On The Road Again - well, not really: THE Grand Canyon

Sunday, May 4th, 2008

Grand Canyon Railway to the South Rim
of the Grand Canyon

about 65 miles on the rails each way
Beautiful day!

The adventure started with the passengers meeting at the classic 1908 Williams Train Depot.

Before the train departed, we were entertained by a bunch of rowdy old cowboys, the Cataract Creek Gang, intent of mischief.

The sheriff tried to get them in line, and a few ended up being

shot! Great fun!

We climbed aboard the lovely old train,

pulled by a vintage steam engine, to find comfortable reclining seats offering plenty of leg room. We had our own hostess, who did a great job of filling us in on the history of the train and what we were seeing on the two hour plus ride up to the Canyon. With white-gloved courtesy, she served up fresh fruit, pastries, coffee and juices, and an array of cocktails, and kept us laughing.

Grand Canyon Railway made its first journey to the Grand Canyon in 1901. With the arrival of the train, people could get to the legendary canyon with ease and comfort. Today, we traveled back in time to the Grand Canyon National Park along the same rail line used more than 100 years ago, in the same train cars which have been lovingly restored.

“Long before there were Grand Canyon helicopter tours, air tours, white water rafting tours or even Grand Canyon mule tours, there was the Grand Canyon's train. Before paved roads, Grand Canyon hotels and restaurants, and even before the canyon was made a national park or Arizona made a state, let alone the "Grand Canyon state", the Grand Canyon Railway brought interested travelers from all over the world to stand on the rim and ponder the feeling that touches all of humanity in a similar manner when they gaze upon the canyon. Grand Canyon Railway was the lifeline to Grand Canyon National Park in the early 20th century. It was the railroad, along with the Fred Harvey Company, that commissioned and built most of the historic structures that still exist along the South Rim. The historic train almost faded into history itself when passenger service to Grand Canyon National Park stopped in 1968, as train travel gave way to the popularity of automobile travel. But like any legend, it refused to die. As fate would have it, Grand Canyon Railway was reborn in 1989 when entrepreneurs Max & Thelma Biegert brought the Grand Canyon's train back to life. Today, Grand Canyon Railway carries more than 230,000 people by rail to Grand Canyon National Park each year.” So says the website http://www.thetrain.com/

We were lucky to have gorgeous views of the San Francisco Peaks, and valleys adorned in wild flowers, plus dense pine forests, high desert plains and small canyons, known to have hidden many bad guys thru the years.

Once we arrived at the historic 1910 Grand Canyon Depot,

one of the last standing made of logs, we opted to take a narrated motorcoach tour to the most scenic overlooks of the canyon - vistas like Mohave Point, Pima Point, the Abyss and Hermits Rest.

As always, the Canyon is simply awe inspiring. There are no words to explain the magnificence of this spectacle of nature.

Pictures don’t begin to do it justice. No matter how you prepare yourself, it is still more than you expect.

After our bus tour, with more than 100 pictures between us, we had a lovely leisurely lunch on a patio overlooking the Canyon at the El Tovar Hotel.

There was still enough time for a little requisite shopping before reboarding our grand old train.

Just to be sure we weren’t bored with the same gorgeous vistas outside our windows on the way back to Williams, we were treated to appetizers and champagne, and other fancy cocktails.