500 Miles from LA to the Grand Canyon!
The Grand Canyon…Ever since I was a little kid I’ve wanted to see the Grand Canyon in person. To gaze at its vastness and wander in its beauty. My folks weren’t what you would consider the “camping” / rent an RV and drive across the country kinda parents… If they had been it probably would have ended up been a scene straight out of the National Lampoon Family Vacation!
The Grand Canyon is one of the most remarkable natural wonders in the world. Located in the state of Arizona, USA, it is one of the deepest gorges on Earth with an average depth of one mile (1.6km) and an average width of ten miles (16km).
Lets us tell you about our epic adventure from LA to the Grand Canyon! We stayed on the South Rim, went to the antelope canyon sandstone slot canyons, Horseshoe Bend and kayaked on Lake Powell! Read more for the full run down and all the exciting details & how we got caught in a storm on our hike out of the canyon!
Leo and I went to Brazil last year to visit his family. While we were there we went to Foz do Iguaçu. A beautiful waterfall where Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay all come together. It’s also one of the wonders of the world just like the Grand Canyon. This trip to Foz really set our hearts a buzz to see them all and quite naturally since we live close to the Grand Canyon we put it at the top of our bucket list.
Foz do Iguaçu December 2016
We always do a big camping trip in the summer. Last year it was Sequoia National Park, which was so fun we did it twice! This year we decided The Grand Canyon was the place to go. Our anniversary is in August and rather than go to some fancy dinner and a movie we decided to plan our trip around our celebration. What better place can mark a beautiful day like that than where the wifi is weak and the stars are shining bright.
When we began our search on where to go, what we wanted to see, which rim to stay on etc. It became very clear how big the Grand Canyon really is.
The park includes over a million acres of land – 1,218,375.54 acres / 493,077 hectares, to be exact, or 1,904 square miles / 4931 square kilometers.
At first we had this idea of a legendary hike to magical waterfalls, rafting down the Colorado river, riding mules down into the canyon, helicopter rides with the most epic views, all while taking it in and enjoying every last drop. But I must say, after a lot of research and looking at our timeline when we were gonna be there, fitting all that in would not only be EXTREMELY expensive… It would have just been exhausting to do in the heat.
We knew one thing. We craved those huge, expansive, boundless views we were seeing all over our Instagram feeds. Which helped narrow down our search to the South Rim. We wanted to stay in a campground with a lot of coverage because we knew it was going to be hot in August, but we also wanted to be secluded so it was just us and nature. We read a lot of blogs, trip advisor forums, campground reviews and dug even deeper at times looking for the right spot. Being that this was our first trip to the Grand Canyon, Mather Campground seemed the most turn key without being over populated. We carefully chose site 294 in Pine Loop for August 18th-22nd and booked in it February. Everything books up fast so make sure to check availability and reserve your spot through the National Recreation Reservation Service:
Call 1-877-444-6777 Online: https://www.recreation.gov/
(Reservations can be made up to 6 months in advance)
Once the campsite was booked it was time to plan. After carefully examining all the prices on helicopter rides and one day rafting trips we decided that “that” money could go towards our end of the year trip to Thailand and we could figure out cheaper ways of making this trip unforgettable. Three things we wanted to see for sure ~ Horseshoe Bend, Havasupai Falls and those alluring orange sandstone slot canyons that were mesmerizing us on Pinterest.
The first thing we learned very quickly was that the Havasupai falls land is owned and protected by The Supai tribe. You cannot get on their land without permission and a permit. The hike itself is around 10-12 miles each way and in the middle of August they don’t even give out day hike permits…because you could die…So it was a no brainer that we just put that on another camping trip to-do list all on its own.
If you want to know more about those mystical blue waterfalls check out the Havasupai Indian reservation website here: https://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/havasupai.htm
So with the crazy 20 mile hike off the books we started looking at the other two things we wanted to do. Luckily Horseshoe Bend and The Antelope Canyons are very close to each other. Not so lucky for us its about two and a half hours from our campground. We said F*^! it… We are driving eight hours to see all of this anyways…whats another two…
We started researching the Antelope Canyons. We found out a few things…It’s also on Indian land and you need a tour guide to go down there. There are two canyons to choose from; The upper canyon and the lower canyon. The upper canyons are where you see most of the pictures that have captured the sun beams and flares of lights coming through the slots. The lower canyon is just as beautiful but because it is lower you don’t always get those beams of light. We ended up booking a tour in the lower canyon with Ken’s Tours. We liked that you could make a reservation online but didn’t have to pay for it until the day of.
