After spending 2 nights in Vegas it was time to head to the Grand Canyon. We were staying at Thunderbird Lodge which was on the rim of the Grand Canyon which I had booked 12 months in advance.

Day 7 – Travel to Grand Canyon via Hoover Dam

It was over a 4 hour drive to the Canyon and we were really excited to visit Hoover Dam – which unfortunately was only 40 minutes into our journey. We weren’t booked onto a tour and didn’t want to wait for one so we walked around the viewing platforms and visited the gift shop.

^{Sight Seeing at Hoover Dam}

We then headed to the Grand Canyon with very few stops. We drove through Williams which looked like a really historic town and we wished we had stopped and spent some time there.

We arrived at our hotel and were lucky to get a parking space – but we knew we wouldn’t use the car again for the next few days so parking wouldn’t be an issue going forward. The Thunderbird Lodge was expensive and the rooms were very dated but you pay for the location – the canyon is right outside your hotel room!

We dropped off our bags and went to see the the Grand Canyon. After being in the heat in Vegas it was actually cold as a storm had just passed and we needed to wear our coats!

We had some dinner at the hotel (which again was really expensive) and then went to one of the ranger talks as they were teaching the kids about Californian Condors being reintroduced to the area and how to spot them as opposed to Turkey Vultures. Turkey Vultures wobble as they fly!

We stayed out til it was dark – which was about 8pm then headed to bed as it had been a very long travel day.

Day 8 – Exploring the South Rim

Stu & I set the alarms really early (5.30am) as wanted to watch the sunrise. It wasn’t the most spectacular sunrise – but lots of other people had the same idea as us.

However – it meant we could have an early breakfast and get out before the crowds. We couldn’t use our car in the park so used the tour busses that NPS organized and we stopped off at all the view points that were on the map.

^{A day at the Grand Canyon}

Mid afternoon we returned to the hotel and Tom said he wasn’t feeling very well – we realised he hadn’t drunk mush all day so was getting dehydrated We gave him loads to drink and made sure he stayed in the air conditioning for the rest of the day! Luckily he recovered within an hour or so.

Day 9 – Grand Canyon and travel to Page.

We were supposed to be going to Death Valley and then Yosemite but due to the forest fires we had changed our itinerary and were headed to Page.

Stu and I set early alarms again for the sunrise – and again it wasn’t amazing. However – we got to see the horses set off down into the canyon which we enjoyed.

We checked out of the hotel and set off towards Desert View about 30 minutes away from the Grand Canyon Village (with plenty of drinks in the car for Tom)

^{View point on the way to Desert View}

At Desert View there was a tower we could climb and a Visitor Centre so we spent a bit of time exploring and took more photos of the Canyon. We felt we had seen enough at this point and were ready to move on.

Our next stop was Horse Shoe Bend – just outside of Page. When we arrived there were warning signs about extreme heat and telling people to take water – even though it was only a 10 minute walk. It was ridiculously hot and we took a bottle of water – it was definitely needed on the walk back to the car! I loved Horse Shoe Bend!

^{Horse Shoe Bend}

We drove into Page, visited Glen Canyon Dam and found the Hampton Inn – our hotel for the next couple of nights.