Day 26, 27: 22nd, 23rd April 2011

The day started with us having to pack up the tent, and unpack again after 10 minutes... (we had to change the camp site number, remember?) so much for not planning the stay!

The adventure of the previous day left us wanting to do nothing but sleep... so this was the day of us relaxing.. and camping like it should be.. chilling, doing nothing, building fires, roasting marshmallows...

I was complaining about the cold, wrapped up in woolens AND a jacket, when I saw 2 girls walking down the lane.. in shorts and a T shirt!!!
"Aren't they feeling cold" I turned to V
"It isn't that cold actually. Guess age is catching up with you"

Smart Arse! ... Sure shot way to get me to stop complaining! Needless to say, I did not feel the cold all day!

The only eventful thing that we did all day was go to the national forest outside the park boundary, and collect the dead-and-down firewood to build a huge fire in the evening. Now, not that we couldn't have bought it at the camp store.. but that wouldn't be fun, would it? I wanted to do it for the thrill of it! Gathering firewood is not allowed at the Grand Canyon, but it is, in the national forest, just 2 miles outside the park!!.. So what the hell! It was fun! Cheap thrill, I agree. but thrill nonetheless :D

The next morning was adios to the Grand Canyon, and on our way to the next pit stop! We didn't know what it would be yet! We just knew that we were headed towards Texas, via the Carlsbad Caverns National Park.. We ride all day and stop by for the evening/night, wherever the sun sets!

The gentleman at the Grand Canyon (the one who put us to shame with his knowledge of India) had mentioned of a good Indian restaurant in Flagstaff, and I was craving for some Indian food, so we decided to stop by for lunch! Stuffed ourselves at "Delhi Plaza" at Flagstaff, AZ and hit the road... Unfortunately no pictures.. :( we were busy eating...

The winds were getting stronger and brutal, and before we realized, we lost the mirror housing to the winds... :(( .. we even went back 20 miles to see if we could find it roadside.. but no luck...

Having wasted enough time back and forth, it was getting dark and we needed a place to sleep. We stopped by a small town called Winslow.. and all I could think of was a motel room to sleep..
We looked around 2 motels (which had terrible rooms, and there was no way we were sleeping in those beds), when we spotted a small motel with a random name.
"Let's try this one last place, else we will just close our eyes and sleep in whatever bed they have" I was on verge of sleeping in the parking lot

As luck would have it, this one had an Indian woman at the reception... so I asked her in Hindi if they had a room. She replied in a heavily accented English. Now this was weird... She was traditionally dressed and there was no way it looked like she wouldn't speak the language. So I tried again.. But she insisted on speaking in English. I finally gave up... maybe she had been here long, and genuinely did not understand Hindi. U never know..

We completed the formalities and checked in the room. Just then, I heard a woman screaming on top of her lungs.. "JALDI KARO" (Hindi for 'hurry up').. I could have ignored it.. but the bitch in me did not.... So I opened the door and peeped out.. and smiled.... "So you do speak Hindi after all".. Well, I didn't need to say this.. the smile on my face, and the expression on her's.. said it all .. :D... I did sleep well... LOL...

Day 25: 21st April 2011

Today did not start early! Turned out that my still-young husband ALSO had his legs hurting after yesterday's trail! HA-HA! So much for calling me old... Thank You God!

And we both were less on enthusiasm today to start at 6 in the morning, as earlier planned!

Also we had to pack up from the Camper village and go to the Mather campground today. It was annoying to pack up and ride 5 miles and set it up again! So much for wanting to being INSIDE the national park! Stupid us!

So we spent the next hour packing up stuff, loading it on the bike, saying our byes to fellow campers... promising them to meet on the trails, and left the campground... when suddenly..... We fell... OMG! Too shocked to click a picture of  the fall, but in hind sight, I should have.. it was a funny sight!

Since we fell down a slope, we broke the right side rear view mirror, the mirror housing AND we were unable to get the bike back up! A guy came running to help, and it turns out that even the three of us couldn't get it up! So call for another one... it took 4 of us, every ounce of our strength and energy to get the bike back on the road! Phew! What a start to the day! The only snap we managed to click was later... of the damage!

