The Big Move Home: Day 11

Day 11 Route: Kanab, UT to the Grand Canyon's North Rim to Flagstaff, AZ

Pictures: The Big Move Home: Day 11

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Day 11 By The Numbers

	Day 11	Total
Miles Driven	284.5	2,503.9
Time in Car*	5:30	55:04
New State License Plates Seen	3	43
Diapers Changed	7	79
Money Spent on Gas	$40.73	$425.69
National Parks Visited	1	5

*According to the car's trip computer

Day 11 was one of the stops that Jess and I both said was a 'must-have' on the trip: Grand Canyon National Park. When we decided to visit Zion, we knew that we'd probably have to visit the North Rim because the South Rim (the classic tourist destination) was out of our way by several hours.

Utah and Arizona are both on Mountain Time, but (most of) Arizona does not observe Daylight Savings, while Utah does. So that meant we'd be traveling back an hour to Pacific time. Just when we thought we were making progress! The time zone change was lucky for us because this was one of our latest days leaving - we got out of Kanab around noon, but quickly crossed the Arizona, where we were right back on schedule.

For the previous couple of days, we'd seen nothing but desert and red cliffs. It was a welcome change to cross into the Kaibab National Forest, which contained green meadows, small lakes, lots of trees, and a little snow. Jess and I had both assumed it would be dry and desolate as we approached the canyon, so seeing deer grazing in a meadow is a pretty nice surprise.

The Grand Canyon definitely didn't disappoint in its grandness. The Grand Canyon Lodge was very nicely situated right on the edge, with plenty of seating to let you relax and enjoy the view. Jess and I wanted to do a little walking, and decided to walk out to Bright Angel point (1/2 mile round trip) to get some pictures. Even though the path was paved and very well maintained, Jess was pretty scared of the steep dropoffs on each side. But she toughed it out and we stayed out on the point for a few pictures and to take in the scenery.

After that, we weren't really sure what else there was to do. We definitely weren't going to take a longer hike, and the views from around the lodge all looked about the same. Jess decided to look in the gift shop while Fin and I hung out by the car (which also had a great view). Then we packed up and headed out for the next destination. As far as a drive-through visit goes, I feel like we got the pictures we were looking for, but it wasn't quite as amazing to either of us as Yosemite was. Maybe that's because we've seen so many pictures of the Grand Canyon in our lives that it didn't seem to be that amazing when you saw it (by contrast, somehow, neither of us knew much about Yosemite). Our next trip here will have to be longer (and to the South Rim) so we can do some hiking and take in some more of the park.

The drive from the North Rim to Flagstaff was some of the most beautiful scenery of the day. You exit from the Kaibab Plateau and shoot across open desert with huge cliffs on either side. It was unreal. Jess kept taking pictures from the car and even said "I know these are all going to look the same, but I just can't stop!" We drove along the Vermillion Cliffs, crossed over Navajo Bridge and entered the Navajo Reservation.

This is where we got confused about time zones. Suddenly, my phone said that we were back on Utah time (+1 hour). We thought Arizona was all on the same time as California, so we were really a little worried that we'd gone crazy. Once we got a chance to look it up, we found that the Navajo nation does observe Daylight Savings, so they stay on the same time as Utah while the rest of Arizona is different for part of the year. Once we exited the reservation, our phones shifted back an hour. We were quite the time travellers.

Another good day under our belts. I think we're getting pretty good at these days with National Park visits coupled with 5-6 hours of driving (which is good, because there's a couple more coming up before Austin). We arrive pretty exhausted, but are able to get ourselves set up for bed just before we collapse for the night. It seems weird that we've been doing this for 11 days now, and there's still about 7 left. Neither of us can believe how good Finley has been on the trip - I think it's the closest thing to a routine he's ever had. Let's hope he keeps it up for the next week!

Tomorrow: Petrified Forest National Park and on to Moriarty, NM