June 15, 2013 - South Rim of Grand Canyon National Monument

I assumed I was going to have to jump on the tram and explore the park on my own today.  Fortunately, Mark thought with some Tylenol and slow moving he'd be able to get out and about for a bit.  We first went in to the market and purchased some generic brand of Icy Hot Patch.  Mark slapped that on the sore spot and was instantly relieved.  We decided to ride out and see the sights along Hermit Road this morning.  Although, still crowded, it was nothing like last night.   

Hopi West View

During the heavy tourist months Hermit Road is closed to traffic, only shuttle buses drive the 7 miles along the rim.  There are 9 stops including the last, Hermits Rest.  

Hopi East View

We spent most of the morning hoping on and off and checking out the different views.  The temperature was rising and we were getting hungry, so we forefited the final stop and road back to the village.

Mohave Point

After all the riding and walking and riding and walking we were ready to sit down, relax and have lunch before heading back to camp.  

El Tovar

We enjoyed the lunch so much at the North Rim Lodge, we decided to dine at El Tovar.  I knew from the outside that the view wasn't going to be as good inside as it was at the prior.  This dining room didn't have the huge windows and the expansive view we experienced at the North Rim, but the food was as good.

Mark at El Tovar

We headed back to our campsite for some rest and relaxation.

Another place you can only travel to during the summer on a tram is Point Imperial.  We decided that would be a Imperial Point.  We planned to stopped in at the main visitor center, only to find we were too late.  So we continued on and were able to visit Yavapai Geological Museum which had excellent displays on the geology of the canyon.

We were very pleased with this campsite and considered it one of the nicest State or National Parks we have stayed in, especially when you consider it had almost 400 sites.  The sites were well spaced with a lot of open space around each one, showers, laundry and WiFi were available.  Our site, #8 was close to the laundry, showers, WiFi and tram stop.  We did a lot of walking back and forth to the tram stop after noons when it was pretty warm.  Weather here was warmer than the North Rim, but still comfortable for most of the day and there wasn't too much wind.  The bathrooms were always clean. The laundry had lots of washers and dryers and was connected to the shower room.  Showers were spacious and cost $2.00 for 8 minutes, which was ample time.  They closed for an hour in the morning from 9 - 10 and again from 3 - 4 for cleaning. There were hair dryers like those found in hotels.  This is the first I've experienced that in a campground.