Day 16's dance card was looking good, and I was excited to get underway. We passed up breakfast at Fresh Market Square, and chose to have McD's in the food court. It felt lik
e dieting. Today when we passed over the Colorado River, Donald changed the time in the GM. We took 95 toward Needles (named for Needle Mountain), heading for the Grand Canyon. But first we had a stop to make, at London Bridge in Lake Havasu City. The city looks brand new. First Italy, and then London - we were really covering ground on this trip. It was 101 degrees as we strolled around and snapped for a while, then we staggered our way back to the car. No matter what some may think, dry heat is HOT.
e dieting. Today when we passed over the Colorado River, Donald changed the time in the GM. We took 95 toward Needles (named for Needle Mountain), heading for the Grand Canyon. But first we had a stop to make, at London Bridge in Lake Havasu City. The city looks brand new. First Italy, and then London - we were really covering ground on this trip. It was 101 degrees as we strolled around and snapped for a while, then we staggered our way back to the car. No matter what some may think, dry heat is HOT. We made a brief stop at the Sheriff's Office as we exited LHC for a photo op with a cactus. Donald and Clyde said that the Sheriff opened the front door of the Lockup (the lockup???) to see what we were doing, decided we were 
harmless tourists, and went back inside. Seeing a saguaro cactus was one of the things I had wanted to see, so I could check it off the list. I still hadn't seen a moose, but we had eight more days of chances.
harmless tourists, and went back inside. Seeing a saguaro cactus was one of the things I had wanted to see, so I could check it off the list. I still hadn't seen a moose, but we had eight more days of chances.On the next part of our journey, we encountered some T&L storms, and the temperature dropped to 63 degrees, from 101. Bonnie and I nearly needed our blankets. The sky was ominous - heavy, dark, and low - and we drove through a wall of rain. This was the worst weather we had encountered yet. Once the rain lightened a bit, we decided to do something wild & crazy - have lunch at a restaurant NOT on the dance cards. We stopped at Westside Lilo's on Route 66 in Seligman, AZ. It was a nice find, full of locals, and our server brought us the biggest glasses of soda that I have ever seen. The french fries that came with our sandwiches covered half the plate, and were so good that it was hard to stop eating. Route 66 is the original land for kicks.
Our next stop would be the Grand Canyon. We fueled the GM at the Chevron near the park entrance, then entered through the park gates at no charge, thanks to the National Park Access card. Age has its privilege. We saw signs announcing a controlled burn and requests for no phone calls about it. We could smell smoke and saw some burned areas.
El Tovar, our lodging for the night, was beautiful. It is smaller than Old 
faithful Inn, has no elevator, but has gorgeous carpeting, furnishings, and windows. It was charming. Our room, #6480, was right at the top of the stairs, and we gathered up the luggage and a very kind staffer carried it all up for us. What a pleasant surprise. Our room view was of the roof and also of the GRAND CANYON. There were no ghosts or even rumors of ghosts. There was just the hush of the Grand Canyon, with the voices of other equally awestruck visitors.
faithful Inn, has no elevator, but has gorgeous carpeting, furnishings, and windows. It was charming. Our room, #6480, was right at the top of the stairs, and we gathered up the luggage and a very kind staffer carried it all up for us. What a pleasant surprise. Our room view was of the roof and also of the GRAND CANYON. There were no ghosts or even rumors of ghosts. There was just the hush of the Grand Canyon, with the voices of other equally awestruck visitors. We decided to go out for a little mobile sight-seeing until our dinner reservations, at 6:30. We had been having trouble with the time all day, because parts of Arizona don't keep the same time as other parts. We forgot to ask the desk clerk when we checked in, but as we were driving around checking out the other lodges, we saw a young Ranger ticketing illegally parked cars. We pulled over to speak with him, and Donald, who was supposed to ask the time, instead asked what time the Park closed. The Ranger thought Donald said "path" and we realized the Massachusetts' accent wasn't working. The upshot was that the Park never closes, and the Ranger said we can go out and party all night (especially funny considering his audience) and then return any time. I asked the Ranger if it was 4:20, because that's what my watch said. Funnily enough, it was.
Dinner in the El Tovar dining room, where we had window seats at table #11, was pric
ey but excellent. Our server hustled with the speed of a tortoise, although he had a pleasant personality.
ey but excellent. Our server hustled with the speed of a tortoise, although he had a pleasant personality. The gift shops in the hotel and the nearby stone building offered much in the way of souvenirs. The views of the Grand Canyon were spectacular, and changed from minute to minute. It would have been easy to sit for hours and just wa
tch the show.
We stayed outside and walked and snapped until we got tired and cold. There was a TV at El Tovar, so we could catch up on the news of the world and the weather for tomorrow. Hot and sunny, probably.
tch the show.
We stayed outside and walked and snapped until we got tired and cold. There was a TV at El Tovar, so we could catch up on the news of the world and the weather for tomorrow. Hot and sunny, probably. We had trouble deciding which we enjoyed more, the Old Faithful Inn or El Tovar.
No comments:
Post a Comment