Help me plan my trip to the Grand Canyon

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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The background: I am 40 years old and have never been further west than San Antonio, Texas. I’ve been to Tennessee, Washington, D.C., Cancun, Mexico and Orlando, Florida (and the gulf coast many times).
My parents are 58 and have not done much traveling. I don’t think my dad’s been further west than Lake Charles, Louisiana. We all want to see the Grand Canyon so, we three (my wife and kids aren’t going), and a couple of my dad’s cousins are going to drive from New Orleans to Flagstaff, Arizona. We have two days of driving time to get there and two days to get back. Outside of driving to and from the area, we will be spending about 7 days in Arizona.

We will spend about 3 or 4 days in Flagstaff. Then we will move into the Monument Valley area (Kayenta or thereabouts) for about 3 days.

For those of you who have been in that area, what should we see and what should we do?

There are a few things that we are planning to do for certain like see Meteor Crater, the Petrified Forest and others. I’ve got maps and books and loads of information about the area, but I want to know things from people who have been there. We will be based in Flagstaff at first and we don’t mind a two-hour drive to someplace around there to see something and go back. So, we basically have a two-hour drive radius from Flagstaff for 3 or 4 days and a 2-hour drive radius around Kayenta for 2 or 3 days. I imagine our first stop will be the Grand Canyon to view it and maybe walk down Bright Angel Trail part way (I don’t think any of us are up for a full trip down any Grand Canyon trail).

Other than that, throw me some ideas and give me some of your experiences. I know my dad would be interested in seeing some ancient dwellings.

One specific thing I want to ask is this: I know that a lot of that area is on reservations and that all the travel guides say that if you want to take pictures of the Native Americans working their crafts that you should ask for permission and offer to pay. What is the protocol for that? How much do you offer for a picture? I imagine if I go into any of these areas and see some of the native residents working or making stuff I would be taking pictures and videotaping. I just want to make sure I don’t offend anyone.

So, anyone who knows the ins and outs of a trip to that area, I would much appreciate your input.

Thanks!

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If you want to do one of the mule treks to the bottom, make your reservations now. Also don’t any of you weigh more than 200# or so, or they won’t allow you on the mules.

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Have you considered the North Rim? Much more isolated, less crowded, geologically more diverse!

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After reading about it, I don’t think we’ll be doing the mule trek. I don’t think any of us are up for it endurance-wise. None of us have ever been animal riders. I think we’d opt more for a leisurely stroll down the trail for a bit and then back up. Maybe to the three mile point or so.

And I have thought about the North Rim, but the way we are planning on going, the North Rim might throw things off a bit. We are planning on using Flagstaff as a base and going to the North Rim would be about 200 or so miles around the canyon to get to from there, if I understand things correctly. I think we’d like to hit as many things as we can and spend a moderate time exploring rather than in-depth exploring. I don’t know. I mean, I’d like to see the canyon and surrounding area and “get our feet wet” so to speak, but with only seven days, I don’t think we can truly get deep into things.

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Sedona’s pretty (and expensive) if you’re looking for another city to include on your list.

Bring a backpack and at least a quart of water for each hiker. Even if you’re just doing a leisurely stroll, you’ll need to keep drinking. It’s hotter in the Canyon than above.

Consider a flight if you can afford $100/person. We arrived in Tuseyan from Las Vegas via one of those 4-seaters (we flew “standby”, which was dirt cheap at the time). It was breathtaking, I cried. Very cramped quarters, though - the plane was so small, I could’ve licked the pilot’s ear.

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When do you plan on going? The desert is at its best in the spring, although late winter storms can intrude. Personally, I wouldn’t care to visit in the summer or late fall, and have visited the southwest/4 corners dozens and dozens of times! One reason is purely aesthetic - the nearby mountains look much nicer with a nice snow frosting. The other is that it’s just hotter than hell. It really is high desert in the area and very severe, they can’t even grow good sagebrush in some areas. Always carry a 5 gallon jug of water in the trunk at a bare minimum, tools.

