Williams, Az to Kanab, Ut

We got up at about 4:30am, left Williams behind and headed for the Grand Canyon, racing the sun to greet it at the South Rim. As we arrived (before the National Park opened, beating the $25 per car permit fee), it was a race - in the dark - to find the best location at the lookout with the least people. Luckily (after a few u-turns), we found a couple of professional photographers at Mather Point (after we found Mather Point!) with tripods - this is usually a good sign you are in the right place. Joining about 20 or so other tourists (mostly Japanese) and two people in yoga positions, we took a few chilly breaths, and eagerly awaited the sunrise. As our closest star peeked over the horizon, spontaneous applause erupted from the audience, and more than a few 'oohs' and 'aaahs'.

I found the dawn to be incredibly dramatic - everywhere you looked, the view was changing from second to second. I must have taken 120 photos in the first 40 minutes, and just when you think the colour palette has exhausted itself, the sunlight reaches the bottom of a valley, and a whole new spectrum is revealed. Just incredible.

Because this is a National Park (i.e. the animals were here first), there is lots of wildlife about. We had seen a giant elk casually traipsing through the carpark shortly after sunrise, a lot of squirrels - more of them later - and while we were on the shuttle bus around the park, a group of elk minding their own business.

Walking along the green beltway amongst giant redwoods, we spied this squirrel poking its little head through the train tracks. How cute - like something Chip 'n' Dale would do!

This is the Hopi House, another one designed by Mary Jane Colter. This is a living museum - one of the podcasts we listened to on the way was of a woman who grew up in this house.

This is the El Tovar Hotel - at the north terminus of the Grand Canyon Railway, which used to be part of the Santa Fe Railroad. Quite a departure from the Hopi House.

This squirrel was sitting on the national monument plaque. Although there are many signs which say 'don't feed the animals', they all seemed quite tame. One even followed me into the Kolb Studio (a gift shop).

A very quick shot over the edge of the canyon, and I saw this baby squirrel getting what seemed very much like a kiss from the mummy squirrel. Awww. Perhaps when you are in love, the world seems lovely...

We took a small walk down into the canyon - at the start of the seven hour trek to the bottom. We saw three condors on the rocks, warming up and waiting for thermals to start - so they could begin hunting. Placing the camera on the cliff, we backed up carefully to take this picture - one of my favorites of the trip so far (even though it's at a slight angle, and perhaps a little too tightly cropped).

This is the four storey Watchtower, along the East Rim Road at Desert View. Built in 1930 and designed by Mary Colter, it incorporates many native american elements, and emulates a Anasazi tower.

The artwork in the tower is authentic, and created by native american Hopi artist Fred Kabotie. The central component was a sand-painting on the floor - this has since been replaced by an actual painting with plexiglass cover.

Some of the best views of the Grand Canyon are at the Watchtower, as it is very high up above the rim, and lies at the east corner - so you can look far west as well as north.

This is the exit from Antelope Pass - an amazing drive through a large canyon, which exits dramatically through the Vermillion Cliffs towards our next destination at Kanab, Utah.