like nothing else on earth

Going to the Grand Canyon and complaining about the crowds or the food is like going to the Sistene Chapel and complaining about the age of the place. The GC is a world attraction, probably the grandest views you can get to by car, and the rest of the world wants to see it too. You’re not there for the food or the hotels. You’re there to see the grandest sight in nature and to watch what the light does to it hour by hour. I’ve been there now seven times, both rims, hiked across, rafted it, stayed on the rim, camped there. I refuse to fly into it because that would bother the tranquility of the place. Because there are so many different vistas and because the scenery from each point changes so much as the light shifts, I can’t imagine just spending a few hours there and then heading off to the next thing. You can park your car and take one of three different shuttles, but perhaps the best views are at the eastern extent of the canyon where there are no crowds. Last week while staying at the Bright Angel cabins my wife and I put on our good boots and loaded up the canteens and walked down the South Kaibab trail and across the Tonto trail to ascend the Bright Angel trail. We’re in our 60’s so of course we got passed a lot and it took 9 hours and it hurt the next day, but I’m ready to go again. I encourage everyone to stay at the canyon and experience sunset and sunrise there and take lots of pictures. During non-vcation periods you’ll find that Americans are in the minority at the rim, which tells you about how much the rest of the world values the site.