Somebody makes nice sunshades that pop up next to a van or truck - you’ll want some shade probably whether you go camping or not. Many visitors in the desert find themselves too cold sitting in the shade and baking in the sunlight. Be sure to bring a hat and sunscreen, etc. The elevation really makes the sunlight intense and those prone to sunburn will REALLY get affected if not careful.

One decent (they are rare) standard highway-map is called “Indian Country” or something like that, published by the California Highway association.

You guys really need to camp out. “Car camping” in the colorado plateau area there are outstanding views everywhere and natural campsites galore. Reason being - the stars, and to a lesser extent, the increasingly rare pure quiet. Gets cold at night, but the desert landscape looks completely different at sunrise versus sunset. You might want to time certain arrivals knowing this.

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Meteor Crater is not to be missed. Even the non-geology wonks in your party will be impressed.

However, I thought the Petrified Forest was boring, mainly because I felt like if you’ve seen one petrified tree, you’ve seen 'em all, and after the first couple of minutes on the trail, the eyes start to glaze over, “Ah, yes, another petrified log, I see…”

Be prepared for the fact that, standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon, it won’t look anything at all like the way that years of PBS, the National Geographic, and IMAX have taught you it should look. Mainly it’s that it’s so huge that the human eye just can’t take it in from a single vantage point hanging onto a guard rail at the edge, so what you actually see is the edge of a cliff directly at your feet, and off in the vague distance, there’s the rest of it, kind of. You’ll really feel the lack of those helicopter-borne aerial shots. So buy a copy of the video in the gift shoppe. :smiley:

One HUGE caveat about touring the Great American West: there are LOT of fascinating, not-to-be-missed attractions out there, and it will be tempting to try to hit as many as you can “as long as we’re here”.

But–the driving distances are longer than you realize. Even if something is “only” 100 miles away, still that’s an extra couple of hours in the car, and you will find yourself spending hours and hours in the car driving through vast swathes of monotonous West, trying to see “everything”. It isn’t physically possible to see “everything” in only a 7 day trip, so make a list of what ya really wanna see and save the rest for some other trip.

Otherwise, you’ll find yourself “swinging by” the Rocky Mountains, “as long as we’re here”. And trust me, the Rocky Mountains are not something you just “swing by”.

Just go out to the Grand Canyon and back again, and visit whatever’s mostly on the route between there and your house. Don’t make a lot of side trips, or else you’ll come home completely exhausted, with only blurry memories of what you saw out the car window and managed to take pictures of on the fly.

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I can specifically recommend a helicopter ride into the Grand Canyon. I did one from Vegas once. It’s probably not environmentally correct or something, but I liked it.

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Duck Duck Goose said:

I understand. Which is why I’d like to get some input and then I can go back to my parents and suggest some things that are do-able and worthwhile. I mean, basically, what we want is a taste of the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley and a look at Meteor Crater. We will be traveling along I-40, so maybe we’ll make a brief stop in the petrified forest on the way there or on the way back.

However, as far as the drive through desert is concerned, I think I would be fascinated. I have lived most of my life in an area as flat as a pancake, nothing but horizon as far as the eye can see and flat 360 degrees around. I get thrilled when we hit the hills in central Florida on the way to Orlando. I’ve never really seen mountainous regions. I think I would still find it interesting just driving through desert as something I have never seen or done before. Of course, if it’s really that bad, maybe we could rent one of those Dodge Caravans with the DVD player in it. :wink:

As far as the heat goes (we’ll be going in summer). I know to respect the heat. We will bring tons of water and carry it with us always, as well as sunscreening ourselves up all the time and wearing hats. However, from a comfort standpoint, I’m from Southeast Louisiana: New Orleans. During college summers, I worked outdoors at the Audubon Zoo here. 10 hours a day in no air conditioning. 98 to 105 degrees, 80 to 90 percent humidity. Now, yeah, I know, you’re saying “it’s different there. It’s a desert!” Yeah, but at least once a week, I’d get some tourist from a desert state like Arizona telling me “Hell, I’m from (insert desert state), how do you guys stand living here in this heat?!” Seriously. I guess the moisture in the air didn’t allow their sweat to evaporate with a cooling effect like the dry desert air did and it meant they stayed warm.

