down to the Colorado river below are certainly subject to change. The trail was closed for both repairs, and a water infrastructure project that was underway. No worries, the hike down to the river and back is one of the most difficult yet underestimated hikes in the state, and sees multiple deaths per year from exposure, dehydration, and accidents!
