We also stopped in Cottonwood and Jerome before stopping in Flagstaff for the night. I really liked Flagstaff and its historic downtown that has plenty of 2 for one happy hours, a good selection of independent dinning establishments and shopping. Bicycles are everywhere and bike lanes are included in the new roads.
I went for a run the next morning and could feel the lack of oxygen, for some 4 or 5 thousand feet is nothing but when you come from 400 its a lot
The drive from Flagstaff to the canyon was great, we explored some of the Forest service Roads and found some really nice places to return with the RV and boondock for free. The mix of pine and aspen and mountains was nicer than I had expected and we took a couple of short hikes before moving on to the Canyon.
We drove to Bright Angel Lodge and checked in, this picture was taken then just below the rim right outside (100ft) our room. We explored the Park via the free shuttle buses and rested for our hike to Plateau Point.
We made to hike down the Bright Angel Trail all the way to Plateau Point with no trouble, we stopped at Indian Gardens by the Creek for a break, at Plateau Point we had our lunch and watched a group of rafts on the river. As you can see it was a clear day with moderate temperatures, all that would soon change
Storms started building on the north side of the canyon and we hiked fast to try and beat the rain, its a good thing I had rain gear for us both in my pack, we needed it.
Storms started building on the north side of the canyon and we hiked fast to try and beat the rain, its a good thing I had rain gear for us both in my pack, we needed it.
While it did rain on us we missed most of the rain and it soaked into the ground quickly, however after we finished the hike it rained the rest of the day and most of the night. It was nice to see the canyon in all the different modes and also scary to see the lightning strikes while you are still in the canyon.