marcusorelius
Well-known member
My first trip to the canyon was when I was about 6 years old. My Mom & Pop drove there from Southern Calif on a summer vacation, 5 of us kids in the car! It left quite an impression on me seeing such an immense hole in the ground at that age!
We stopped in Vegas on the way back, and my pop was gonna take us to death valley in the middle of summer, good thing they closed the road in those days, what a fiasco that would have been in a car with no a/c.
My next trip to the Canyon was when I was about 34. I took the amtrack from L.A to Williams then the GC train to the canyon. I did the overnite mule ride to the bottom on the bright angel trail, you stay at Phantom ranch an have a steak dinner & ride back up the Kaibab trail the next day.
Our guide saw I was good with riding the mule. (they size ya up before the trip an gave me a frisky one who used to be a guide's mule) and asked me to ride in back and help heard up the group. They gave us a whip and said don't come on this unless u can use it ( mules ARE stubbun crazy beasts)
Going up the kid in front of me mule kept stalling out and the kid wouldn't smack it's behind so I was doing it.
Well near the top of the canyon his mule completely stopped so I was wack'n its behind. Well that mule tried to kick my mule in the head and my mule jumped strait up in the air 4 feet on a narrow trial with a mile drop off into the canyon! ( we later found out the kids mule was sick). I still have my certificate "Order of the Master Mule Skinners of the Grand Canyon Trails" from that trip framed on my office wall. With a pic of me on my mule Ole # 7.
In 2005 I moved to Az and started my M/c riding. After a few years I added a sport-tourer ( a 01 Connie, then an Fjr) and started to ride with the Duke. We took at least 8 trips to the South rim & 2 to the North rim.
This past weekend on the 4thof July a few of my buds were doing a Utah ride, so we rode with them the 1st 120 miles to Williams Az then split off to camp at the canyon for 3 nites. The Duchess went on her 1st trip to the Canyon! We camped at the TenX campground which is a few miles before the canyon town of Tusayan. I stayed with Duke once in the canyon CG but found this a much nicer place, way bigger camping spots bigger trees & a more relaxing place. Also it's just a few miles to Tusayan, so very easy to get food & whatever ya need.
Here is the finale vid of our trip (ya can see pts 1-3 in the video section) I have labeled most of the main viewing points in the vid. Gotta say I love this place & told my family to throw my ashes in the river here.
We stopped in Vegas on the way back, and my pop was gonna take us to death valley in the middle of summer, good thing they closed the road in those days, what a fiasco that would have been in a car with no a/c.
My next trip to the Canyon was when I was about 34. I took the amtrack from L.A to Williams then the GC train to the canyon. I did the overnite mule ride to the bottom on the bright angel trail, you stay at Phantom ranch an have a steak dinner & ride back up the Kaibab trail the next day.
Our guide saw I was good with riding the mule. (they size ya up before the trip an gave me a frisky one who used to be a guide's mule) and asked me to ride in back and help heard up the group. They gave us a whip and said don't come on this unless u can use it ( mules ARE stubbun crazy beasts)
Going up the kid in front of me mule kept stalling out and the kid wouldn't smack it's behind so I was doing it.
Well near the top of the canyon his mule completely stopped so I was wack'n its behind. Well that mule tried to kick my mule in the head and my mule jumped strait up in the air 4 feet on a narrow trial with a mile drop off into the canyon! ( we later found out the kids mule was sick). I still have my certificate "Order of the Master Mule Skinners of the Grand Canyon Trails" from that trip framed on my office wall. With a pic of me on my mule Ole # 7.
In 2005 I moved to Az and started my M/c riding. After a few years I added a sport-tourer ( a 01 Connie, then an Fjr) and started to ride with the Duke. We took at least 8 trips to the South rim & 2 to the North rim.
This past weekend on the 4thof July a few of my buds were doing a Utah ride, so we rode with them the 1st 120 miles to Williams Az then split off to camp at the canyon for 3 nites. The Duchess went on her 1st trip to the Canyon! We camped at the TenX campground which is a few miles before the canyon town of Tusayan. I stayed with Duke once in the canyon CG but found this a much nicer place, way bigger camping spots bigger trees & a more relaxing place. Also it's just a few miles to Tusayan, so very easy to get food & whatever ya need.
Here is the finale vid of our trip (ya can see pts 1-3 in the video section) I have labeled most of the main viewing points in the vid. Gotta say I love this place & told my family to throw my ashes in the river here.