So by the time we got to the Grand Canyon entrance it was post 1130 am! We decided that it was probably best to extend our stay by another day, and we reserved a site for 22nd as well. BUT, we didn't get the same site as 21st!!! SO it meant that we would have to pack our tent and stuff and move sites on 22nd morning!!! Too much unnecessary work! <Sad face>.. 

We did want to do at least a part of the South Kaibab trail, though not all of it (we had confessed to ourselves that there was absolutely no way we could have done all of it!) The fact that they had out posters all over, announcing how people had died attempting to complete this trail in one day, did not help at all. There was no way I was going to die over a stupid trail! I did not even mind admitting that maybe I really was getting old.... all for a noble cause of staying alive!

1st things 1st... we had to eat.. before we start our trail.... so lunch was at the Grand Canyon general store... We could go further if we were not hungry, we told ourselves.

No, that's NOT my food.. I am a vegetarian..... Still!

I am eating the tiny Salad, that's hardly there! (I felt the same after eating it.. hardly there) ...

This is V, stuffing himself... (remember the keep-him-well-fed rule?)

So, there we were, being well-fed.. and feeling so!

By the time we actually started walking down the trail, it was almost 3 in the afternoon (I am not sure if the delay was genuine or I was trying to delay it, hoping that I wouldn't need to do it at all)

We carried 2 bottles of water with us - one for each, and a few cereal bars. Hoping that the lunch we ate almost an hour-and-a-half ago would last us till the end of the trail, we didn't carry any food.  The trail started at the rim of the canyon and going down, descending into the canyon. I did carry my trail stick with me, in spite of the name calling, and turned out it was a good idea! Going down the trail was the easy and fun part.

This is a snap that I clicked of V going down the trail, and I swear V is in the snap.. you just have to look hard enough to spot him :-|. (I have had enough bashing from V for clicking snaps that don't serve the purpose and hence are useless. This one for example was supposed to show V walking down the trail.. BUT :D)

I kept wondering why people would die on this trail, it seemed to be a sweet one. The sun won't set till 830-900 pm and thus we had more than 6 hours for the trail, so we decided that wherever we were around 6, would be the point from where we should turn back and start the return. We wanted to play it as it came, and not stretch ourselves. The view was breathtaking and we took our time clicking pictures, soaking in the naked beauty of nature. Just looking at the landscape lying in front of you, calm as hell (or heaven is it?).. speechless!

We did manage to reach 'Caesar's ridge', 4 miles down the trail, into the canyon.
A look back at what we had achieved.. and common sense dawned upon us. It was easy to walk down, but the tougher part was the return - walking up! So no point going any further and time to turn back.

We were standing at the Caesar's ridge, camera with V (as usual, given how good a photographer I am) and looking around if we could find someone to click a picture of both of us together. We spotted an elderly gentleman (OK, middle aged as per US standards), and I was framing in my head how I should approach him and request him, when he said "Photo Khichna hai?" (Hindi for 'you want me to click a snap?"). I almost fainted. Recovering from the shock, I smiled and thanked him as he took the camera from us.

We learnt that he was a professional Tabla player (an Indian instrument), and had played with the likes of Zakir Hussein and Ravi Shankar. He was in Arizona for a concert and was taking some time off in the Grand Canyon. He had spent a few years in Nepal .. (aaahhh.. that's how the knowledge of Hindi, makes sense) and was very well-read on Indian mythology. He even went to the extent of explaining V the meaning of his name and where it figures in the mythology (which we didn't know of course, before he mentioned)..And he practiced Yoga religiously every day and believed in it's powers.


That's him, the white-guy who put two Indians to shame, by his knowledge about India.

Time to head back. And boy! the way up, was TOUGH! I had to stop every 10 min and take a sip of water and wait for 5 minutes to catch my breath!... NOW, I knew how you could die on this trail if you are lost or if you try to rush it and finish it at one shot.... you would probably die of exhaustion.. I knew I could!

