Our daughter Brooke and husband Gage parted ways with us this morning and are camping with San Francisco friends on the south rim of the Grand Canyon. I have to say I had tears in my eyes, not only because I could not hug her goodbye, but it has been seven months since we saw each other and who knows when we will again. But, both her Dad and I were grateful for the spontaneity they displayed jumping in the car to meet us for a few days. We love an adventure when it is shared:)

We headed into the Grand Canyon on the south side, traveling on the beautiful Arizona National Scenic Trail. Again, we had the sunshine gods smiling on us with clear views and warm temperatures. We have lucked out on this trip! Once in the park, we headed along the Desert View Drive. Grandview Point was probably our best view of the buttes, with a peek at the Colorado River. Some of the roads were closed for unknown reasons, so we stopped at the open pull-offs. The most disappointment we had occurred when we arrived at the Desert View Watchtower road and it had been closed. I had hoped to see the tower with the Hopi murals, but it was not to be.

Considering some of the roads were closed to the scenic viewpoints, we decided at the last minute to take another helicopter ride. We had not reserved a place, but they boarded us on a Bell helicopter with a Welsh pilot and we had a fantastic half-hour tour of the Grand Canyon. I can honestly say it was a spiritual experience viewing the majesty of the canyon from the air. We toured the Dragon Corridor, which is the deepest and widest part of the Grand Canyon, with splendid views of the  Colorado River, Isis Temple, and Hermit Rapids.