It's a bit of a drive, but we're going for it. We are not able to stay much closer to the Grand Canyon because of the weather so this is the best we can do.
On the way however, we stop at the Sunset Crater Volcano. This volcano erupted about 1000 years ago. Recent excavations showed empty pueblos underneath the volcanic rock which supports the thinking that the Native Americans would have had plenty of warning before it erupted.
In the final burst red and yellow oxidized cinders shot out from the vent. The resulting colourful landscape reminded people of a sunset, hence the name.
We walk around this amazing landscape in awe. Again something completely different from anything else we have seen on this trip.
We have gained quite a bit of altitude and we also get an opportunity to touch the snow!
On the way out we are treated to a beautiful view of the San Francisco Peaks. Martijn is looking for a good line for his snowboard...
As we drive further North, we also drive further up. We max out at 2140 meters altitude. A lot easier without the trailer.
Around lunch time we make it to the Grand Canyon. Not only is it very deep (up to 1,800 meters), it is also very wide (average 16 km, up to 29 km in places) and very very long (446 km, we drove about 55 km of it). Needless to say, photos do not do is justice...
We stop at every single viewpoint and enjoy the changing perspective.
As the day moves on and the sun gets lower, the shadows are getting longer and the canyon redder.
One day definitely was not long enough. We didn't even have time for any hikes along or down into the canyon. Tired and cold we wrap it up for a long drive back.
Today: 535km - 7h15m
Total: 23,487km - 457h23m
