A SNEAK PEAK of the Grand Canyon IMAX movie!

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"Majestic"   "Vast"  "Scary" "Jaw-dropping" 

Are you still having a hard time, imagining what it's like to stand with your toes at the edge of the Grand Canyon, and peer into its depths?    Check out this sneak peak to the IMAX movie:



Still want more? 
Check out last week's blog, about 9 SUPER FUN THINGS to do at the Grand Canyon.
#3 is the IMAX spectacular!

Melanie @ Tough Love Travel is an expert at designing your vacation!  

She'll listen to what you want, help you to explore all the possibilities,  

and make all your reservations.  

All you do is pack your bag and head off on an adventure-of-a-lifetime! 

Grab a free phone call now, to hear more. 

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9 FUN things to do at the Grand Canyon

Tough Love Travel is back, with more ideas to inspire you when you visit the Grand Canyon. 

Call Melanie now with your questions:  (609) 923 0304

Tired after reading my last post about The Crying Rock?
Hoping there's something more relaxing  that you can do at the Grand Canyon instead of a 137* hike?  

Check out my 9 favorites:

1.  Catch sunset on the rim at Yavapai.  It's near the trailhead for South Kaibab Trail!  Here's the view of the Grand Canyon that you'll see...

2. Easy hike into the canyon on the South Kaibab Trail.   Instead of hugging a cliff wall on the Bright Angel trail, it follows a ridge, so its views of the Grand Canyon are much broader and breathtaking. The first 1.5 miles to Oh Ah Point is for the lightweights;   the whole unshaded 6 miles to Skeleton Point is for the hardliners! (hint:  one of the only REAL  toilets on this Grand Canyon trail is right there at Skeleton!)

3.  Watch the IMAX theater
This 34-minute flick, shown on a 6-story screen and accompanied by floor-shaking acoustics,  tells the story of the 266-mile Grand Canyon from its Anasazi inhabitants, 4000 years ago, to its exploration by Major Powell in the 1860's, to recent stuntmen like this hang-glider.

Cost:   $13.72/adult, $10.42/child
Location:  in the South Rim Visitors Center, at 450 State Road, in Tusayan

This is in the town of Tusayan, 15 minutes drive south from Grand Canyon Visitors Center, where you'll also find pizza shops and and souvenirs, and even the helipad (see #6 below).


4.   Ride the RR and even get sucked in by a shootout!
There's an historic Grand Canyon railroad trip, with various routes (one trip takes you roundtrip from Sedona's artist country!)  but the most popular starts at Williams AZ and takes you, car-free- to the Grand Canyon village.  With free shuttles all around the rim, who needs a car in the park anyway?
(shhhh... don't tell the kids about the shootout.  They'll think bonafide bank robbers are holding up your train!)



5.  Instead of a hike, ride a mule!  You can embark from either south or north rim of the Grand Canyon, but reserve in advance.  If you weigh less than 200 lbs, are at least 7 (for even the shortest trips), and have 80 bucks to spare,  here's how to reserve!

6.  Splurge on a helicopter ride with Maverick.  If Maverick is good enough for Trek America guides, it's good enough for me!   This very reputable helicopter guiding company will fly you over the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, high enough to see distant views of the Painted Desert.  Trips are 45-60 minutes and run about $250pp.   Do you dare?


7.  Sip a cold one at El Tovar lounge:
This historic lodge is a Registered National Historic Landmark building, and the premier dining of the Grand Canyon park system.  Its native-stone-and-Oregon-timber Canyon room has great views!  Watch the thermometer go up, as your drink goes down, from inside this prestigious and very restorative venue!



8.  Catch a cabin on the rim!    Yes, it is possible to get a front row seat -- or should I say, bunk -- right on the rim for your Grand Canyon stay.  A honeymooning couple decided they wanted to see the Grand Canyon at first light,  but cabins are big enough even for small families.  
Worried about the busy summer?  You can enjoy the relatively crowd-free Grand Canyon rim at dawn, then go out and play during the day when the crowds are bad.        


9.  Attend a Ranger program!  They're outdoor-based programs ranging from fossil programs to storytelling to guided walks and star talks, and, of course,  the Grand Canyon geology talk!  I'd also highly recommend the campfire program, held each summer evening at 6:30pm at the Mather Campground.  

Here's a full schedule to see what YOU'D like to attend. 

Want more Grand Canyon info?  

I've been to the Grand Canyon -- ridden the rails,  hiked to the way bottom!   

At Tough Love Travel, I love to share my knowledge 

to make YOUR trip perfect!  

Click here to grab a free phone call to talk more!

The Crying Rock: how my family survived the Grand Canyon!

