Last January's trip across the country in our 1971 Karman Ghia was an absolute blast! We lucked out with the weather. The car was great (all things considered). We got to see friends. However, there was a lot we more we want to explore. Especially in New Mexico and Arizona.
I had flown over New Mexico a few times before I ever visited the state. We must have flown over the southern part of the state, because from 30,000 feet, it just looks vast, bleak and desolate. But on the ground, it gorgeous and varied. There are forests of aspens and pines. The state has snow capped mountains. Huge sand plains. Miles of amazing lava flows. And even though there is a lot of what most of us would consider desert, there are also fertile agricultural areas - usually along valleys.
In addition to New Mexico, we wanted to get back up to the northern part of Arizona. The Grand Canyon was spectacular,... but we wanted something a bit different. Just a bit of background on the Grand Canyon. It is almost 300 miles long and there are typically three ways of visiting the Grand Canyon. There is the Grand Canyon West, which is closer to Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam; it also has that awesome glass walkway over the canyon. In the east are the North Rim and the South Rim. The South Rim is by far the most popular. It has the Grand Canyon Village (home to the earliest tourist boom) and is easily reached from Flagstaff.
Then there is the North Rim. It is only 21 miles from the South Rim. By foot. And by hiking down into the canyon, crossing the Colorado River and then hiking back up the other side of the canyon. By car, it is 212 miles. It is difficult to get to the North Rim. Furthermore, the park on that side closes for the winter in mid-October. Consequently, the North Rim only gets 10% as many visitors as the South Rim.
I decided we needed to see the North Rim, and we should go for the last two days that it is open for the year. With that in mind, we had the dates for this trip set. I just had to plan the way we were going to get out there and decide what we were going to see along the way.
After our trip across the country in the Ghia in January, Angela and I promised to return out west to give New Mexico a more indepth explore. This blog chronicles that trip and our adventures. This time, however, we were not taking the 1971 Karman Ghia - instead opting for something a bit more comfortable and dependable. We were taking our new BMW Sportswagon. What we will lose in the sense of adventure (will it start tomorrow?), we hope to make up for in more ground covered.
