Utah Road Trip - Day 14

If it's Wednesday it must be Grand Canyon Day. The North Rim of the Grand Canyon is only 45 miles from where the two old buzzards are staying at Jacob Lake. So after a wonderful breakfast at the lodge restaurant we headed out. We were going through beautiful meadows with lots of pine trees and aspens beyond the meadows. The aspens are a gorgeous shade of yellow at this time of year. When we were about halfway there it started raining but we were not deterred. Moisture can make for some interesting clouds. Another bonus was that we got a free car wash. Our Wilma was still coated in Utah red dust and now it is gone. Right after we passed through the gate and headed for the visitor center the rain geared up and it even hailed for a while. We even got to hear some thunder and see some lightening. When we got to the visitor center it was just sprinkling again. We did the stamp and pin thing and then headed out to see the North Rim.

Only 15 percent of the people who go to the Grand Canyon visit the North Rim. With a combination of that fact and the rain and it being late in the season there was very little traffic on the roads or the trails. We saw some amazing sights and maybe the photo gallery will give you a tiny taste of what's at North Rim. It is only 10 miles as te raven flies from the South Rim but it offers a very different experience. Solitude, awe-inspiring views, a slower pace and the feeling of going back in time are only a few of the many reasons for visiting the North Rim.

Linda visited Walhalla Glades Pueblo where people lived 900 years ago. It was a summer home to families for over 100 years. It was a favorable place for ancestral people to farm, mostly corn, beans and squash. Look for photos in the gallery for today.

We returned to Jacob lake in time to rest up for dinner at the lodge restaurant. John had Cranberry Cream Cheese Chicken which was a grilled chicken breast with grilled marinated onions, cream cheese and homemade citrus dressing. Linda had today's special which was Grilled chicken breast on a bed of lettuce, spinach, fruit and vegetables, sprinkled with almonds and with orange basil dressing.

We sat at the counter instead of the dining room and it was fun to people watch. Hunting season began this week so there are lots of guys in camouflage. In fact, we had 2 hunters on our right and 1 on our left at the counter. It is amazing to see them up close (yes, they were visible – their camo wasn't that good). They have camouflage hats, shirts, suspenders and pants on. And they are often 4 different camo designs so they are real fashion plates.

Today's photo gallery has 90 images, 62 of which are HDR images. You can view the photo gallery by clicking here.

Tea bag philosophy for today: from Celestial Seasonings Blueberry - “Happiness consists not in having much, but in being content with little” (Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington) Yeah, like a countess would know about having little.

John's Pot-Shot for the day was, once again, chosen at random. Hope you enjoy it!