We chose the lower canyon because when looking into it them it seemed less visited. We read horror stories of the tour guides pushing 500 people through AN HOUR in the upper canyon!
…um ya, no thanks…I’ll reserve that kind of anxiety for Disneyland
We booked our tour for 6:30am to insure we weren’t in a sea of people being hustled through like cattle and also so it would still be cool down there. We then planned our day around being down there in Page AZ. Horseshoe Bend would be the next stop which is just 8 miles down the road from Kens tours. Then, because we desperately crave being in water; we discovered Lake Powell is right down the street and provides a variety of water sports to choose from. You can call ahead but when we did they said there was no need to make reservations since they always have enough – and they did.
That all would make for a fun filled day which would end in a 2 + hour drive back to camp. We researched all the hikes around our campground for the next day and figured we would just wing the rest of the trip from there. We packed the car the night before and a lunch for the ride so we were good to go in the morning.
We left on Friday 8.18.17 at 9:00am and arrived at around 5:00pm at Mather campground. A 7 hour and 49 minute drive filled with lots of laughs and every lyric to Spotify’s 90’s / 2000’s playlist. We stopped a few times to pee but pretty much booked it there.
We arrive at Mather and checked in. –Check in is at 12pm- Set up camp, prepped breakfast and lunch for Saturday (aka instant oatmeal packs & PBJ’s). Then headed to get some firewood.
Some cool amenities that the south rim has around the campgrounds are a general store & deli where you can buy everything from socks to firewood, a restaurant, and full on lodging / hotels options. You can check out all that fun stuff here:
http://www.visitgrandcanyon.com/dining-and-shopping/canyon-village-market-deli
https://www.nps.gov/grca/planyourvisit/restaurants.htm
http://www.grandcanyonlodges.com/lodging/
The general store was extremely convenient. We made a small fire, ate dinner and went to bed because we had to be up before the crack of dawn for our adventure in Page.
We got up super early on Saturday 8.19.17 and left Mather at around 3:30 am. We arrived a little before 6:20am at Kens Tours (2hr 30min). Kens Tours asks you to arrive early so you can check in, pay and get paired up in a group. We were lucky to get to discover the canyon with a nice Australian couple and thats it. -When we got back there were like 20 people to a tour!-
We walked a short distance to the entrance of the canyon. Our tour guide kindly told us that there is no recording of any kind down in the canyon (apparently it’s copy written) and to be careful of the VERY steep, narrow set of metal stair that descends down into the ravine.
As I clutched on to the handrails thats millions had held onto before me on our plunge into the earth, I imagined 300 people in front of me and 200 people behind me all trying to get a peak at this natural beauty.
-Then I thought about hand sanitizer. Loads of hand sanitizer!-
But seriously, We thanked our lucky stars that we had the foresight to book that early tour!
Once your down in the canyon it’s immediately 10 degrees cooler. There’s an energy thats overwhelming and difficult to explain, but we’ll try…
The air was cool and light with a hint of a rainwater aroma surrounding you. The ground was made of soft red sand that didn’t cling to your feet like beach sand. It felt as if you just stepped into the pages of a SiFi novel or onto another planet all together. There were no other tours ahead or behind us which emphasized the calmness your soul felt surrounded by these big beautiful walls. At times they seemed as red as the sunset in fall; and others as orange as if you were engulfed in a flame looking up toward the sky.
It’s hard to be submerged in something that marvelous and deny the existence of something much larger than us. It was unreal; humbling and made you stand in silence in the awe of its balance.
It was a piece of art that looked as if it was polished my the very stroke of God’s paint brush. The preciseness of every line and curve reminded us of how deliberate divine order is. We sat in its glory and meditated on its perfection. We thanked the land and the Lord for letting us experience something so wondrous.
Our tour guide was awesome! He helped us adjust our camera settings so we could capture the exquisiteness of the slots. He explained in detail how these beauties came to be and even volunteered to take our photos in the right places he knew would bring out the best in the canyons. 
