Grand Canyon National Park … East Gate Entrance … Come In!

Is visiting Grand Canyon National Park on your list of places to travel? I hope so! Everyone should see this place at least once in their life. The biology, geology, anthropology and ecology of the area would be appreciated as one sits at the canyon’s edge. To view miles of territory discovered many years ago and still today there are many places where a human foot has not walked upon the land. Be sure to visit someday.

Many park visitors enter Grand Canyon National Park from its southern entrance. Arriving from the east gate entrance recently was a nice change of pace even for me who has visited this park often. One can spend time at the Desert View tower and see more of the Colorado River from the various viewpoints along the road eventually leading to Grand Canyon Village 20 miles to the west. The village area was congested with traffic and people and so I drove through and will save it for another time. I was glad to spend more time on the eastern end during this visit.

In 2014, Grand Canyon was designated as a Globally Important Bird Area. It is a flyway for hawks. From Lipan Point to the north rim of the park many birds go from forest to forest crossing an eight mile distance. On this visit, I saw violet-green swallows, ravens and black-throated gray warblers. Other times I have enjoyed seeing condors, mountain chickadees and other birds.

Here are photos from Grand Canyon National Park:

Leaving the park, elk were crossing the road so motorists need to be aware of wildlife on the road! I loved the elk sitting roadside watching all the action!

Again, if you have never been to Grand Canyon National Park add it to your list of places to see sometime in your lifetime! Come visit and enjoy nature! Remember, there is a south rim and a north rim to visit, but it takes a few days to accomplish that even if you are hoping to drive to both. Of course, there is also time to be spent down at the river whether on a river trip, hike or mule ride to Phantom Ranch, or backpacking to Bright Angel Campground. Hopefully when Covid-19 is history, we will be able to get back to enjoying those options.

Leave a Reply