More blown away

And I thought Thursday was windy.

Yesterday morning I went out to the Point Imperial overlook at Grand Canyon to rove. Not really too many visitors to talk to. The wind was gusting about 40mph causing a wind chill of 40°+. I hunkered into a corner against a railing to avoid the worse blasts and enjoyed the view.

An elder hostel group arrived and one man lost his newly purchased Zion ball cap to the canyon via a pinyon pine tree.

After hanging out for over an hour I walked back to my truck to eat lunch. I’d barely bit into my sandwich when I heard over the park radio that the scenic road was being closed for safety due to high winds possibly approaching 60mph. There was only one other vehicle in the parking lot so I walked back to the overlook and informed the couple that we had to leave.

Why close the road? Because of past fires there are many standing dead trees along the road. Crews had already been out clearing roads the night before and that morning. No sense taking a chance.

After telling the LE (Law Enforcement) parked at the junction that Point Imperial was cleared of visitors I continued to the Widforss trailhead and found no parking available. So I found a wide spot just up the road to finish my lunch and waited for a vehicle to leave. When I did park there were many people milling around, wanting to know when the scenic road would reopen and what the weather forecast was.

NOAAs report around noon: high 64°, low 16°, SSW winds at 23/mph with gusts of 37/mph and a 10% chance of snow flurries after midnight.
Gunnar Widforss - Golden Birches

Some people left in a hurry. I went for a hike on the Widforss trail named for Gunnar Widforss, a famous canyon painter who took up residence during the 1920s.

What a beautiful place to be. Even in the wind.

After working at the visitor center for a couple of hours explaining why the scenic road was closed I led a sunset walk to Bright Angel Point. Seven sturdy visitors braved the wind and cold with me as I explained how people throughout history have seen Grand Canyon many different ways, for development, preservation, hunting, prospecting, exploring, as an obstacle, and as home. My favorite quote comes from Lt. Joseph Christmas Ives after an 1857 exploration of the western canyon. He reported to the U.S. War Department, “The region is of course altogether valueless. Ours has been the first, and will doubtless be the last of whites to visit this profitless locality.”

I finished my evening watching the space station fly overhead.

And I’m still blown away by Grand Canyon.

Blown away

High winds at Grand Canyon.

I was almost blown away at work today as I walked out the Bright Angel Point trail. I had secured my Ranger hat with a strap under my ponytail so it wouldn’t be blown away into the canyon. A gust hit, I grabbed a tree, and thought this must be how the flying nun felt the first time she flew.

I was blown away this morning listening to NPR about the scary state of the world economy. Where’s all the money? Who’s got it all? I really don’t get it. Except that at this time I’m glad I’m already poor as I have less to loose.

I’m blown away watching the political campaign when all is hear is ugly and denial. How can I trust these guys.? Don’t they work for “we the people”?

I’m blown away that the ignorance of discrimination by “race” is still an issue in this melting pot called America. Aren’t most of us immigrants?


I’m blown away by all the corruption?

I’m blown away that I’m ranting about all this here.

I’m also blown away by the breathtaking beauty of the Aspens.

My office is the Grand Canyon

I have the best job ever, and it’s almost over. Winter’s on its way here at the North Rim of Grand Canyon where I’m a seasonal National Park Ranger. This was the first summer at the canyon for me, yet I hope not the last. I really can’t see myself ever getting tired of looking into the Grand Canyon. It changes subtly every minute, no every second, as the light and shadows play hide and seek in and out of crevices.

This morning I worked the earliest shift, starting at 6:30 roving around the Grand Lodge area and Bright Angel Point trail. Roving means I take a walk, check out the view, and chat with visitors trying to answer their numerous questions about anything from geology to birds, trails to weather, and how far is it to…. This job is impossible to beat. I get paid to learn, share, meet people from around the world and live, breath, eat, sleep, play and work at one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Grand Canyon National Park. Wow!

I’m not a morning person—or typically late night either—so getting up at 4:30am was a struggle. It felt cold outside the covers and Carson, my dog, slept on while I made my ritual morning double-almond-mocha-breve which I like to enjoy for a quiet hour as I write in my journal and listen to NPR. No fashion statement, wardrobe of the day includes the historic Ranger uniform complete with badge and name tag. I’ll add the iconic “flat top” hat once on duty. My toughest choice is what jewelry to wear. I feel naked without some jewelry. (Which I create and collect, but more about that later.) Yet I’m still not happy about the early hour, until…

I step out of my truck and the golden sun rays strike the clusters of needles and corky trunks of this Ponderosa forest. It’s magic. And I haven’t even looked into the canyon yet. So I hurriedly done my hat, zip up both layers of OD-green, grab my backpack and skip 50 yards to the rim of Roaring Springs Canyon to be bathed in the warmth of another sunrise. I’ve heard it said that Rangers get paid in sunsets, yet sunrises are like overtime.

And so I move on to my next duty of the day, a nature walk, leading 11 enthusiastic visitors through the forest for an hour and a half. I talked about the various natural communities that can be experienced, a desert and riparian by hiking into the bottom of the mile deep canyon—14 miles from the north rim—meadows driven through on the way into the park. We got to know the Ponderosa Pine by touch and smell, and yes, there was a little tree hugging going on as well. What a contrast between rough textured bark and its sweet aroma that some describe as vanilla or butterscotch. We also searched for fossils in a rock pile along the trail while enjoying the gentle rattle of leaves from the now golden Quaking Aspen. A delightful morning so far, yet just a little sad, as this is the last nature walk I’ll lead this season.

Then on to the visitor center for awhile. I remembered to bring Shirley’s birthday present, only five days late. I made her a necklace with jasper, serpentine and seed beads over the weekend and my days off. She loves it and instantly put it on. Shirley also makes beautiful jewelry and we’ve been working on a bead trade most of the summer. Guess we better wrap it up, as my season is almost over.

I finished my work day talking about how the endangered California condor has faced many threats yet has defied extinction and is on the way to recovery because people cared. And the people there did care. In fact just about everybody who comes to the canyon does care, and they appreciate what a beautiful, beyond words place, Grand Canyon is. This was the last condor talk I’ll give this season.

Yet because I too care and love this amazing place I hope to return and continue learning about the condors—and I’ve only seen three—plus the geology, the plants and animals, and the cultural history which abounds here. Am I a little sad that my season ends Oct 15th, you bet. But the canyon isn’t going anywhere so I can come back to the best job ever. And I do look forward to my off season, when I move my RV further south for the winter.

So, this is my first blog. I'll try to keep you posted on what's happening in my life.