So, yes, I will drink plenty of water because I know I will be losing it constantly. But is it just a dry heat? Has anyone experienced August in New Orleans to make the comparison? I’m just going by what I heard tourists say and my own personal experience with this area’s heat.

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First of all, I am freaking jealous. Flag is one of my absolute favorite places.

You should do the Petrified Forest. It’s Petrified Forest/Painted Desert Nat’l Park (Monument?). You can take the loop drive which is beautiful, stop to look at a couple of petrified logs, then enjoy the scenery of the Painted Desert. There are a lot of petroglyphs in the PDNP. Be sure to stop to see Newspaper Rock. You can’t get down to it, but you can look through binoculars. It’s way cool!

Definitely also go to Wupatki / Sunset Crater (very short drive out of Flag, and beautiful.) Wupatki is the remains of a village. Be sure to check out the “Blow Hole” while you’re there! It’s on the main loop walk (I don’t remember the length, but it’s gotta be less than a mile.) It’s cool. Literally. Bring a hat. There is no kind of shade there.

Sunset Crater is a volcanic crater field. You can take a short hike up to the top of a cinder cone volcano. The view is great- black volcanic rock and soil with pines growing out all around you. There is a main loop drive with lots of pull-outs and scenic views. The surrounding geology changes quite drastically on that drive from painted desert-style to volcanic field-style.

The nice thing about those 4 is that even if you are tired and don’t want to leave the car, you can get a beautiful view of the area.

Definitely not to be missed is the beautiful drive down to Sedona. Sedona would make a great day trip. You will drive down Oak Creek Canyon (on Hwy 89A I think it is), a lush, green canyon with a cute babbling brook running through it. Stop at the scenic overlook! Going south from Flag, there will be a well-marked overlook on the left side not too far out of town. (Restrooms, usually some vendors, etc.) You can’t see the view from the road at that point, but it is beautiful from the overlook! You’ll be able to see the path you’ll cut down the canyon into Sedona. Again, the change in geology there is amazing. Green, “wet” (for Arizona), and lush to more classic Arizona in an hour drive. (Can you tell I’m a geo nerd?)

Ooh, also in Flag you should go to the Lowell Observatory one night. They run public telescope programs. You can take a tour of the grounds during the day and hear about canali on Mars and the discovery of Pluto. It’s interesting, and the buildings are neat! The observatory is on Mars Hill inside town.

Hang out in the old (small, very easily walkable) downtown area. Flag is a small yet funky town. The downtown has cute shops, a handful of cafes with patio eating, a number of hippie shops, galleries, and the cutest teeny toy store. Oh, and bars, of course. One of the landmarks downtown is the Weatherford Hotel (Charlie’s is the bar downstairs.) Go inside, up the stairs to the Zane Grey Ballroom. There’s a great carved wooden bar and a balcony from which you can watch the people wandering around downtown. Nice place to sit and have a glass of scotch.

Macy’s is a coffee house that caters to the young, hip, and vegan. It’s just south of the railroad track on Beaver St. (Also downtown.) Most of downtown is north of the tracks- don’t be afraid to cross them. Looks a bit sketchy south of the tracks on San Francisco (if memory serves), but the campus of NAU lies that way, so it’s not too sketchy for too long.

If you don’t already have a National Parks Pass, I strongly recommend you get one! It gets you and everyone in your car (or whoever you walk into the ranger station with) into the parks. The yearly fee is $50-$60 (unless you’re a senior). It normally costs $20 just to get in to the canyon, so it’s not that much more than what you’d be spending on just the one park. And this will pay the fees for all of the other Nat’l Parks you’ll visit in the next year. And the money goes to a good cause. I have the National Parks passport book. You can stamp it at each park. It’s a nice reminder of places you’ve been!

Oh man, also go to the Arizona Snowbowl! It’s a ski area that operates the lift during the summer for sightseeing. The view is unbelieveable from up there.

Wave hi to the giant lumberjack for me!

I’ll try to answer any other questions you may have! You’re going to have a great time.

