{"id":8455,"date":"2025-05-15T19:31:43","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T19:31:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/traveltales.ahot.online\/?p=8455"},"modified":"2025-05-29T16:56:49","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T16:56:49","slug":"usa-grand-canyon-en","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/traveltales.ahot.online\/index.php\/2025\/05\/15\/usa-grand-canyon-en\/","title":{"rendered":"Grand Canyon"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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13.6.-16.6.2023<\/p>

When we left Blythe a bit before noon, the temperature had already risen to +38C. Fortunately, thanks to the efficient air conditioning, it was not hot in the car, although the highest temperature outside reached 108 Fahrenheit (=42C). We had checked in advance that the journey should take about four hours, but of course there were roadworks on the way, which slowed us down by an hour. The scenery was just as dry as the day before, but as we got closer to Williams, there was a bit more vegetation. Mostly ponderosa pines. The temperature had also dropped to a comfortable +20 degrees.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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This leg of the trip consisted mainly of straight road and dry desert.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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In Williams we stayed in a caravan at the campsite. It was a little more spacious than the campervan we rented in New Zealand. Our caravan in Williams had two bedrooms, two toilets and a combined living room\/kitchen. You could get extra width for the caravan with walls, which slid outwards on the side of the caravan. The caravan\u2019s dining table, sofa and beds were located in this extra space.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Expandable walls provided extra space within the campervan.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The front was equipped with a small terrace, table, grill and a fireplace.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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In the evening, we went to the Williams self-service laundry to do our laundry. At the same time, we also did some grocery shopping. When we returned to pick up our laundry, the road to the laundromat was blocked because there was a Wild West show going on in the middle of the street. A local theatre group was there depicting life in the late 1800s Williams. It seems to have been a lot of guns blazing and booze drinking back then, at least for some people. Ronja didn’t appreciate the show very much and stood in the audience covering her ears most of the time, muttering that yet again the whole trip was ruined.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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A Wild West street theater performance.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Risto's eye lashes charmed even the town harlot.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The night was surprisingly cool. When we woke up in the morning, the temperature outside was only 12C, and it wasn’t very warm in the trailer either. Fortunately, there was a gas fireplace in the trailer, so we clicked it on and soon everyone was comfortably warm again. Immediately after breakfast we headed to Williams train station to see if we could get tickets for the 1923 train that would take us to the Grand Canyon. Luckily, there were still some tickets left, and we bought combination tickets for the same day. In addition to the train transport, the package included a buffet lunch and a 1.5h tour of Grand Canyon. The whole thing cost us 502 dollars, including park fees, so it wasn\u2019t cheap at all.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Breakfast by the fireplace.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Before the train left, there was a short theatre performance in the open-air theatre behind the platform area. The same guys were banging their guns as the night before in the street theatre show. Again the sheriff managed to shoot the thugs, and so we were safe during our train journey. Ronja thought that we had once again ruined her life by dragging her to watch and listen to the show, but she agreed to have her picture taken with one of the thugs at the end of the show anyway.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Gunfire was imminent.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Group photo with a card hustler.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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We travelled the 2h15min journey to the Grand Canyon in Pullman class, the cheapest of the travel options. It was the cheapest because there was no air conditioning in the carriage. There were fans in the ceiling, and the windows could be opened, so the temperature in the carriage was quite comfortable, especially on the outward journey. We also had a PSA (passenger service assistant) in our carriage, who explained the history of the area, told (bad) jokes, and entertained us passengers by chatting with us. There was also a violinist in the coach who played a few songs for us.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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The Pullman carriage was renovated to its original state.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Historic newspapers topped the experience.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The atmosphere on the train was great!<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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A violinist played us some country music.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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The route took us mainly through open prairie.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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When we approached Grand Canyon, the surroundings became a bit more verdant.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Once at the Grand Canyon, we were directed to buses, and the first stop for our bus was a buffet lunch. It wasn’t exactly a gourmet lunch, but it was enough to fill your stomach. After an hour long lunch break, we finally went to see the canyon itself. Marko was getting a bit anxious, as the driver drove around the Grand Canyon village (where 2000-3000 people live permanently), showing us the school, library and other buildings. After all, we had come here to see the canyons, not the buildings.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Select the correct answer: a) Ronja is eating to make every dollar count. b) Ronja is a tad slower than everyone else.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Finally, however, we arrived at our first stop, Yavapai Point. There would have been a geological museum there, but we didn’t go there, preferring to look at the rock formations outside. Jaana had been to the Grand Canyon once before, but the sheer size of the place still amazed her. The pictures do not do justice to how stunning the Grand Canyon is. At its widest point, the canyon is about 29km wide, and even in the narrower parts it is almost 19km. The canyon is up to 1.8km deep with an average depth of about 1.5km, so it’s certainly grand! It would also be interesting to visit in winter, when there can be up to 1.5m of snow on the south rim, and even more snow on the northern rim. Now, in the thirty degree heat, it was a bit hard to believe, though.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Pictures do not make justice to the grandeur of Grand Canyon.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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