August 14 - Grand Canyon and Highway 89

Wow! Now that’s a canyon! I hadn’t originally planned to visit the Grand Canyon this year as I have been trying to avoid high traffic areas. But when the mechanical issues with my bike forced me to divert to Tucson and then Chandler yesterday, I saw how close I was to Flagstaff and simply couldn’t resist. I had visited the north rim of the Grand Canyon last year but had not been to the south rim yet on my own bike. What a treat!

The ride from Flagstaff to the north rim of the Grand Canyon was very pleasant this morning, with a cool breeze and less traffic than I anticipated. I parked near the visitor center and walked out to the Mather Point overlook.

I must say I have an even greater appreciation for the south rim having been to the north rim last year. The north rim is at a higher elevation and further away from major cities. So it is much cooler, less crowded, and has more trees. However, you really can’t beat the views from the south rim. Because the south rim is at a lower elevation you can look directly into the opposite canyon walls and clearly see all of the colors of the rainbow created by the trace amounts of minerals in the soil.

I spent a great deal of time walking to different spots along the rim so that I could see the canyon from a variety of perspectives. I marveled at the fact that the Colorado River, which seems relatively small in size, was able to carve out such an enormous geological wonder.

After taking in the views from the north rim I got on the bike and headed out on 64 East, also known as Desert View Drive. There are quite a few overlooks from different angles on this drive, many of which provide unobstructed views of the canyon.

From highway 64 I took highway 89 north to Panguitch, a drive that was almost as spectacular as the Grand Canyon itself. The road is surrounded by cliffs, mesas, and buttes with many of the same colors as the Canyon. As I got further north and closer to Lake Powell the soil turned from reddish to more of an orange. I could have taken hundreds of pictures today but decided to spend most of my time drinking in the view and reflecting on how fortunate I am to be able to travel these roads on my bike