It’s always interesting to see how the landscape changes along the way.
Here, it almost looks as though a line has been drawn, clearly separating the desert from the forest.
The forest landscape was a stark contrast to the desert scenery we had driven through just moments earlier.
We made it to Grand Canyon National Park! The Grand Canyon is about 277 miles long , more than a mile deep in some places, and up to 18 miles wide.
The canyon walls have layers of red, orange, pink, tan, and white rock, each layer representing a different time in the Earth’s history.
The Colorado River flows along the bottom and has helped carve the canyon over millions of years.
Some rocks exposed near the bottom of the canyon are nearly 2 billion years old!
The Grand Canyon is home to elk, mule deer, bighorn sheep, coyotes, rattlesnakes, and California condors, but the rock squirrel is one of the animals most commonly seen. One of the main reasons for this is that, over time, the squirrels have become accustomed to being fed by visitors and are no longer timid about approaching tourists, often appearing to beg for food.
The South Rim, where most visitors stop to take in the view, sits at about 7,000 feet above sea level. The bottom of the canyon is only about 2,400 feet above sea level, which often results in a temperature difference of 20 to 30 degrees, making it much warmer at the bottom. Many hikers take on the challenging Rim-to-Rim hike from the South Rim to the North Rim, making the significant temperature change just one of the many things they need to be prepared for.
After leaving the Grand Canyon, we made our way toward Las Vegas! But first, we made a detour to the Kingman Airport before leaving Arizona. It is known for its airplane “boneyard.” Today, there are about 250 aircraft in storage, many of which are large commercial planes. Some of the planes are temporarily stored because they aren’t currently needed, while others have been retired from service and may eventually be sold, reused for parts, dismantled, or recycled.
Arizona was selected as a storage site for these planes due to its wide-open desert landscape. The hot, dry conditions help minimize rust and corrosion.
After World War II, hundreds of surplus military aircraft were stored here. The planes were kept here for a variety of reasons, including future use, resale, salvaging valuable parts, and large-scale scrapping, much like the commercial aircraft stored here today. Although there are fewer military aircraft on site now, we did spot a C-130 during our visit.
Next stop: Las Vegas, Nevada!