On the inside it simply said the landowner built it for any and all to enjoy....Chapel of The Holy Dove
Stopped in Tusayan just before entering the park to watch an IMAX film about the discovery of the canyon, was pretty good. Then entered Grand Canyon National Park....to the visitors center and Mather's Point.
My last visit to the Grand Canyon was in a motor home with my family 35+ years ago....this visitors center was not even here.....is really nice. We got the low down and walked to the lookout....WOW!!!
It's just breathtaking........I could sit there all day and just look at it........
I remember the canyon from years ago...we even flew over it in a small plane....but as age will do, you can appreciate it more now. A ranger was there give is lots of cool info....we were at 7000 ft elevation and the bottom of the canyon is approx 2000 ft....big difference! He has hiked it many times, to stay at Phantom Ranch in the bottom, and he said it was interesting to see and experience the different eco-systems along the way as you go up and down. I can only imagine. With the binoculars we could see the very eco-friendly buildings of Phantom Ranch for hikers. Without binocs you would never know they were there.
We moved on to see Lookout Studio and Kolb Studio and the El Tovar hotel. The Kolb Brothers were photographers and built this house in 1904 to take and develop pictures of people taking mule rides in and out of the canyon, and then sold them to them. What a sweet job...and their house is literally on a cliff....no stepping off the porch....not a bad backyard view. Then in 1914 Mary Colter built a home, Lookout Studio, just a few yards away to compete with the Kolb Brothers....it too had a lovely view and was nice, for those times. Many of the original walls and windows are still there and in 2014 it will be 100yrs old.....geez, not sure we make them that good anymore!!!
Inside the Kolb Brothers home...now holds all the neat things from their lives and photography
Lookout Studio...built in 1914 by Mary Colter
Then....on to the El Tovar.... an older lodge, but very kept up and somewhat modernized for us spoiled folks. We were lucky enough to be able to eat dinner there...at a table with a view....wonderful.
The El Tovar was gorgeous from a distance...was built in 1905 and renovated in 2005, has that great out west feeling and ambiance.
This was built for the "rich and famous" back in the day.....the wide porches are sooooo nice to sit on and just watch the canyon. Sunset was amazing! For those that have visited me in FL, you know I call the folks that come to the beach for sunset..."beach zombies"....well, I was a "canyon zombie".....the colors on the walls of the canyon were terrific. I even took a few pics with the camera looking through the binoculars....pretty neat trick!!
We looked at Bright Angel Lodge and few others as we were leaving, and saw some really tiny hiker cabins....bunk beds and enough room to turn around, but it beat sleeping outside with snakes and scorpions!!!
It was getting dark fast and we had a 2hr ride ahead of us...so we headed south for Sedona.
It was a wonderful day.....I think I'll come back before another 35yrs go by!!!
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