The Antelope Canyon’s were formed by erosion of Navajo Sandstone, primarily due to flash flooding and secondarily due to other sub-aerial processes. Rainwater, especially during monsoon season, runs into the extensive basin above the slot canyon sections, picking up speed and sand as it rushes into the narrow passageways. Over time the passageways eroded away, making the corridors deeper and smoothing hard edges in such a way as to form characteristic “flowing” shapes in the rock.
Then it was off to the most photographed place at The Grand Canyon, Horseshoe Bend!
We were unsure about whether or not we wanted to kayak first and then watch the sunset over horseshoe bend or go see it and then kayak. My heart was kinda set on a romantic twilight where the sun would go down and magic hour would come upon us as if the world was saying goodnight specifically to the two of us. But our tour guide said the longer we wait throughout the day the more people will be there… and if you have learned anything from this blog it’s that we don’t like crowds of people all up in our nature.
We left Kens Tours at 8:30 am and arrived at 8:45 am at Horseshoe Bend (roughly 15min). There is a parking lot where you can park your car for free, bathrooms and trashcans all right there. The trailhead is very close to the parking lot and the trail itself is about 1.25 miles roundtrip. The bus loads of people were already there. This was honestly the first hike we’d ever been on where we saw the old, the young, people in wheelchairs and strollers…folks wearing cowboy boots, flip flops and even high heels … The walk was kinda long and on a dirt path but not difficult at all… One beautiful thing was that everyone was from somewhere different. As you passed people on the trail you could catch different dialects from all over the world. It was so fascinating to think that no matter what walk of life you come from, we can all come together and agree that this was something to treasure and appreciate.
There really wasn’t alot of people there. The majority of them hung out right at the beginning of when the trail spits you out at the start of Horseshoe Bend. If you continue to walk to the right you can get secluded and really take in the vastness of this spot. It too is hard to explain in person… We’ve seen the same picture of this same gorge a thousand times and we have to tell you, it’s nothing like seeing it in person. There’s a spine-tingling feeling you get when you step up to that 4,200 feet (1,300 m) above sea level overlook with no hand rail. Your stomach leaps into your heart as you leer down upon that 1,000 ft (300 m) drop. And the hair stands up a little on your neck by the wisdom these mountain hold. It’s moving to say the least.
We took a dozen photos and absorbed it all in. We hiked back to the car and headed over to Lake Powell Marina to rent a kayak!
We ate and hydrated then headed to the water to escape the 110 degree weather. It was a very simple process. We parked down at the marina (you have to pay.) Went and paid for our kayaks in the office. Walked down to the house boats on the dock, checked in with the staff, grabbed our life jackets & a double kayak and we were off.
We had so much fun! Don’t get us wrong…it was tough paddling in the dry heat, running on 4 hours of sleep, but so worth it! We kayaked to a canal and perched up. Pulled the kayak up on the banks and we went for a little swim. Jumping in the water and listening to the echo’s of our splash bounce off the sandstone walls.
After our extremely lively day we headed back to camp where we showered, posted up in the hammock and had a cold beer. We made a ridiculously good coconut red lentil one-pot stew that gave us the energy to get through the hike we thought was going to be simple. You can check out the receipt right here:
https://freshoffthegrid.com/coconut-red-lentil-stew-with-kale/
On Sunday 8.20.17 we leisurely got up so we could enjoy the chance to sleep in on our little vacay. If you’ve camped before you know that means like 7:30am…or whenever it starts to get the right kinda hot in your little nylon sweat lodge.
Even though we had read about the different hikes on the south rim we still didn’t know which one was best for the time of day we were starting. So we went to the visitor’s center. It was so nice loaded with info and helpful rangers ready to answer your questions! There are a variety of ways you can see the canyon! You can rent bikes and ride to all the vista points. You can take the free bus tour to all the overlooks, you can ride mules down and go on a guided hike with a ranger! Or you could just hoof it down like we wanted to do.
Below are all the options for the hikes you can choose from. We decided to go down Bright Angel trail since it had the most shade and water along the way. When you go make sure to stop into the visitors center to find out all what The Grand Canyon has to offer!
Rim Trail
The Rim Trail extends from the village area to Hermits Rest. Begin from any viewpoint in the Village or along Hermit Road. The Rim Trail offers excellent walking for quiet views of the inner canyon and for visitors who desire an easy hike. No water west of Bright Angel Lodge. By using the shuttle buses, you can customize your hike to meet your needs. Part of the trail is paved and accessible.
