A Grand Vacation

When you think of AZ, the first thing that typically comes to mind (after being able to try a bunch of new beers) is the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon was only two hours from Sedona, so we decided to go up and make a day of it. Jenn and Mom got the provisions for sandwiches, I got our route all mapped out, and we were off on the road again. We chose to take the scenic route and had a good time going through Flagstaff on our way to Grand Canyon Village. We got there just in time to see the IMAX feature on the Grand Canyon, and that was a great introduction since it set the tone for what we were going to witness that afternoon (the kids actually confessed that they liked the movie better than the real thing).

We got to the first lookout and stopped to have lunch. What a view! Even being right there it was hard to accept what we were seeing. The Grand Canyon is miles across, about a mile deep, and a different breathtaking view no matter which way you turned. And the view kept changing depending on the lighting for that time of day. We watched a little, drove to another lookout point, watched some more, and so on and so forth. We saw deer, an elk, big horn sheep, the donkeys (in case you wanted to trust one of these animals to get to the bottom of the canyon), and a very curious squirrel.

We had a great time, but as always, we were on a schedule. After stopping at a gift shop we drove out of the park on Desert Rim drive which gave us an opportunity to see how the canyon faded away to the north. We drove through the desert, and head back south to Flagstaff. We were getting hungry, and since Flagstaff seemed deserted we thought we’d have no trouble getting our dinner at the Beaver Street Brewpub (http://www.beaverstreetbrewery.com/). Boy was I wrong about that! The place was mobbed (seemed like everyone in Flagstaff was there). My in-laws were great by looking at the positive, telling me, “We want to go where you do.”, “The food must be great if the place is this crowded.”, and (my favorite) “We’re not really that hungry yet, we ate this morning.” The wait was only 45 minutes, and the kids played their DS systems while we sampled the brews. I had a wood fired pizza (their specialty) and we sampled and traded slices amongst ourselves. Of their beers, I particularly liked the Bramble Berry wheat. It was sweet and sour at the same time, and was the perfect accompaniment to the pizza.

We headed home (all highway, no curvy roads) and relaxed for the evening. It was a grand day! - 5013

"Praise day at even, a wife when dead, a weapon when tried, a maid when married, ice when 'tis crossed, and ale when 'tis drunk." - Old Norse Proverb