It was a long long way up and it took us more than double the time it took to go down! No point rushing it, so we took our time, enjoying the views ... It was getting cold and the sun was losing the warmth, trying to hide behind the rocks.

Made it to the campground by 800... in time to build a fire, fix a quick meal and have a beer :D 

Day 24: 20th April 2011

The Grand Canyon: the Rim trail 


It was an early and excited start to the day, all ready to walk around. There are few days when I wake up early, and fewer days when an early start has me excited. We were ready to head out by 930, and I was all set for the trail, with sun block generously applied all over.

"Let's go" I chirped. 

"haven't you forgotten something?" V was in a mood for puzzle games. 

"Breakfast? I cooked and we ate, remember"

"No, not that. Something important"

"What?"

"The rest of your jeans! Where is it?"

"VERY FUNNY! I am wearing shorts"

"Is that all you will wear?"

"YES. get used to it" conversation over.  

We reached the Grand Canyon visitor centre by 1030 and parked the motorcycle, determined to use the shuttle bus and walk. We picked up the "map & guide" and quickly scanned to identify the 'easy' and 'moderate' trails. I truely believe in 'know your own limitations' and nothing could motivate me to attempt a 'strenuous' trail. We identified two trails that we wanted to accomplish. The "Rim Trail" which was an easy listed, walking around the rim of the canyon as the name suggested, and the 'South Kabab trail", going down the canyon.  

We were to do the rim trail today, and the south Kaibab one, the next day, since that required us to carry some food and water. We had intended to start around 6 am, the next morning, so that we would cover maximum distance before it got too hot. Today was already too late to attempt this one, so we stuck to the rim trail.  

We walked around the entire rim, reading materials, knowing about the Grand Canyon was formed, how old the rocks are, and how it changed over a period of time. It is truly nature's wonder, and mother nature makes you feel insignificant, standing at the rim looking across what lies ahead of you. It is a masterpiece, beyond words. 

The Colorado rover cut through layers of rocks to form the Grand Canyon. It took the mighty Colorado a total of 6 million years to make the Canyon what it is now. And it still carves the canyon, the thickness of an A4 sheet of paper, every year! This Canyon has some of the earth's oldest rocks. And the rocks in the canyon are named according to their age. The lower most layer is the oldest, formed almost a billion years ago. They say that this layer is almost as old as the earth itself. 

And I was surprised to know that the rock layers have a lot of Hindu names. The lowermost layer is the Brahma Schist, then there are the the Vishnu Schist; there is also one Rama Schist! Wonder why they are named after the Hindu Gods! Beats me! Any explanations to this are welcome, as I am itching to know. 

The surprise wasn't over yet. They also have a formation called the SHIVA TEMPLE!!!! Please someone??

I wonder if they associate India being the oldest civilization on earth (which is probably true), and so the Hindu Gods automatically become the oldest known names??? Who knows what they were thinking!

I noticed something that caught my eye, and my mind! I couldn't get over the fact that even here in the US, people were so stupid as to do this --->

I always thought that this kind of stuff ONLY happened in the so called third-world-countries!!!

Felt sort of good to know that idiots exist everywhere, and bad to see this in Grand Canyon -- mixed emotions, you know!


The trail was much longer than I had thought. Finally managed to finish it, though I was more than huffing and puffing towards the end of it!

And with my-legs-are-hurting whine, looking for a stick that I could use as a trail-stick.
"You are not allowed to do that" as usual V had his two cents
"Why?"
"They have posted all over.. gathering firewood is prohibited"
"Excuse me! I am looking for a trail-stick, not firewood"
"What prevents you from burning it AFTER you have completed the trail?" V had his doubts
"Well, now that you say it.. it actually is a good idea" and I went back to my stick search.
"You are growing old" V wasn't done
"Now where did THAT come from?"
"You need a walking stick"
"No, I need a TRAILING stick"
"Same shit"
"SHUT UP"

We did manage to finish the trail, and I did not complain AT ALL post this conversation, fearing to be labeled as the growing-old-whining-woman! (Not that it helped... I did get called by that name a couple of times after all, till I threatened to divorce V if he didn't stop... it worked)

A quick trip to the Mather camp ground to reserve a site for tomorrow - 21st, (we were in luck and we did manage to get one on account of a last minute cancellation!) and we were all set to head to our Camper Village (in Tusayan) for a beer!

