Days 7,8 and 9 - TX to AZ

So, we haven’t updated in a few days, mainly because we haven’t really had access to wireless internet and because we’ve been pretty busy seeing the sights!

After staying in El Paso, we drove to Las Cruces, NM which was only about an hour’s drive. In Las Cruces we stayed with Chrissy and Dallas Rodriguez with their adorable 3 year-old daughter, Maddie. While there, we pretty much crashed. They made us great burgers and let us crash at their house. All this driving has exhausted us, so it was good to have a relaxed day. 

We left Las Cruces early Saturday morning to head to the Grand Canyon.  We made a quick pit stop in Truth or Consequences, NM (isn’t that a great name for a town!) to have Sonic for breakfast after a recommendation from Chrissy. It was pretty good. If you go to Sonic, get the tater tots instead of fries!

Anyways, the drive through New Mexico was pretty cool. The GPS took us way off the beaten track to get us onto 40 west from 25 north. We took route 6 for about 30 miles through these amazing farmlands and we were the only car on the road for the most part (with the exception of a white minivan that was driving dangerously close to us for the last few miles). Route 6 was part of Route 66, which we could have continued on, but we were really hankering to get to the Grand Canyon. As we were leaving New Mexico, we started to see these signs for an Indian village right over the Arizona border that kept boasting about the great photo opportunities. Like idiots, we didn’t stop and we totally regret it. It was these small Indian shops right off the highway built about 20 feet in front of the foot of a mountain. There were all sorts of caves and beautiful scenery, but we only got to see it from the car because we missed the exit. Heed this advice: if you are driving from New Mexico to Arizona on Route 40, get off at that first exit to see this village. It will be worth it, we assume.  We drove by a few more reservations and villages, but that one looked like the best.

So, after a few hours, we were off the highway and on another isolated road leading us to the Grand Canyon. I’m surprised we didn’t explode with anticipation on this last 55-mile leg. At long last, we found our hotel, checked in and made the way to our cabin.  When they said that we had a view of the rim of the Grand Canyon when I booked this cabin, they forgot to mention that it was probably the best view in the whole park. I kid you not when I tell you that we are about 20 feet from the rim.  For the first half hour we just sat there and stared out the window and played with our fireplace (Tommy is very easily amused by our electric fireplace). The cabin is really amazing. After we got over the initial shock, we deciding to take a hike so we walked a few miles around the rim to the west of the hotel. We probably could have made it further, but it was hard to not stop every 5 feet to take a picture. When people have said that pictures don’t do the Grand Canyon justice, they really meant it. As the sun went down, the shadows changed, giving you a completely different view every few minutes. And every few feet you walked, you could see some new angle or new detail you didn’t see before. It sounds corny, but it really is breathtaking. We went to dinner at one of the many restaurants in the village. It was cafeteria style and packed. We have also probably heard every language spoken on earth since we’ve been here. On the walk back, I am surprised I didn’t fall into the Grand Canyon because I could not stop staring up at the stars. We could see the whole Milky Way. I even saw a meteor. It was great!

In the middle of the night Tommy got up to get a drink of water and was looking out the window at the stars.  After a few minutes he realized there was a deer in the darkness about three feet away from him eating from the tree outside the window.  He woke me as quietly as he could and I sleepily watched it as it walked away.

Today, we woke up at around 8:00 and had a quick breakfast before heading out onto the trail. We loaded up a backpack with water and Gatorade and headed east along the rim trail. It was just as breathtaking today and the weather has been perfect. There hasn’t been a cloud in the sky since we arrived and the breeze really keeps it cooler than you’d expect. I made Tommy nervous a few times by getting too close to the edge, but it is hard not to. There are so many things to see so you want to take it all in from every angle. Again, we stopped every few feet to take a picture.

We even saw some animals, namely lizards, deer, hawks, friendly squirrels, chipmunks, and I even saw a mountain goat while I was standing too close to the edge for Tommy’s liking. There was one point where there was a rock that jutted out over a huge deep precipice so we went right to the edge on our hands and knees and looked over. It was super scary, but was a great view. Also, of course even though we were both wearing SPF 50 sunblock, I got a horrible sunburn on my shoulders and my forehead. Oh yeah, and apparently President Obama was here today, but we didn’t get to see him. We could have walked right past him and not realized it because our eyes barely strayed from the canyon itself. After coming back to the cabin and having lunch, we rested for a bit watching reruns of Alf. Then we caught the shuttle to Hopi Point to watch the sunset. There were tons of people there, because apparently that is the best place to see it, but we hiked down a little and found a great spot right on the edge. We even recorded it and I will try to upload it on YouTube. The video can’t do justice to how beautiful it was. From Hopi Point we were also finally able to get our first real view of the Colorado River at the bottom of the canyon. It is so hard to believe how far down it really is.

Now we are off to dinner and to stare at the stars some more. If we could move into this cabin I think we would.

Here are all the pics for the past few days: West Texas, New Mexico and Arizona (keep your eyes peeled for a mountain that looks just like Jabba the Hutt) and Grand Canyon.

RANDOM POINTS OF INTEREST:

-we saw the fence between Mexico and USA.  I could hop it in a wheel chair.

-we passed a border patrol inspection station, but our blinding white skin and MA plates made us a low threat.  We didn’t appear to be illegal Mexican immigrants or drug mules.

-speaking of mules, “MULE X-ING” signs are hilarious

-there are some great town names like Truth or Consequences, Two Guns, and Elephant Butte.

-Flagstaff, AZ looks like Vermont

-Cactus Jack does not great you as you drive into Truth or Consequences.

-Almost a thousand miles of desert terrain and no live armadillo sightings.

-since we saved a couple of hours by bypassing Albuquerque we couldn’t say we “took a left at Albuquerque” like Bugs Bunny.

-you can buy a brand new two floor, four bedroom house in New Mexico for $177,000

-squirrels are either very vain, or they know there will be a food reward if they pose for pictures.

-Even though there were signs warning of “controlled fires” in the area, we have seen nonstop smoke and flames on the North Rim across from our cabin since we got here, which makes me think that these fires aren’t as “controlled” as they say.