Our next stop was the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, the quieter side. It’s is a long drive to get there, but the feeling is much calmer than the south rim, and fewer people (and tour busses).

We haven’t been here in a long time and having only stayed in cabins on previous visits, the campground was new to us. We found a beautiful, quiet, spacious campground with all sites “pull-around” configuration. The “pull-around” was around trees! Nice paved sites, except almost all were “bowl” shaped and sloping to the one side – hard to see in the reservation photos. That meant it was a bit of a challenge to get situated and to arrange blocking – LEGO expertise was needed.

The hikes were beautiful, we hiked 2 ½ miles down into the canyon one day, and even out again! Here are a few images of the canyon landscape and lodge.

We had beautiful sunsets and starlit nights!

We spent three full days in Zion National Park, one of our favorites. The first day we drove through the tunnel to the eastern edge of the park and hiked the East Rim Trail for the first time. Beautiful, with clouds moving in and the forecast of rain.

That night we took the shuttle into Springdale, had a nice dinner at Oscar’s, and watched the rain move in. After dinner we took the shuttle up the canyon and watched the waterfalls come down into the canyon – something that only happens during a hard rain or in the spring with snowmelt.

That evening we listened to 2.7 inches of rain come down on Ari! The next day the rain continued in the morning and then cleared. The Zion river was angry and very full!

The day turned beautiful by 11:00.

Day three was a typical Zion day.

We have Ari ll all ready to head for Zion National Park tomorrow! Cleaned, fresh water, all aired up, and windows cleaned to enjoy the views!