The summer of '01, my family drove 2300 miles from our home in NJ to take 15,000 footsteps to reach the floor of the deepest canyon in our nation.  But that was only the beginning of our story...

The waking sky had only streaks of yellow and orange when the 5 of us set out to hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. 

It was a clear July dawn as we strode off the rim -- fortified by the dining hall's scrambled eggs, stocked with bottles of water and salty snacks (no "death by water intoxication" for us!), sheltered in bandanas and caps, and informed by the Grand Canyon ranger safety video. 

As the waking sun lowered the shadows down the strirated canyon walls, our rocky path grew clearer and the broad canyon vista before us gained depth and color.  The canyon's walls-  layers of rust, black, and mustard - represented centuries, piled atop each other, and as we hiked down through time, it felt surreal, magical.  It felt like entering a chasm.

We descended... snacked... hiked... posed for photos.  

The random stark pine tree stood out bright and lively against the desiccated landscape, but gave no shelter from the fiery sun,  now beaming down on us from the deep blue sky overhead.

Our boots slowly turned dusty gray from the parched trail below us. 

Yet we followed the lone trail, deeper and deeper, into the crevasse.

We crossed over a stream or two, picking our steps from one flat stone to another, and paused to delight over the tinkle of water that flowed through such a stark land.  

By Indian Garden (about mile 4), we were thankful to find shade and water spigets.   And as the July heat intensified, we remembered the popular canyon slogan -- "Hike Wet".  So we started to lie down -- head and all -- in each creek we crossed.   The thermometer had reached three digits. 

After about 6 hours and 7 miles, WE MADE IT! .... or so we thought. 

The trail ended, on a cliff edge, below which the Colorado River roared.

With water bottles low and our spirits the same,  our overheated bodies peered longingly at the unreachable water some 30' below -- a painful contrast of 50* rapids in 115* heat.

Somehow, the GC safety video had failed to include this detail. 

With toes at rim, we surveyed our options.  There was really only one. 

The trail took a sharp right-hand turn to follow the rolling river banks, with not a speck of shade in sight. The campground bridge MUST be in that direction. 

So off we trudged. 

But the heat had gotten unbearable, and our resolve was buckling. 

When we thought it could get no worse, the path turned to deep sand -- reflecting the intense heat back on our cheeks, sucking in our burning boots. 

At each twist of the trail, we searched the foreground for some sign of the bridge, and were just too overheated to take the disappointment of endless empty desert before us.

Curves and rises.   Over and over. 
I panted hot breath out of my mouth.  
I sipped  water, like warm bland soup, from my bottle.   
I saw my young crew, staring down at their scorched boots, pushing through the dun sand. 
We were getting dangerously worn down. 

Then around a bend, a giant rock appeared, overhanging the trail.  

Without any discussion, we all 5 scurried to the shade under the rock, and took a collective sigh.

I looked around our circle of red anxious faces.

My 15-year-old outdoorsman was stoic, realizing the severity of our situation. 

My moody 13-year-old was fuming, wondering why he wasn't in music camp in the  Canadian woods right now instead of at the bottom of this inferno.

My 11-year-old, Doug, looked to me, his fearless leader, wondering what I was going to do. 

And that's when I saw the eyes of my 9-year-old, welling up. 

Little Tom, overwhelmed, was cracking. 

My mind sped -- what to say?   how to encourage?  were we even safe?  

I felt genuine fear for the first time, and could sense my own eyes stinging with tears.

Then, magically, Doug stirred. 

He stepped up to Tom and put his arm firmly around his brother's shoulder.   In his best big-brother voice,  with barely a quaver, Doug said, 

"C'mon Tom... there's the bridge.  We'll do it together". 

And with that,  they stepped off. 

The other 3 of us were so stunned that we stepped too.  

Sucking up our own hidden tears, we plowed onward, and before we knew it, the bridge indeed got larger, closer.  The deep sand pulled less.   And we defied the heat -- now well over 120*  around noon -- as we single-mindedly and with a new energy, marched to the bridge,  over the wild rapids, and  to a protective ranger and our campground for the night. 

NOW we HAD made it!

Just feet over the bridge, we tore our packs off and almost ran for the Bright Angel Creek, a small bubbling tributary.  We splashed down, boots and all -- and you could hear a collective "ahhhhhhhhhh".   We smiled -- and even laughed at loud -- at our surviving! 

We spent most of that afternoon in that creek, with short spurts to set up camp or grab food from our packs. 

That evening, we joined the ranger program for a little geology lesson.  

The board at the entrance to the program said:

Take Caution. 

Temperature today: 

137* 

Thank goodness -- we had been saved by the Crying Rock, and a brave 11-year-old boy. 

