The Grand Canyon is not only beyond words, it's beyond my imagination. I've seen it, I've hiked it, and I've lived there. In the few years that I called the Grand Canyon home, I saw more wildlife and spectacles of nature than I have seen during the rest of my life. There is so much going on at the Grand Canyon that you just have to go and see for yourself. Here are some personal accounts of once-in-a-lifetime wonders that I experienced at the Grand Canyon:
Rainbows
Watching a storm over the canyon is awesome. One summer day I was walking the rim after a storm that had actually traveled up the Canyon yet below the rim, so I was looking down on the storm. I could see the lightning and hear the thunder rumble up the canyon walls, but what was really a sight was the double rainbow that followed the storm through the canyon. Looking at the rainbow from above, I could see the entire circle rather than just an arch. I've never seen such a rainbow since.
Chickadees
When I lived at the Grand Canyon, I worked at the Bright Angel Gift Shop, which is right on the south rim. I spent my breaks relaxing on the rock wall just outside the shop and overlooking the canyon. Lots of little birds and chipmunks frequent the area looking for scraps of food dropped by tourists. One day I decided to try an experiment. I placed a few raw sunflower seeds next to me on the rock wall. Within seconds a chickadee swooped down and grabbed one. Then more until they were gone. I next put a few in my hand and held it out keeping still. The chickadees showed no fear as one quickly lighted on my hand and stood there eating sunflowers as if it were at a feeder. From then on, I made a habit of carrying a bag of sunflower seeds in my pocket whenever I went on break. It worked so well, that I found joy introducing kids to this wonder. I'd hand them some sunflowers and tell them to hold their hand out and be still. Their eyes opened wide when a chickadee would land and take a sunflower. What a thrill.
Bald Eagle
I play dulcimer and one late summer day I was at Grandview Point, which overlooks Horseshoe Mesa. This is a good place for rock climbing, and a good place to play my dulcimer and listen to it resonate through the rocks. I was sitting there tuning my dulcimer when I saw a shadow go over me. I looked up and saw a big bird flying off in the distance. I kept my eye on it and it made a big circle as it rode the thermals coming out of the canyon. The thought came to mind that maybe the bird heard my dulcimer and came by to see what it was that was making this strange sound. I continued playing, and the bird continued its loop. It took maybe 10 minutes, but the bird came all the way back around to where I was sitting and playing. It was big and flew within 10-15 feet of me, turned its head and looked me straight in the eye. I could hear a loud swoosh from its wings, which had a span of 12-15 feet. It was a bald eagle that came by to hear me play dulcimer that day.
Bluebirds and Petroglyphs
Yaki Point is the head of the Kaibab Trail, which heads to the Colorado River and Phantom Ranch. East of here and just below the rim is a deer trail. I was here this day with my friend Dennis, who was taking me to see some petroglyphs about 1/4 mile east of Yaki Point. We had been following the deer trail for awhile when we heard a loud fluttering behind us. We stopped, turned around and looked, but saw nothing. We continued along the trail when suddenly we heard it again. This time the sound came right up and engulfed us. We were surrounded by literally hundreds, if not thousands, of bluebirds. Talk about a chat line. They sure had a lot to chirp about. The bluebirds were migrating along the south rim and they were kind of hopping. They would land for a minute or two, and then they would all take off together and fly a short ways before landing in the trees again. They continued this pattern until they were out of sight. The whole event took maybe 5 minutes, and I was lucky to be there to see it.
Scorpions
I did many solo hikes when I lived at Grand Canyon. One of these hikes I went into the center of Horseshoe Mesa to the Tonto Plateau. I planned to spend the night laying in my sleeping bag and star gazing. Days are definitely hot inside the canyon, and nights can get quite cool, thus the sleeping bag. I eventually dozed off. It must have been several hours when I awoke to the sound of little feet scurrying on my sleeping bag. I slowly opened my eyes to see myself covered in scorpions taking advantage of my body heat in the cool of the night. I quickly shook them off without getting stung. Wondering what to do, I dug a small trench around my sleeping bag and poured a little camp stove fuel in it with the hopes that the fumes would ward off the scorpions. I fell back to sleep and awoke at dawn and not a scorpion in sight. Talk about creepy.
"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which, so far as I know, is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world.... Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it, and man can only mar it. What you can do is to keep it for your children, your children's children, and for all who come after you, as the one great sight which every American....should see." ~ Theodore Roosevelt
Into the Grand Canyon
The most fascinating thing about the Grand Canyon is the Grand Canyon itself, and the best experience is to hike into it. I hiked the Grand Canyon many times, and each time was spectacular. I ceated a photo journal of one such hike, which you can see in my
Grand Canyon Photo Gallery.
Explore the resources below to plan a trip to the Grand Canyon.