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I went to Tulane and stayed there year round. New Orleans (possibly tied with Houston) is about as hot as it gets from a comfort standpoint in the U.S. I haven’t spent that much time in the desert but I don’t think you should be that intimated because it can’t get much hotter feeling than 95F with 98% humidity. Do bring water though.

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Flag is gorgeous in the summer. The sun can be harsh, but rarely do you get uncomfortable. If it’s too hot, you can get in the shade (unlike evilly humid places). The canyon is at a slightly lower elevation, less shade. At the rim it doesn’t get all that hot, but more so than in Flag. You will get ridiculously thirsty. I am from South Florida, and I never found the heat in northern Arizona to be anything like what we had there. It will suck all the moisture from your body though. Bring eye drops and a saline nose spray- it will make the adjustment much more comfortable. There’s a reason you see Flag people all walking around with Nalgenes full of water. Drink!!

If you are there during “monsoon season”- a floating time in late summer when thunderstorms are frequent, the humidity may spike for the afternoon. That’s it as far as humidity. When you see those 110+F temps, that’s for lower elevations like Phoenix and Tucson. Start hydrating before you leave the hotel in the morning.

Hat and sunscreen are an absolute must all over Arizona. Flag is especially deceptive- it will feel quite pleasant out, yet you can burn incredibly easy (you’re at 7000’!)

PS- I have experienced Tucson in the summer (we’re talking a month with highs above 100, many above 105-110) and Florida in the summer. Except for those few days when it’s really, really hot, (say, above 107ish) and there’s no wind, I’d choose Tucson any day. Throw Flag into the mix, and it wins without a second thought. Phoenix, which is pretty much hell, has a nasty heat island effect and won’t cool down at night. I avoid Phoenix like the plague, and pretend it’s not really part of Arizona.

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Don’t fall in.

No need to thank me, I’m always this helpful. :cool: :stuck_out_tongue:

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I forgot to mention that. They are $80 now, but still worth it. Good for BLM and National Forest fees, too. But where did you get the passport book? ?

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Agreed - both rims are worth visiting, but the North rim is IMHO definitely more sublime. Among other attractions, I got to watch California Condors flying by no more than 50 yards away.

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My dad grew up in Southern Utah and drove tour buses in the national parks down there (including the Grand Canyon) throughout his college years. Because of this, I’m painfully familiar with them - we used to get his tour guide spiel as he drove us through on family vacations.

My one piece of advice is to hit some of the other canyons while you’re down there. Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon and Arches National Park are all within a few hours, and are IMHO quite a bit more beautiful. Having visited each of them at least a dozen times, I think most of what the Grand Canyon has going in its favor is name recognition and sheer size. I’m not saying it isn’t beautiful (it definitely is, especially the North Rim), just that some of the other canyons down there are different and gorgeous too. Bryce Canyon, with its red sandstone cliffs and stands of pine, is just breathtaking.

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Dude, y’all have to go to Jerome - the world’s most populated ghost town (or something). :smiley: Seriously, it’s fascinating, and the mine stuff is so interesting - my parents moved out to Prescott (a cool place to visit too if you have the time) years ago, and my Dad did just about every mine tour that exists. That man loved his 4WD.

Oh - and I have to agree with Chief Pedant, DO DO DO a helicopter tour - it’s a once in a lifetime experience - I was in tears by the time it was done from the sheer beauty of the scenery.

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Wow, $80? I guess that’s with the Golden Eagle sticker? I paid $60 last year for the National Parks plus the Golden Eagle sticker. (note to others: Golden Eagle = entrance to NF and BLM).

I got the passport book at one of the National Park’s visitor center. I think it was at Carlsbad, but I’ve seen them at a lot of the visitor centers and ranger stations. They usually have a park stamp at the visitor center entrance, or wherever you pay your fee. Often with another cutesy stamp or sticker station for kids.

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I very much want to do the Skywalk I’ve never been to the canyon yet, but this will be one of *my *stops when I go.

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fessie said:

missy2U concurred with Chief Pedant on:

So, um, I guess this is a bad time to mention that I am afraid of heights… :smack:

But we’ll see how it goes.