Our fifth stop took us to the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
Our drive was pretty uneventful. We made a stop at a Walmart to restock and then at Camping World in Flagstaff to get a replacement vent cover for the RV. It was getting late by the time we got to Flagstaff, so we stopped for dinner at the Kicks on Route 66 restaurant. By the time we got to the RV village inside Grand Canyon National Park, everyone was ready for bed.
Since we were staying in the park we were able to use the shuttle buses to around which was very convenient. Our first day we made a stop at the visitor center to get our bearings and then went to the south rim of the canyon. The views all along the canyon were spectacular and we spent quite a bit of time just wandering along the trail taking it all in. We saw elk just walking through the trail as we walk, we would see them all over the park in the next few days. The kids watched a ranger presentation about the native wild life in the are and then we watched some traditional Native American dancing.
The next day we hiked about 3/4 of a mile into the canyon on the Bright Angel Trail. Collin was scared on walking on the trail since a lot of it was along cliffs, but he pushed through and did it (with a little bit of fussing). The trail was steep and relatively rocky in a few places, but there were lots of places to stop in the shade as we went. We took the shuttle over to Yavapai Point to see the sunset and it was spectacular.
Our last full day at the canyon we returned to the visitor center so the kids could get their junior ranger badges and then we spent touring the view points on the shuttle route west of the Grand Canyon Village. There were some more great views. It really is amazing how beautiful a big hole in the ground can be.
The next day we left for Las Vegas early in the morning but first we drove to the east to check out the Desert View Watchtower. We watched a video that explained the build actually has a steel frame but its built to be hidden and look like something that was built centuries ago. The tower was yet another great place to just take in the views of the canyon.
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