I know this is a hiking blog, and I did get in a couple of hikes today at the Grand Canyon. But today's topic is not hiking but grandness. Somehow I think that the grandeur of the canyon affects people in a very positive way. What I notice at the Grand Canyon is that most things are way better than they need to be.
For example take the Rim trail. By all means if you get to the south rim,
take this trail. As expected the route is spectacular and wheelchair accessible. But there is an unexpected extra: the "trail of time" where in roughly a mile hikers walk through 2 billion years of geologic history, followed by the (relatively) brief 6 million year period in which the canyon was created and subsequently inhabited by humans. The dozens of rock samples are amazing. And I finally understand the concept of the Grand Canyon
supergroup.
Then there's the Bright Angel trail, which I've already hiked three times this week. It's a well designed "super highway" trail that can accommodate thousands of hikers and dozens of mules daily. Again there are extras. The 1.5 mile and 3 mile rest stops feature spectacular views, welcome shade huts and solar ventilated toilets -- and the water spigots dispense natural water from Roaring Springs. This cool, delicious water is available all along the Rim, and the park encourages use of refillable water bottles. Of course the trail requires ongoing maintenance, and for the past couple days I've watched a hardworking Americorps crew armed with
trail tools: spades, rock bars, pick-mattocks, Pulaskis and Mcleods. They are in the Canyon for 9 days, then moving on to other projects.
Another example is the Market. Within walking distance of Mather campground the Market is a four-in-one store combining a surprisingly well stocked grocery, deli, camping equipment store (think mini REI) and souvenir shop. Markup at the grocery was unexpectedly low for the national park location. Some items such as ice cream were roughly double supermarket prices, but most items were only 20 to 50% higher. And a few items such as onions, mushrooms and potatoes were actually cheaper. The grocery had everything you would need to make a gourmet camping dinner: fresh fruit and vegetables, spices, rice, pasta, good bread, cheeses, even Brown Cow and Chobani yogurt. In fact I found all of the ingredients to make fresh hummus! And since this is Arizona there's also an extensive selection of liquor, wine and microbrews. The latter were a bargain since you can buy single bottles for about $1.50. I can't speak for the deli since I didn't try it, but they do make veggie sandwiches and even veggie breakfast sandwiches.
Lastly most people at the Grand Canyon are super friendly, both park employees and tourists. Hikers ask questions and sometimes make amusing comments. Today I noticed an Italian couple pointing at some mule poop on the Bright Angel trail. "Myoo-lay," the woman observed. "Orss?" asked her companion. "Ay don-kay," she replied. Near sunset I took a long walk on the Rim trail, and on the way back a woman named MacKenzie asked me if I had seen her parents. I wasn't sure but I offered her my phone to call them. She said,"It never occurred to me to borrow someone's phone. I'm just not used to people being kind. In Illinois people can be brutal. Here everyone is just so nice."
Obligatory hiking notes: my Rim trail walk took me from the Village east about 2 miles to Yapavi lookout, which I reached just in time for a spectacular sunset. Dusk lasted for the 45 minutes it took me to walk back, during which time a crescent moon and Venus shone in the darkening sky. Just amazing... and tonight the stars will be incredible.
