Grand Canyon Railway

We were up early, loaded our luggage, ate breakfast (The hotel had an automatic pancake machine! We've seen the waffle makers, but this one cranked out two perfect pancakes.), and headed over to the train depot to pick up our tickets. Last night's snow was only a skiff and the roads were clear.

MM checked our baggage in tagged with the name of the Warwick Lodge and that was the last we saw of it until we checked into the our rooms this afternoon - and found it waiting for us. Our tickets were for the Observation Car, Kokopelli. MM had arranged for early boarding and we climbed the steps up and into the dome.

With the snow on the ground and today's blue skies, it was an awesome day for a train ride. We left Williams about 9 and pulled into the depot at the North Rim just about noon. They served a light buffet on the way: coffee and juices, fruit and pastries. There was also bar service as well, which made for great coffee.

The guide talked about the flora and fauna we might see (we saw lots of ravens, one hawk, and a few cattle, but that was about it.); the Marshal stopped by to visit with the kids; and an accordion player entertained us. We went through Juniper trees, Ponderosa and Pinyon Pines, grassland and scrub ground.

Upon our arrival at the Rim, we hopped on buses and were promptly taken to a buffet lunch. Once back on the bus, we toured the Rim, stopping a couple of times to get out and take a closer look. It was interesting to see how much different the Canyon looked with winter snow than when we were here in the summer time.

I took many pictures that I'll be able to share when we are back home and I can use Auntie Violet's computer.

Happy Winter Solstice to all! I'll be so glad to see the days getting longer.