This blog is dedicated to my 4 sons who, with blind faith and bottomless love (and not much choice, to tell you the truth),  followed  me on our annual 6-week roadtrips all around the United States, each summer of their childhood.   

20 Best Hikes in the National Parks -- thank you, National Geographic

Best Hikes in the National Parks -- National Geographic

I have spent a good chunk of each summer since 1992, stomping into the backcountry of one National Park, or another.   From Isle Royale's offshore campsites, to Angel Creek in the bottom of the Grand Canyon, to amazing sunsets along the Gulf shores of the Everglades, I am blessed with the most priceless memories.

In the past few summers, though, I realize that I had missed these annual forays.

I had already promised myself a NP trip for Summer '12.
Now, thanks to NG's article, all I have to do is choose!

ROADTRIP! Driving the deserts of the American Southwest!

As schools close and summer days get long, our over-scheduled souls yearn for freedom and adventure! Look no further than the open roads through our country's mountains and deserts, farms and seashores!

In the next few weeks, I will inspire you! I'm going to spotlight 4 different itineraries, in various regions of our country. So, trade your island brochures for National Park guides, get an oil change in your car, and pack up your hiking boots, because the American landscape awaits!

Itinerary #1: The Desert of the American Southwest!

Start in Las Vegas!

Known for its cheap flights (strategically low to attract gamblers), this city gives you the pick of themed hotels for any budget! Try Circus Circus (rock bottom rates right on the strip), or the MGM Grand (for a GRAND river pool), or the opulent Venetian (complete with gondolas on a private canal)!

You can catch the newest Cirque show, a gravity-defying spectacle called KA:

http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/ka/default.aspx

or see the classic musical, Lion King

or just walk the strip and watch the moving stage of pirate battles and dancing fountains.

Ever seen the fountain "ballet" at the Bellagio?

http://www.bellagio.com/amenities/fountains-of-bellagio.aspx

Then load up your rental car and hit the desert highway!

Loop north though Utah's canyon country!

You'll hit Zion's slot canyons first (always take a guide... those flash floods warnings are no joke!), and then Bryce's orange rock pillars, called Hoodoos Country!

You can't go wrong with either a morning hike or an afternoon balloon ride!

When my kids were young, we used to call those buttes "Birthday Cake Mountains" since they looked like a layered cake!

Stay and Play on Lake Powell!

Hire a houseboat for a few days, and kick back on the emerald green waters of this magnificent canyon! We fished by day and stoked bonfires by night, jet-skiied to the Rainbow Bridge (longest rock span on earth)

,

and hiked to the top of buttes.

We spent afternoons, dropping the hook in private coves to fire up our BBQ and open our waterslide right off the back of the boat!

And when night came, we dined on the water in the seclusion of our anchorage, watching the sun set over the empty canyonland - then we drug mattresses to our boat's top deck to cuddle together under a powdered-sugar sky full of stars!

You'll have to force yourself away from the treasures of Lake Powell, but more excitement awaits, only a few hours south at the Grand Canyon!

Stash your rental car in Williams and board the Grand Canyon Railway! You'll hear history and enjoy refreshments as you chug through the northern Arizona countryside, but be careful to steer clear of the gun-slingin' cowboys -- sometimes they get into shoot-outs, right on the platform!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPC8RSvKKu0&feature=related

If you plan carefully, you can snag a cabin, right on the rim.

"It's much more than basic... we were delighted", a client told me this past Spring.

And another guest said, "All I need is my percolator and the sunrise!"

You might enjoy the IMAX theatre show: The Grand Canyon Movie (buy your tickets online at http://www.explorethecanyon.com/)

And be sure you take some time to hike, not just along the rim, but also BELOW it, to feel the magic in this geological wonder! It's 270 miles long and over 1 miles deep!

If you're real Native American buffs, detour east to Canyon de Chelly (pronounced Shay) where a canyon jeep tour with a Navajo guide will uncover petroglyphs and cave dwellings!

If you're a outdoor enthusiast, try a wilderness rafting trip on the Salt!

You'll ride wild rapids through the Sonora desert, tackle a multiday trip from Inn to Inn, or go all the way in a Wilderness River Expedition!

Take a day in civilization as you head back west through Sedona!

Gel at a vineyard, gear up on a mountain bike, go Zen at a spa, or just enjoy a dine-around in the downtown area. Watch up for those killer burritos!

No visit to Arizona would be complete without some hot spring-ing! There are many hot spring resorts, but the real finds are the ones you hike to, like this one, one a few minutes drive, but then a few hours hike, from Hoover Dam:

The rules? Hike together and in daylight. Take lunch and plenty of water. Expect nudity. And NEVER put your hand up on a ledge or under a rock.... this is scorpion country!