Arizona - Check! (but where are the faces?)

As huge Parks and Recreation fans, we all had the following scene in our minds as we made our few hour journey to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon yesterday morning.  Since they had driven 24 hours from Indiana to Arizona just to get a glimpse of this item on Andy's bucket list, surely we could handle the few hour drive that would also enable us to check Arizona off our list!!! (After all, we would not only dine in the Grand Canyon lodge, but we would take several scenic drives, a few easy hikes and easily a few hundred photos)
April and Andy at the Grand Canyon

The only slight complication was the late start we got to our day.  Initially thinking we would stay in Zion for the day, we dawdled more than we should have over our Hampton Inn breakfast, Dana got some necessary work done while Daniel found himself inexplicably drawn into Twilight on the hotel television (why is it that we will relish watching something on a hotel tv we wouldn't linger on for more than a second at home?)  By the time we had decided it was best to tackle the Canyon yesterday, it was already 10:30.  Knowing we would arrive late for lunch and eager to explore the North Rim, we opted for a "meal for the day" at the Lodge and once again made our way on the breathtaking Zion - Mount Carmel Highway, complete with two historic tunnels (one which lasts 1.1 miles long and has no lights at all inside - freaky!)  During the most busy times of day (and yesterday was certainly one of those, as they had officially declared "No Parking" within Zion.  We pat ourselves on the back for deciding Sunday was Grand Canyon Day!), they only allow traffic to drive one way through the tunnel.  This adds a bit of time to your overall trip, but is definitely appreciated when you are deep within the 1 mile tunnel, not yet seeing the light at the end and not wanting a shuttle bus or trailer truck to come barreling at you from the other direction.  The only thing stranger then emerging into the full bright sunlight, which we had done several times by yesterday morning, was the return trip I sensibly drove last night, when I could barely tell when the tunnel ended and we were back in just the plain and total darkness of night.  Scary stuff, let me tell you.

So... the Grand Canyon.  After leaving Zion, the rest of the drive was far less spectacular (and a good hour longer) than the previous day's trip to Bryce, which led Maddie to wonder some more just what was so darn special about this Grand Canyon.  Why, she had started pondering the day before as we learned about and photographed the Hoodoos are people not always oohing and aahing about Bryce Canyon instead?!  This led to our reminiscing about the very sweet and funny Parks and Rec scene (if you haven't watched it yet, go watch it!) and discussing the relative merits of the South and North Rim of the Canyon (though it seems a universal truth that the North Rim is considered superior for all the reasons you would expect, not the least being it receives a million and a half fewer visitors each year).  Our first glimpse of the Canyon from the parking lot of the visitor center and lodge (where we stopped for a bathroom break and to make our 5:00 reservation) had the kids impressed but not overly.

yup - that's the view from the parking lot! :)

Of course, a glimpse from a parking lot is nothing compared to some of the vantage points we would get throughout the next four hours, as we reached Inspiration Point, the highest elevation in the Canyon (the North owns this; another point it earns) and hiked around Cape Royal, where we had some of the most serene and secluded moments of our day.

lots of "I'm king of the world" moments like this one :)

Of course, once again, photographs can only convey so much, but those of you who have been there will recognize the majesty and the rest of you can take our word for it that it's worth the trip! :)  As we made our way past a herd of bison right inside the park entrance, Maddie noticed that the time on her phone was not  matching the time indicated on the car's dashboard.  

At this point, I remembered that I had read that Arizona does not observe daylight savings time.  While this gave us an "extra" hour to explore the Canyon, it also meant that we would most definitely be doing the return drive mostly in the dark.  This was something I had initially wanted to avoid, but once we were in the moment, there wasn't much to be done, so onward we marched.  When we rolled back into Zion just before 10:00 PM (after pulling off the side of the road to get a once in a lifetime view of the starry night sky), we were pleased to see Springdale's ice cream shop was still open.  To celebrate handling that drive through the pitch black Zion National Park, I happily enjoyed an ice cream cone, while we sat on the quaint little benches lining the street, a couple of local amateur musicians playing guitar and serenading a group of tourists and locals who had gathered to enjoy.  We have concluded that Springdale is THE place to stay if you have any interest in exploring these parts.  Dana did a masterful job in selecting it.

Today, we honor Springdale and remain right here.  We will drive only to Zion's visitor center, where we will hop on the shuttle (which is the only allowed transportation on the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive - where all the hikes originate - during the summer months) to finally explore the park we have been driving through these past few days.  We're very excited to enjoy the last of our nature days right here at our home away from home before we head off to all the glitter of Vegas tomorrow.  One more shot of the Grand Canyon before I sign off...