I recently realized that I hadn’t taken advantage of my proximity to greatness since living in Arizona. I’ve driven around it half a dozen times in the last two years, but haven’t taken the time to truly experience Arizona’s National Park and one of only twenty-one UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the U.S. So, a couple of weeks ago I took some time to visit Grand Canyon National Park.
While I was in the area, I made sure to explore some of the other sites of interest in Northern Arizona including three National Monuments (Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, and Sunset Crater), the Home of Pluto at Lowell Observatory, and Riordan Mansion State Historic Park.
I hiked many miles both partway down in the canyon and along the rim, through and around ancient and historic architecture, and up a volcanic crater. Keeping up with my tradition, I added seven patches to the collection.
So, over the next few days I’ll reach my 300th post by sharing this adventure with you. I hope you enjoy!
Public Service Announcement
Please take care of your parks. I collected litter from every trail I hiked in the busy areas of the parks and the in less frequented portions. Of course it wasn’t like there was rubbish lining the trails, but one or two small wrappers, scraps or empty bottles makes an impact on the amazing scenery and on nature. I’m sure the occasional piece of trash I picked up was an accidental discharge when rummaging through bags or pockets. However, let’s all help each other out and pick up after one another. The worst item I found was the result of someone’s celebration most likely extremely far away. While hiking up a volcano, I came across this remnant of a latex balloon. I don’t know how it got to be like this or where it came from, but the way I found it could easily deceive birds and other wildlife into thinking it was something to eat. I’ll let you come to the conclusion of possible consequences. Anyway, please pack out what you pack in and pick up what you come across that doesn’t belong there. Thank you. Now back to your regular programming.
