A Grand Day At The Grand Canyon
By Meg Brunson
I mean, it’s the Grand Canyon, what can I tell you about the Grand Canyon that you don’t already know?
Well actually, probably quite a bit. For one, did you know it’s a 40-ish minute drive in from the actual gateway to the park to the Canyon itself? It’s true. The Grand Canyon itself is part of the Grand Canyon National Park, which itself is a protected forest that makes for a very nice, peaceful drive into the park. Now, full disclosure, there is a lot at the Grand Canyon to do, and we did a very small percentage of it. There are multiple observation decks to be able to see the Canyon in all its considerable glory as well as constantly running buslines to navigate you to your desired vantage point. I would highly recommend you take a look through the online Trip Planner to make sure you don’t make the same mistake we did where we trekked back and forth across the same 100-yard spanse for 30 minutes before we could get our bearings.
With that said, don’t neglect the visitors center - especially on a hot day. It provides for a very nice respite from the direct sun that is present throughout most of the area surrounding the Canyon. The center itself has some very nice displays that talk about the formation of the Grand Canyon as well as the Hoover Dam, and there’s even a short movie that goes in depth to demonstrate how the Canyon itself was formed. If you have children with you, be sure to check out their Junior Ranger program that deputizes children to help care for National Parks throughout the country upon completion of a workbook. The tasks set forth in the workbook vary by age group, so there’s something achievable for every Junior Ranger.
Speaking of the sun, even on cool days by Arizona standards, it’s vital to bring water and if possible, shade. Even a quick trip can quickly find you sun-scorched, so be sure to take precautions.
One thing I want to highlight as the first of the National Parks on our Tour of the Lower 48 is how grateful we were that we had purchased the America the Beautiful Pass which allowed all of us to get in for free. Although the money spent on the Pass was more than we would have paid just to get in to the Grand Canyon National Park, knowing that we would have several other National Parks on our journey made us very thankful we had taken advantage of it!
Get started planning your Grand Canyon Vacation at https://www.nps.gov/grca/index.htm
Read about some of the other adventures we're having on our Year-Long Road Trip!
© 2019 Meg Brunson
All opinions expressed are my own. See more on Instagram!
Meg is a mommy blogger, Facebook marketer, and much more. She is a mom to four kids who live full-time in an RV exploring the US! As a former Facebook employee, Meg remains a Facebook addict and handles KidsOutAndAbout.com's Social Media Marketing in addition to providing freelance services for other small businesses on how to best leverage Facebook as a part of their marketing strategy. Meg also hosts the FamilyPreneur Podcast, a podcast for parent entrepreneurs raising entrepreneurial children. Learn more about Meg at MegBrunson.com!