Nothing like a hard earned beer by the side a well built fire on a cold evening.... LOVELY, I say!

Day 23: 19th April 2011

To Grand Canyon


Finally left for Grand canyon at around 1 pm. We had been only around 40 miles when I spotted a Walmart.
"Stop, stop, stop"
"What happened?" I had nearly sent him in a state of shock
"There's a Walmart. let's throw the stove in their faces" I was excited
"What is wrong with you, you idiot? NEVER scream like that when we are riding." V didn't share my excitement.
"OK, Sorry" <puppy face> (always works :D)

Stove duly returned, $53 pocketed and spent in a matter of 1 hour. Good fun :D 

I always think of shopping as fun, V however begs to differ (yup, I do make him beg if he wants to differ :D). 

As we rode along, I couldn't help wondering about the vastness of the country, and about how blessed they are to have the natural resources they do. God DID bless America! It pains however to see that most of the Americans take a lot for granted. I guess, when the basics of life ARE granted, you would tend to believe that way. The wants then become needs, and the needs are given. There is a stark contrast between how WE (Indians) and THEY (Americans) perceive our lives. Our 'luxuries' are their 'must-haves' and somehow you cannot appreciate the gift of small mercies when you have so much given to you on a silver plate. You want more comfort and believe that that's what you need! You don't want to do your dishes, and so you NEED a dishwasher. (You of course wouldn't worry about how much electricity and water it consumes) You need your clothes washed and ready instantly, so you wouldn't wait to dry it in the sun, you would NEED a dryer. (Again, you won't bother about how much gas or electricity it consumes). Life is about BIGGER, and MORE. It's super-size and it's disposable. And i couldn't help wonder - America IS truly a nation of disposables. AND it is a nation of waste management, I must give due credit. For the amount of disposables they produce, they are extremely efficient in their waste management. 

They do believe in recycling (trust me, they recycle hell of a lot), BUT they don't believe in re-using or even reducing. It is ironical. 

But what the hell, I thought. They can afford it. Mother nature has truly blessed them with natural resources - Land, water, minerals, and money they made out of it!

V poked me with his elbow, bringing me back to the ride, "Stop sleeping"

"I am not sleeping" I really wasn't. I was deep in my demented thoughts 

"Stop lying too"

"What the hell, I said I wasn't sleeping" 

"Then why aren't you responding?"

"To what?"

"I told you thrice to keep clicking pictures"

"Oh, Ok..." and I looked around at the landscape. It was clear that we were nearing the Grand Canyon, and everything looked like it! 

Another hour's ride, and we saw the sign welcoming us to the Grand Canyon. WOW, made it! BUT the excitement was short-lived. Just when I thought we were there, we realized that Mather campground was the only operational one at that time of the year and it was on the South Rim';and we had entered from the East, so another 55miles (or so) to where we were supposed to be. 

Finally made it to the camp ground registration by 630 in the evening. Not bad, all we had to do was dump our stuff, set up the tent and relax for the night! IF only we found a camp site that was! Turned out that there wasn't a single site available for the next 2 days. What rotten luck! The spring holidays had started, and it was a national park week, so free entry... hence the rush. THANK YOU!

Luckily the gentleman at the registration desk was helpful enough to tell us that if we went another 5 miles to a town called Tusayan, we could try our luck at the Camper's village. "Have never known them to send anyone away" he said, that was a relief. 

Finally managed to find a sunny spot at the Camper's village. And we were just in time. At least 10 people arrived after us and we were lucky to be able to choose our tenting spot! Too tired to walk around, even to look at the town. So made a quick meal, and off to bed we went. Tomorrow was to be a long day, we wanted to go trailing.