Sunset over the Canyon

With the tour buses gone we took the shuttle bus to the sunset viewing area. There were a couple of different levels to watch from which helped spread out the crowd of 100 or so people remaining at the lodges overnight. Accents from all over the world were heard but "ooh" and "ahhh" are part of a Universal Language of appreciation for Nature and the Cosmos.

Long shadows and we are losing the light

Shuttle bus ride and we are back at the El Tovar within 15 minutes and looking forward to dinner.
The dining room is dimly lit and has a rustic feel as it was built around the turn of the 20 th Century-1910 I think, in the days when steam trains opened up the Canyon to visitors. Simple American cuisine- steaks and such. Not gourmet but satisfying when you have been walking around the Canyon rim on a hot afternoon.

The Rim is very quiet at night once you step away from the lodges. Looking up, the sky had more stars than I had seen in a long time of city living. Mesmerizing. We sat on a bench gazing upwards.

We had to be up for the sunrise! That was our plan, even though it would mean being out of our room by 5 a.m, dressed warmly. Back to the hotel room...

The best feature of the room was the wall of windows that looked out into the Canyon. We spent very little time in the room.

We were up early as planned and walked outside

As we walked we saw a wolf walking through the trees 30 yards ahead. We stopped. I couldn't get my camera out of the bag fast enough to capture him-and he was gone.

We waited on a bench by the rim for the sun to appear....

We enjoyed a cooked breakfast in El Tovar to set us up for the rest of the day as we would be leaving the Canyon in a couple of hours to drive to Sedona, Arizona to spend a few days.

The deer were also having breakfast

Back to the Canyon-waking up to another day of being stared at

The light and shadows are always changing

More to follow......