Grand Canyon Adventure...Day 1...

...of course our day started at the airport...

...a first flight for one of our scouts...

...Scout being quite the old pro of flying helped to calm the new-to-flying scout...

...we had all smooth flights...

...and the first thing the boys wanted to do when we landed in Phoenix was find the Pizzeria Bianco....

...it's one of the top 25 pizzerias in the country...so we couldn't come this close and not try it out...

...and just as we were expecting the pizza was outstanding...this is the Margherita...it's already vegan...I didn't even have to say 'no cheese'...delicious...

...I've never been to a desert before...so I was quite impressed with all of the cacti...

...we stopped at a rest area to stretch our legs...and let the boys run around a bit...

...I love sundials...and the rest stop had this quite impressive one...

...I don't know if you can read the inscription...

'A sundial is a living object. It needs no winding and is driven by no weight. It has something to say, and it says it. It speaks about time, never ceasing to recall the flight of time, its tragedy and irreversability for men. The thoughts arise of the earth, of the end of everything, of eternity, of the world beyond.....' Rene R. J. Rohr

...after the desert and cacti...we drove past snow...

...quite a bit of it...which sort of surprised me...as we hardly have any in North Dakota...but I guess we are getting up there at about 7000 feet above sea level...

...just gorgeous scenery everywhere...mountains in the distance...quite a change for this plains dweller...

...finally we arrived at the little town of Tusayan...pronounced just like Tuscon with say in the middle...


...and got settled in our hotel...

...we stayed at the Red Feather Lodge...just a nice simple hotel...we packed our packs and settled in for a night of sleeping in a bed...HA!