Bright Angel Trail
(Steep) The Bright Angel Trail begins just west of Bright Angel Lodge and offers day hikes that range in distance up to 12 miles (round trip). Some shade. Seasonal water subject to pipeline breaks. Check at the Visitor Center or Backcountry Information Center for water status. Upper portion of the trail may be extremely icy in winter or early spring.
South Kaibab Trail
(Steep) The South Kaibab Trail begins south of Yaki Point on Yaki Point Road. Access to the trailhead is by shuttle bus (Kaibab Trail Route). Offers day hikes that range in distance up to 6 miles (round trip). Best views for a relatively short hike. Steep trail, no water, little shade. Water available seasonally at the trailhead. Upper portion of the trail may be extremely icy in winter or early spring.
Hermit Trail
(Steep) The Hermit Trail offers hikes to Santa Maria Spring, 5 miles (round trip), and Dripping Springs, 7 miles (round trip). Trail conditions are tougher than the Bright Angel and South Kaibab Trails. Unmaintained steep trail requires caution. Begins 500 feet west of Hermits Rest. Water from springs must be treated before drinking. For experienced desert hikers. Hiking boots recommended.
Grandview Trail
(Very Steep) The Grandview Trail offers hikes to Coconino Saddle, 2.2 miles (round trip), and Horseshoe Mesa, 6.4 miles (round trip). Trail conditions are tougher than the Bright Angel and South Kaibab Trails. Unmaintained steep trail requires caution. Begins on canyon side of retaining wall at Grandview Point on Desert View Drive (12 miles east of village). For experienced desert hikers. Hiking boots recommended.
We rode the bus from the visitors center to the trailhead at Bright Angel Trail. The hike down was a breeze. We decided to go down to the Three-Mile Rest house down in the canyon.
The sun was blazing and the skies were a crystal clear blue marked with giant white fluffy clouds. People’s faces on the way up passing us spelled for a steep grade. You don’t realize it on the way down but your going switch back descending rapidly into the canyon.
Once we made it down to our check point big dark clouds started to roll in almost immediately. Leo kept saying we have to go so that we didn’t get stuck in it; But we just got down there…The optimist in me convinced him to stay a little bit longer. But at a certain point you have to accept the impending storm and try to get up as fast as possible.
We made it a little less than half way up when the storm hit and boy were we not prepared for it! It started with a light drizzle that turned very rapidly into a sideways downpour. The winds were kicking up the dirt that was composed of tiny little rocks and hurling them directly into your bare skin. Which lucky for us was everywhere because we didn’t bring layers like the .gov websites advised us to…Bring layers kids, they ain’t jokin’. The thunder would roll and the lighting would strike and there was no escaping it. All while climbing up the now muddy vertical incline on the tail end of a 6 mile hike.
Let us just say, it tested our limits! There was a constant internal battle going on inside on whether we were gonna make it or not. We were soaking wet, our fingers were numb and all we wanted was to get to the warmth of the car. But once you make it to the top the feeling of accomplishment floods over you. It’s nice to know when your in the trenches with your partner you both are there to offer encouragement and a helping hand.
Back at the visitors center there is a cafe. So quite naturally we got a coffee. Drenched and grasping the coffee with numb appendages we went back to camp, showered and secured the rain guard on the tent. We went to bed that night a little closer, knowing what we were made of. All night we listened to the patter of rain falling on the roof of our tent. Which was lovely.
We woke up on our anniversary on 8.21.17 early to watch the sunrise. We went over to Mather overlook where Leo gave me the most beautiful anniversary gift. – While in Brazil I learned that its a custom of theirs for guys to give their girlfriend a “commitment ring” – Leo got us matching rings both engraved with each others names and the word blessed on the inside. It was such a beautiful surprise in a stunning setting. We decided since there was still a slight mist in the air and a chance of more rains that we would pack it in and head home.
We undoubtedly had one of the best camping trips ever! We definitely took more from those canyons than just photos. One thing was for sure, we missed our dog and our comfy bed. We jumped in our car and took that 7 hr 37 min ride home mile by mile.
We hope you have enjoyed reading about our little 500 mile journey from LA to The Grand Canyon! Surely we laid it out easily enough so you can go on a similar adventure! Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive a complete checklist from this trip so you don’t miss one step!
Check out this awesome video of all the fun!
xo
Callie & Leo
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