After Sunset Crater Volcano and Wupatki National Monuments we continued on our way to the Grand Canyon. We stopped in Cameron then entered the park through the east entrance to visit one of our favorite spots: Desert View. The views of the canyon are superb here, but Norah was more interested in the Watchtower. Can't say I blame her; the Watchtower is a beautiful building designed by Mary Colter and inspired by the architecture of the Puebloan people of the Colorado Plateau. Its simple, yet elegant design, views of the canyon, and beautiful artwork by Fred Kabotie and Fred Geary make this an essential stop for any visit at the Grand Canyon. After enjoying Desert View for a while we were reluctant to leave, but made our way to Grand Canyon Village to get food for our backpacking trip, eat dinner at Bright Angel Lodge, and check in at Yavapai Lodge.

The next day we began our four day backpacking trip in the canyon. Although we were a little late in getting permits, we had no problem securing the permits we wanted. Our first day we hiked from the rim to Bright Angel Campground - about 6.5 miles and over 4600 feet elevation loss on the South Kaibab and River Trails. We camped two nights at Bright Angel Campground to allow ourselves an extra day to relax and enjoy some time at the bottom of the canyon (well, some of us - Steve went on a 20+ mile run). Since Norah was doing most of her own hiking on this trip we broke up the hike out to the rim by camping one night at Indian Garden Campground (about five miles and 700 feet elevation gain from Bright Angel Campground on the Bright Angel Trail). Another reason we wanted to stay at Indian Garden was to hike to Plateau Point for sunset (a level three miles round trip from Indian Garden). We didn't linger long due to the strong winds and storm clouds rolling in, but still did get to take in the fantastic views from this vantage point mid canyon.

After a night of howling winds at Indian Garden we hiked out on our last day - only 4.6 miles, but a stiff 3500+ feet elevation gain. Like that wasn't enough to do, we had to hike in snow showers. Up to this point Norah had hiked on her own, but facing a long hike in snow, we carried her in the Ergo. It was a slog, but didn't diminish the fantastic time we had on our days below the rim. Steve and I had done this backpacking trip nearly ten years ago and it was even better than we remembered. It certainly changes things having a four year old along. While we were marveling at the views, Norah was sure to point out the little things. I loved watching how delighted she was in finding a purple prickly pear, an especially large yucca plant, or a unique rock (don't worry, she didn't eat any!); digging holes on the beach, and enjoying a lemonade at Phantom Ranch. The Grand Canyon certainly lived up to its name and I'm positive we'll be back for another grand adventure. (ETA: We did indeed return over Thanksgiving in 2015 for a backpacking trip on the adventurous Escalante Route. Grand Canyon 2015)