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Monday May 19, 2003: Los Angeles (CA)/Flagstaff (AZ)

WARNING : this text has been translated automatically from french

Alarm clock towards 6h30, although Fabien awoke one hour front!
One leaves our room with 7h30 by leaving a small word of thanks to the kitchen.
Races with the 7eleven (7$) where my chart does not function because its code should be given.

One leaves direction Arizona while hoping to find a petrol station not coil to advise us on the gasoline to be put in the car ("full the tank").
One joined Highway #??? who makes us cross L.A. of west in east. One sees the buildings of Downtown by far. The miles ravel, the panels and the interconnections go in all the directions. I am accustomed to the automatic box and "Cruise Control" which maintains the speed of the vehicle constant.
One leaves finally at the end of a score miles, towards Alanbra to find a service station. The managers ensure us that it is necessary to put of the "Gasoline 89 Unleaded". One sets out again after having filled the tank for XX$, with 1,979$/gallon, that is to say 0,52$ the liter WITHOUT the taxes. What makes us 27,8 liters for the ¾ of full.
Junction HW ###, Las Vegas direction...
The exit of Los Angeles is still a tangle of motorways. The infrastructures seem already planned for the extensions to come from the city towards the east, unbounded in direction of the desert.
The road goes up and lets discover the assembly line which dominates the north of Los Angeles. Arrived on plate XXX? the road ad infinitum seems traced with the chalk line in front of us.

On the way for Arizona, 10h. It is very beautiful, there are place, it is the least which one can say and in full medium with nowhere, of the dwellings, a military center, one very very long train and much of superb trucks.
One makes a station-wagon towards??h?? and it is me which takes again the wheel, cool, once the "cruiser" controlled (approximately with 10 miles of Needles) I am with the signal.
Needle with 280 miles of Flagstaff where one makes a pause meal towards 13h15 at "CARL' S Jr" (12,28$) where they do not take the "credit card". One must nourish the American titine! What surprises us as soon as one opens the door to leave, it is overpowering heat: one spent between Los Angeles and here spring to the extreme summer! What it will be in rando!
With the pump, not easy with the CB, one needs a code for 5 digits, therefore one pays with the counter, and not with the automatic case: at 398 miles, one puts 7,578 Gal. at 2,29 $/gal and one pays 17,35$, my blue chart walked.

One rolls not stop until Flagstaff where one arrives towards 17h30. Fabien located a Motel in the free magazine which it found with L.A. and in which there are reductions for various Motels. Thus it is necessary to find "Relaxed Inn Motel". In Flagstaff, one enters by a foolish succession of supermarkets of all kinds to arrive finally, after the railway, at a small village of trappers, very sympathetic nerve and very nice, in a content of assembly covered with snow at the top and bordered of forests of high fir trees to finish moreover it.
One found the Motel, one is in the room n°11, cool, one will be able to make wee.
Some races to be made and the full one still: races for this evening, tomorrow morning, the peak screws at least (CB 36,95$). One profits to note that 1,5 liter of water costs the same price as 2 liters of Coke. The full one (CB???$).
And with us the small dinner in the room in front of tele American (this evening it is Spiderman) by preparing the day of tomorrow: THE day, back bag, peak screw, clothing... all must be perfect, case of help, stick of walk, and especially "FISHING" thus sleep well...

There is no refrigerator, but I think that the provisions will be certainly with the expenses in the trunk of the car... while rising tomorrow morning one will understand that the nights are fresh and that our food was not likely to perish.

The Motel is with 20 meters of the railway, a train spends about every 20 minutes and 1/3 whistles happiness while passing. It is thus with much astonishment which one awakes towards 2h30 for our pause wee by noting that one has super good slept until there. One goes back there...

Tuesday May 20, 2003: Large Canyon Nat.Park (AZ)

Alarm clock in brass band with 4h30 whereas one had put the alarm clock at 5h...
Not, it is not an engine which whistles, it is only heats it water of the neighbor who makes a noise of power pick.
Not question of falling asleep again, one will benefit from it to leave earlier. Breakfast, fence of the bags with back, and 5h30 one is in the car.

The road curves through green fields and forests where one discovers motionless "elk". In our back one sees mountain XXX at the snow-covered top. The day rises and diffuses a very contrasted gilded light. One arrives at the end of 1h30 at the Large Nat.Park Canyon.

