Sedona to the South Rim (via tour):
We packed all of our belongings back into our panniers, and said goodbye to the soft bed, automatic coffeemaker, and hot shower. We got on our shuttle shortly after 11am and headed back to the Grand Canyon. It was a tour, and a very good one. Dave, the tour guide, was young and full of energy and humor. We stopped to pick up a few more people for the tour of the canyon and even got a stop at Starbuck's for coffee while passing through Flagstaff for the second time.
We thoroughly enoyed the tour, winding upwards on a steep highway with blind curves and no shoulders. We were very happy not to be biking up the very scenic, and very bicycle-unfriendly highway. As we asceneded the mountain to get out of Sedona, we got to see the scenic Oak Creek Valley (one of the top ten scenic roads in the USA). It was beautiful: lush green trees, rock formations and mountains, gurgling brooks, and an amazing view back down the valley that was at least 1000ft below us when we reached the top.
We rode into the Navajo Reservation and got to see the Little Colorado Gorge (photo below) from Marie's Fine Jewelry, a small Navajo shop selling jewelry, carvings, pottery, paintings, and dream catchers.
Soon we arrived back at Desert View, an eastern point on the South Rim. Our tour guide took our picture in front of the amazing Grand Canyon before helping us unload our bikes and bags near the campground.
South Rim:
After arriving at Desert View we took our time admiring the canyon, and stopped by the general store for some dinner supplies, before heading over to the campground. The dawdling was a mistake. The campground was full!!! We asked a ranger if there was any where to stay, he said it was not allowed to share tent sites, but that we could go camp in the national forest - about four miles away. The forest could have been an option, but it was downhill and we really wanted to be able to start our next morning with full water supplies.
While talking to the ranger we garnered a sympathetic ear. Krista was visiting the canyon with her family of six. The campground rule was six or less people to a site, but she encouraged us to ask around to see if someone would share anyway. We only had bicycles, no vehicles, and many people were staying in RVs, rarely venturing into the tent area of their site. Encouraged we asked the RV next to Krista's family. They were prepared to say yes, we think, but when they realized it wasn't strictly allowed, they decided against letting us share as they didn't want to get in trouble. But then more nice people came to the rescue! A lady nearby asked if we were looking for a spot and happily offered up some of their area. She was visiting the canyon with here husband and granddaugher, Don and Tara. We were very happy and thankful for the spot for the evening. We all roasted mashmallows and ate s'mores over a fire later that evening. Yummy!
Secure with a campsite for the night, we ventured back over to the canyon and enjoyed exploring the area a little more throroughly, and photographing the sunset and night sky. We also collected firewood for the s'more roasting.
Despite original intentions of getting up bright and early the next day and heading out, we couldn't just yet leave the Grand Canyon and decided to extend our visit there another day. We spent this day relaxing and enjoying the view. We found the best reading spots and curled up against trees with good books.
A few closer looks at the canyon (above and below). Next time we visit we will have to do some real hiking and explore the canyon a bit more closely. This trip our legs just weren't up for extended walking, no less hiking.
At the Grand Canyon, all distances are referenced as "as the raven flies" so as to account for the horizontal distance without considering the vertical component. However, this raven only wanted a piece of our lunch.
We went to one of the ranger talks our second evening and watched the sun set.
Krista and family quickly became our friends, and we received many young visitors to our campsite both days. Cathryn, Emily and Zach (three of four of Krista's and Curt's children) visited us many times on their bicycles and kept us company as we wrote our postcards. They were on a family vacation and from Las Vegas. We were invited over for s'mores after the ranger talk. We all sat around their fire talking, keeping warm, and enjoying the fire and desserts.
South Rim to Cameron:
The next morning we had a leisurely breakfast and biked over to say goodbye to our friends. Zach, Cathryn, and Emily had been arranging the stuffed animals in the tree (they were bears, but there was a dolphin plushie as well). We got a nice picture together!
In the tree are Zach and Cathryn. On the ground from left to right are Emily, Curt, Krista, Zach, me and Chris. (I am sorry if I spelled any names wrong - if you drop us a comment, we'll fix it).
Soon we were off again! Biking back down into the Navajo Reservation which our tour had driven through two days ago. Here is a different view of the Little Colorado Gorge.
It was a wonderful downhill joy ride, with many descents and a few rolling hills and gentle climbs. We reached the tradingpost in Cameron just in time for lunch. Cameron is actually a US city in the midst of the Navajo Reservation. We had lunch at the trading post in a diningroom decorated with wooden vanities, handwoven tapestries, and authentic artwork. We put our bikes outside a window and dined on delicious food. Chris had "Navajo Hot Beef", which was roast beef, camelized onions, and gravy on fry bread (imagine a thick, round elephant's ear, not as sweet, and with a taste of corn) served with a cooked hot pepper. Very tasty.
We headed out after lunch to continue on our way, only to encounter a serious wind. We tried to bicycle, but quickly realized it was an unsafe idea. The wind was coming at us from the southwest, but we were heading directly north. It was 15-25 mph, with gusts up to 35 mph. It was barely manageable without traffic, but when a semi went by us it would unbalancre our bicycles making us swerve. We pulled off and took shelter in an unused Navajo jewelry shop (essentially an overhang constructed of particleboard, two by fours, and paint - not the sturdiest, but it did provide some protection from the wind). We decided it wasn't safe to continue biking with the wind and we would wait till it died down. After looking at the weather reports we realized the only calm spot we would have would be sometime after midnight. We realized we were stuck.
Despite the wind and poor biking conditions, we had actually traveled a few miles from Cameron. To get back to Cameron (they had an RV park where we could pitch a tent for the night and get water in the morning), we would have to travel against the gale. We sat and read for a while before deciding to attempt to venture back. We made it, eventually, and set up camp on a nice piece of gravelly dirt near a bridge. It afforded us a stunning sunset before we crawled into our tent and passed out, awaiting the alarm for 4:30 the next morning.
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