lovin' summer #10

Everyone knows that Arizona summers are blistering hot. We find ways to endure it - we stay in air-conditioned buildings, we swim ... a lot, our kids play indoors a good part of the summer, we take a longer vacation somewhere else - and it doesn't seem so bad. But by August everyone is tired of the scorching heat and it's time for a weekend getaway to cool country.

This year we actually took TWO weekend getaways in August - one to Flagstaff and later one to the north rim of the Grand Canyon with friends. While the south rim is open year round, the north rim is 1000 feet higher in elevation and is closed during the winter making it the perfect summertime retreat.

The pristine views are awe-inspiring.

The north rim is my favorite place to view the canyon. The considerably longer drive from the valley and at least ten degree cooler temperatures (from the south rim) make it less crowded than the south rim - a huge plus in my book. The higher elevation (8800 feet!) means there are more pine trees and more "green" in general than the south rim which has some pine trees but also a lot of high desert vegetation. And then there are the views - absolutely spectacular and much different than the south rim. You would think it would be like walking around to the other side of the swimming pool and looking in - not all that different. But because of the 1000-foot elevation difference and the way the inner canyons run, it is a totally different view.

We were treated to a fabulous thunderstorm the day we were there. What produced an extended downpour (and, I'm sure, some flash flooding) in the middle of the canyon gave us just a few sprinkles. 

If you get tired of the spectacular views inside the canyon, simply turn around and feast your eyes on the lush greenery and pretty wildflowers growing everywhere.

After dinner we hiked out to a lookout point to watch sunset. The sky changed from blue to a million shades of red and orange over the course of about 30 minutes as the sun dipped lower and lower toward the horizon. At the same time, rocks on the east side of the canyon were lit up in vibrant shades of pink and purple. 

I love that God uses the gigantic, extra jumbo pack of crayons and not the 16 crayon box most of us use!

After "sunset," when the sun is completely below the horizon, comes "twilight" which has three distinct phases each lasting about 30 minutes. Then it is officially "nighttime." Many people leave as soon as the sun has set but there is still more to the show for those who stay. We hiked back to the lodge during twilight as we didn't bring flashlights. What an incredible encore!

This was shot during the second phase of twilight (called nautical twilight). Robust pinks and purples shot across a blue canvas - exquisite! 

We did a couple of virtual geocaches at the Grand Canyon. Most National Parks don't allow physical geocaches so geocachers came up with virtual ones where you answer questions about a cache site using the coordinates they give or take a photo of something there showing you found it. Virtual geocaches are usually historic and often educational with interesting information included in the geocache description online. On the way home, however, we were ready for some serious hunting and found four geocaches. If nothing else, it makes us get out of the car and stretch our legs!

The one on the right was a typical cache - a camo'd container hidden under a log. But the one on the left was very clever using a tape measure (retractable) attached to a string that you had to pull to bring the cache down. You never know what you're gonna get until you find it!

We had a most enjoyable getaway as we spent some time with friends and escaped the heat for a couple of days. Although we do several during the summer,  we hardly ever do a weekend getaway during the winter.

I LOVE SUMMER!!!