Where to start? This past weekend over the Memorial Day holiday my boyfriend, Jeff, and I made more headway on my Operation 30 list in spectacular fashion. We headed to Phoenix for a whirlwind adventure: Tempe-Flagstaff-Grand Canyon-Sedona-Scottsdale-Phoenix!
Hanging near the Arizona State University campus in Tempe was great as a kick-off to the desert tour - lots of nice sports facilities and an overall pleasant and active campus and surrounding area. Flagstaff was a great break from the drive in both directions as we stopped to enjoy brews from Beaver Street Brewery on Friday and Lumberyard Brewing Company (same owners) on Saturday. Mmm...beer. :-)
The highlight of the trip for me was seeing the Grand Canyon in all its glory on Friday and Saturday. It was, as I imagine Chris Traeger (Rob Lowe) would say on Parks and Recreation, "Lit-er-al-ly, the most spectacular hole in the ground I've ever seen." Beautiful rock formations and breathtaking views for miles upon miles. I probably took at least two hundred pictures just of the canyon!
We stayed at the Thunderbird Lodge on the South Rim on Friday night and woke up to watch the sunrise at 5:23am at Hopi Point. It was windy and a little on the chilly side, but awesome! After walking the Rim Trail and having breakfast, we took the shuttle to the Kaibab Trail and proceeded to hike approximately three miles and descend 2,000ft in elevation into the canyon to Skeleton Point.
The views as we got into the canyon deeper and deeper were exceedingly beautiful. We even had to get out of the way for a couple of mule caravans walking in the opposite direction. The only hazards were making sure not to step on any undesirable mule droppings and overcoming the mental imagery from the occasional glance from too close to the edge, realizing the severe consequences of losing one's balance and falling over. Needless to say, we conquered the challenge unharmed, but possibly a little wind-worn and dusty from the hike. Still, awesome!
#21 - Visit the Grand Canyon....check!
The plan for Sunday morning was to go on a sunrise hot air balloon ride in Sedona. However, due to the high winds in the entire region, all hot air balloon rides were cancelled that day. Bummer. I suppose you can't blame them for being cautious and I can't say I'd want to be in a hot air balloon during questionably safe wind conditions, but it was still disappointing. Rain check on #27. I'm officially checking into alternate venues.
Last but not least, we spent some time in Scottsdale and Phoenix. We did some good walking, ate a very nice dinner and went sight-seeing around downtown. (Lots of steps on the pedometer!) On our last night of the trip, we knocked off the first of my four stadium goal for #1 on the Operation 30 list. Chase Field!
It was a great game to watch as the Diamondbacks beat the Marlins 15-4. We were also lucky enough to score first row seats along the first base line at the box office that morning. Followed up by some Girl Talk playing at Sliders after the game, it was a great way to end a great weekend.
Timestamp as I post and prepare for some winery bike riding shenanigans:
Hanging near the Arizona State University campus in Tempe was great as a kick-off to the desert tour - lots of nice sports facilities and an overall pleasant and active campus and surrounding area. Flagstaff was a great break from the drive in both directions as we stopped to enjoy brews from Beaver Street Brewery on Friday and Lumberyard Brewing Company (same owners) on Saturday. Mmm...beer. :-)
The highlight of the trip for me was seeing the Grand Canyon in all its glory on Friday and Saturday. It was, as I imagine Chris Traeger (Rob Lowe) would say on Parks and Recreation, "Lit-er-al-ly, the most spectacular hole in the ground I've ever seen." Beautiful rock formations and breathtaking views for miles upon miles. I probably took at least two hundred pictures just of the canyon!
We stayed at the Thunderbird Lodge on the South Rim on Friday night and woke up to watch the sunrise at 5:23am at Hopi Point. It was windy and a little on the chilly side, but awesome! After walking the Rim Trail and having breakfast, we took the shuttle to the Kaibab Trail and proceeded to hike approximately three miles and descend 2,000ft in elevation into the canyon to Skeleton Point.
The views as we got into the canyon deeper and deeper were exceedingly beautiful. We even had to get out of the way for a couple of mule caravans walking in the opposite direction. The only hazards were making sure not to step on any undesirable mule droppings and overcoming the mental imagery from the occasional glance from too close to the edge, realizing the severe consequences of losing one's balance and falling over. Needless to say, we conquered the challenge unharmed, but possibly a little wind-worn and dusty from the hike. Still, awesome!
#21 - Visit the Grand Canyon....check!
The plan for Sunday morning was to go on a sunrise hot air balloon ride in Sedona. However, due to the high winds in the entire region, all hot air balloon rides were cancelled that day. Bummer. I suppose you can't blame them for being cautious and I can't say I'd want to be in a hot air balloon during questionably safe wind conditions, but it was still disappointing. Rain check on #27. I'm officially checking into alternate venues.
Last but not least, we spent some time in Scottsdale and Phoenix. We did some good walking, ate a very nice dinner and went sight-seeing around downtown. (Lots of steps on the pedometer!) On our last night of the trip, we knocked off the first of my four stadium goal for #1 on the Operation 30 list. Chase Field!
It was a great game to watch as the Diamondbacks beat the Marlins 15-4. We were also lucky enough to score first row seats along the first base line at the box office that morning. Followed up by some Girl Talk playing at Sliders after the game, it was a great way to end a great weekend.
Timestamp as I post and prepare for some winery bike riding shenanigans:
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