Day 1 1/2 Check In: No Grand Canyon Falls this Time!

We've technically been on the road for two days now and so far we're less than a 1/2 day trip from Phoenix. This check in is coming from Vegas, a city that was never on the original route. So far, I would say camping plans haven't been working exactly as hoped. But my the theory I posted in one of my early blogs continues to hold true: Things don't always work exactly the way you expect but the worst case scenario is rarely the end result.

Despite only being 4 hours away from Phoenix using the direct route, we've covered a lot of ground so far. We were able to get out around 2 PM on Thursday afternoon. This was pretty much a solid driving only day. We watched as storms started rolling in around 7 PM. Jenn was able to get some great shots of the clouds overlooking Highway 89 in Northern Arizona. I was basically just terrified that we were going to hit some rough weather for the night.

When I was reviewing the details of the trip, Jacob Lake seemed like the logical stop to try to camp, since it is the last stop before the North Rim. Jenn pointed out that we were missing some beautiful scenery leading up to Jacob Lake. Thankfully, she mentioned Lee's Ferry as a spot she knew from her childhood that also had a campground. Lee's Ferry turned out to be a perfect stopping spot. The canopies at the campground shielded us from the storms and we were able to keep the tent roof open to enjoy the fresh air.

The next morning we were up early and off to the Grand Canyon. Using a recommendation I had received from a Facebook group on Grand Canyon hiking, we decided to hike Widforss Trail. I have to say I was hoping for a 2 or 3 mile round trip hike, so the 10 mile round trip might not have been the best call. But just like all the other times in the past, when I asked Jenn she just answered enthusiastically: "Let's do it!". Hindsight being 20/20 a 10-mile hike before hitting the road for what was supposed to be an 8 hour trip to Yosemite may not have been the wisest choice. 

The views from Widforss were amazing and the smell of the forest is something that no Febreeze or Glade lab manufactured scent will ever be able to replicate. I will admit that it was a tough hike and the time crunch didn't help. The downside was that by the end we were both just looking forward to the beautiful sight of my 2008 Chrysler Sebring in the parking lot. Flipping back to the positive, I didn't nearly fall into the Grand Canyon this time so if you chose Grand Canyon in the 'which part of the trip will kill him' pool, you're out. Double down on Yosemite now. For those who have a full day to dedicate, it is a great place to just take in the contrasting views of the Canyon and the Kaibab Forest. 

We hit the road again around 3 PM headed toward Yosemite, but with a pretty good understanding we would not be making it there. If we could make it half way that would have been ideal, but we made it exactly 2 hours away. Lesson learned, travel first, hike second on this trip. One highlight of this section of the trip was the first town (of many I expect on this trip) that I would consider moving to some day: Hurricane, UT. Considering a move to Utah would have been blasphemy to my old beer-loving self. Now that I've laid off the bottle and picked up the joy of travel, Utah doesn't seem as bad as it used to. Hurricane felt like the small town I grew up in just a little bigger and with gorgeous mountain views on every side! Seeing an older style "main" street is something that always makes me nostalgic for home. 

We managed to set up camp at Valley of Fire Park about 30 miles outside of Vegas. We rolled in right as a storm was hitting. Thankfully, we were able to claim a site next to a large rock which was able to shelter us from most of the weather. This held true for most of the early part of the evening, but around 1 AM the real storm hit. We made the mistake of hoping the small canopy would be enough to protect us from the rain. Under this assumption we left the tent roof open again. That turned out to be a pretty big mistake. At different parts of the night Jenn and I both found ourselves poking our heads outside of the tent attempting to seal it up. We ended the night a little damp and the tent has been packed away a little muddy, but we're back on the road with this stop in Vegas to relax for a bit, then back on the way to Yosemite. Hopefully, we are done bringing the rain with us for the next few legs of this trip.