Vegas + Sedona Thanksgiving

We dragged ourselves out of bed for our last day of adventuring before flying home tomorrow. We have gone hard the last few days and a rest day would be really nice, but alas, we hate crowds and really hate waiting in line, so that alarm went off earlier than we prefer. The Grand Canyon waits for no one.

We took Kyle's last suggestion to drive through Oak Creek Canyon on our way up to Flagstaff. It was such a pretty drive. Nate and I were both so surprised by how much color there was in the autumn foliage. If this trip has taught me anything, it's how very little I knew of northern Arizona. The Coconino Forest around Sedona is so lush in ways that I never expected.

Once out of the canyon we finally caught views of Flagstaff in the daylight and were shocked by the snowcapped mountains north of the city. I truly had no idea there were mountains like that in Arizona. We continued north into the territory of the Navajo Nation. All we could see of the area was from the main road, but the poverty was evident and a reminder of centuries of mistreatment of the native people.

We rolled into Grand Canyon National Park around and were delighted that there was no line to get in. Our first stop was at the eastern watch tower. The wind was so cold so we didn't stay too long in this spot, but did swing by a small deli to get lunch and some knick knacks.

Fully fueled and warmed back up, we started back down the main road and pulled into a number of viewpoints. It was impressive to see how the river has carved out the land, but also felt somewhat removed from the most impactful features. Compared to Canyonlands and Black Canyon of the Gunnison, we were much further away from the more dramatic drops and turns. Perhaps if we had more time to actually hike into the canyon it might feel different, but Nate and I both felt surprisingly underwhelmed.

One thing that did surprise me the most about driving through the park was that the surrounding eastern and southern edges of the plateau is one big forest. I thought it was just a big desert around the canyon.

Our last stop was an impromptu hike out to Shoshone Point. We were tired of the crowds and figured we could find a few less folks if we walked a ways. We hiked about a mile through the forest before reaching the canyon. The views were definitely worth the extra effort. And in an uncharacteristic turn of heights-related bravery, I even ventured out onto an out-cropped ledge to take in the view.

Meanwhile, Holden was feeling the drag of the last few days and decided to hang out in the picnic area while the rest of us wandered and investigated what we could find.

Time was not on our side during this quick Grand Canyon visit. I certainly never imagined our first visit to the Grand Canyon would simply be a quick stop on our way to catch a flight, but sometimes you gotta take what you can take. If we come back again, we will definitely make plans to hike and explore further into the canyon. It truly is remarkable, even if it was different than we expected.

The rest of our drive back to Vegas went smoothly. Nate and I were both continually surprised by how many smaller mountain ranges filled the landscape. At dinner we all talked about our favorite parts of the trip:

-- Holden: Thanksgiving Dinner
-- Everett: The magic show!
-- Nate:
-- Amy: hiking around Sedona, friends and learning I knew nothing about Arizona

We made it back to the hotel and conked out very early before getting up for our 330a wake up call to catch our flight home.

This trip has been full of so many unexpected surprises. Exploring with this little family of ours is really a special thing and we loved getting to see friends in the new place they call home. I think it's safe to say that this will not be our last trek to this part of the world.Lue lisää