At the entry of the park, there is our first contact towards 7h00 with the Large Canyon on the level of "Mather View".
One continues until "Bright Angel Inn" located at the beginning of our excursion, I allowed oneself a coffee, one telephones Bertrand and Aurélie, and one threads our godillots.
8h00, the departure of "Bright Angel Trail" is presented as a cliff (one thinks inevitably of the volcano of the Meeting) with a way in Z very abrupt to go down.
It is superb, geology changes according to the levels, red ground, white ground, white stone, red stone, but everywhere of dust (not of sand) on the shoes, clothing, the skin sticking because of the sun lotion, the glasses, the eyes, the trou' of nose and obviously the mouth: one does not breathe about it by puffs but gradually one feels sandy saliva.
Worst is to be made double by groups of people who go down in mule, like the way makes approximately 1m the broad one, one does not escape the halation from dust qu leaves with their passage ten mules in tail leu leu. Then one is turned over to take some a little less, one drinks a little to rinse oneself and one sets out again while trying not to put the feet in green droppings and the puddle pools of wee of these brave men small animals...
To 10h one arrives at first "Rest House" (WC arranged, not of drinking water, shade). And one sets out again towards the bottom of the chasm: it is seen, one will be there soon.
One sympathizes on the way with squirrels, one of them agrees to pose in front of the panorama, Fabien is happy.
11h, one arrives at "Indian Garden", a large surface of peak screws very shaded with immense trees, points of drinking water, WC, a shelter for the mules, one would be believed in a camp scout. Some photographs are taken, one films, and one settles between the roots of a large tree, fixed well in the shade, one will leave the peak screws here before making the small hour of walk flat to join "Plate Not".
I leave the plastic bags, Fabien removes his socks, two young people approach us: "you are French? "-" yes ". And here how one has peak screwed 1h30 while speaking French and by exchanging our experiments on the corner. Cool. They are both of the ISIM of Strasbourg, made one quarter of training course in Montreal and are on the roads of the USA since a little more than 3 weeks, bus, car of loc, camp-sites, they crapahutent and there they arrived of in bottom (Colorado) by "Kaibab" (2 hours of walk) and will go up by there from where one comes. One is of Nantes, the other of Aix in Provence, they are very sympathetic.
A lady celebrates its 61 years and offers chocolates to everyone.
Thus to 12h30 one leaves for "Plate Not" after having wet our cover heads. It is true that the way is flat, but it is far from being easy, one cooks... one is desiccated... but even as that the goal is worth the blow, it of it is époustouflant, it is releasing, peaceful, impressive... is necessary to also say that the feeling to be well is accentuated by the fact that one is alone. It is the EXTRA... plenitude, it does not have nothing there to say, except that one would remain there well. Arrived at 13h15, one sets out again about it with 14h.
14h30: one makes a station-wagon with "Indian Garden", it makes really too hot, soak the feet in water... a last wee and hop, 15h one goes up whitewashed well and the well soaked heads.
Ullage ullages, I start to include/understand why people whom one crossed in our descent had an air of survivors against the effort, i.e.: red, stops open, limit spitting, and especially not exceeding the 3 steps per minute... Not not, they were not people in convalescence or "American basic" as one could think it, they did not exceed the limiting age either, not, they are simply going up the LARGE CANYON... I include/understand better why they answered oddly (when they answered) our "safeties". They were not at the end of the lifetime, they made very not not to be there in any case. Therefore, when I see more clearly (less contrasted), that very is erased: to retain that it is necessary that I stop. When my heart beats so quickly that it seems to whistle uninterrupted: not to forget that it is necessary that I in short stop... summarizing some: to stop approximately every 100 meters, preferably in the shade, to sit down and drink... it is good I survive!
Towards 16h30 that goes straightforwardly better, I am in the shade, I am saved... my heart is positioned back, I have to only manage with my legs, but good while slowing down one arranges oneself between us.
It is necessary also to pay attention to hostile nature, of the walkers warn us that a rattlesnake makes its nap in the medium of the path. One circumvents it with precaution, without making vibrate the ground of our feet.
During the last mile, one exceeds the lady at the 61 years, it is cool not to feel me the last on my way of cross.
To 18h the compromise bears its fruits, CA IS ONE there It A MADE!
18h15 with the car. One changes because soaked clothing and ground cover it is not signal for the car of loc. To go it is not all, one still has a Large Canyon has to see under lying sun. 7h30: that is there one arrived in time, it is superb...

More than 197 miles to "Valley Monument"... one will stop surely front.
The fallen night, one guesses hardly the throats upstream of the Large Canyon on our left. Damage, the site is indexed in the guide.
With a fork, one forks on the right, one does not know too much if the good road were taken, one will see the next panel.
One fills the tank in Cameron towards 20h, one is in territory Indians and the autochtones look at us oddly.

Arrived at Tuba City one finds finally a Motel: "Greyhills Inn". I find a "Mama Indian" with the reception with which I try a negotiation of the price of the room (?? $), but without success because I do not have the force to go to seek elsewhere. I have the impression to be made swindle (considering the ridiculous price of the day before), and says to me that if the Indians of America one exterminated by Cow Boys it is that they had had, already at the time, to miss respect with pale face! I will realize later than one finally had a handsome price.
On a la chambre n°111, mais je ne comprends pas les indications de la gérante. Il faut prendre la voiture, rejoindre un autre bâtiment ? Après un tour du pâté de maisons, Carole pense mieux comprendre ses explications et retourne à l’accueil. Elle revient et m’indique que notre chambre se trouve tout simplement dans le même bâtiment. Je repasse honteusement devant le comptoir.

Finalement on a bien rigolé, trop fatigué les erreurs sont garanties et après avoir essayé de trouver notre chambre en voiture on se fait fermer la porte au nez chez Mac Do. On doit alors passer commande à l’interphone du Mac Drive… bref, 22h on mangera dans notre chambre. Quelques problèmes encore : pas de branchement sur la télé, pas moyen de fixer la fenêtre ouverte, pas de salle de bain / WC / lavabo dans la chambre… on se brûle dans les douches communes mais bon, on dort bien.

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links web sites
Grand Canyon Nat.Park | Webcam | Grand Canyon Explorer | topo 3D | détail rando Bright Angel Trail | topo interactive rando Bright Angel Trail | guide du parc en français (PDF) | informations générales rando & camping (PDF)