A couple of years ago we went to the Grand Canyon West on New Year’s Day. We were staying in Las Vegas and decided to make the reasonable 2.5 hour drive to see something amazing.
I knew that the Grand Canyon was huge, but before this trip, I wasn’t aware of the different areas of it. The side we went to was the Grand Canyon West. This area of the Grand Canyon boasts the Skywalk and Eagle Point.
Eagle Point is kind of what it sounds like. It is a place in the canyon that resembles an eagle.
On our way, I got to ride on the first dirt road I had even been on. The area we were driving through was a little like a “The Hills Have Eyes” area. There were very few houses, and the ones that were there looked a little on the scary side. We saw a total of one store that I remember.
After you get to the entrance of the Grand Canyon West, you have to park your vehicle. From there, you take their shuttle bus. The minimum entrance fee you can pay is $44.05. There are many more packages you can purchase for various ways of viewing the canyon. We found that the normal entrance package was just fine for us.
While the Skywalk undoubtedly looked like a neat experience, it just didn’t seem quite worth the wait. There were a surprising amount of people there considering it was New Year’s, so the line was extremely long. If I ever end up going back though I would probably do it just to say that I have! I also think that doing a river tour would be an unforgettable experience.
Even though it was winter, the weather was surprisingly nice. After walking around for a bit, I even ended up taking my jacket off and was still quite comfortable.
I feel like some people go to the Grand Canyon, look at it for a few minutes and then they are ready to leave. I am not exaggerating when I say that I could have literally spent days there. It was such a beautiful and amazing place to be.
Have you visited the Grand Canyon before? What were your thoughts?
-Haley
Thanks for sharing this one. How I wish I could go there! 🙂
Hopefully you will be able to one day! 🙂
I hope so.
Looks incredible 😍 Definitely on the list of places to see!
It’s even more amazing in person!!
I’ve only been once on Thanksgiving and at the time my son was only about 4 so we couldn’t do much walking. Now he’s 19 and so we could hike and/or raft there which would be wonderful.
I found it so much more amazing to see in person – no number of pictures could have prepared me for the fact that instead of one lovely vista like you might see in a photo, your entire field of vision is filled with a view like that. Overwhelming in the best way.
I definitely agree that no amount of photos can prepare you! Seeing it in person is like nothing else. I would love to go back soon.
Having a hiking or rafting trip would be amazing to do! I’m sure it would be an unforgetable experience.
Wow!!! Simply stunning!!! And yeah, could just spend days on end at GC….
Years ago we visited the Grand Canyon in winter – the snow everywhere made it even more beautiful (Altho thankfully the roads were clear.) We got up @ 4:30AM three days in a row to catch the sunrise from overlooks around the canyon, In one place we were the only ones! The bus driver said in summer thousands of folks line up at these overlooks for sunrise, so we had an amazing opportunity to experience stillness & quiet & spectacular views. So glad you enjoyed your visit – the Grand Canyon is amazing! ✨😎✨
Oh, I bet seeing the sunrise would be incredible! That was such a great idea! I’d love to go back again in the winter season to try that. 🙂
Amazing photos! I’ve never seen the Grand Canyon but would love to visit it someday 🙂
Thanks! I hope you get to, you’ll love it! 🙂
Good overview of a place I have not yet been. We have been the Grand Canyon of the Pacific and the Grand Canyon du Verdun, but never to the real Grand Canyon. It makes me want to go have a look. Hope to get there some day.
It’s definitely a breathtaking place. I would absolutely love to see the Grand Canyon of the Pacific one day!
I’ve visited the Grand Canyon twice, the first time we went to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in Late May. The park and pass to get there had just opened, and it snowed during our stay. It was incredibly beautiful and very cold. My most recent trip was in June of this year, and I was headed to the west rim, it was dark when we reached the turn off and as we drove we also got the same vibe as “the hills have eyes”. We turned around and got a room for the night in Flagstaff and drove to the southern rim the next day. We were really creeped out by the small towns leading to the west run. They had a bad vibe. 😳
Yes, I’m glad you know what I mean! Luckily we were driving during the day the whole time through those areas. I hope to visit the other areas of the canyon one day. There is obviously soo much to see!
Great pictures 😀
Amazing post and pictures, wow!
Thank you!! 🙂
Beautiful pictures and amazing post! We visited the Grand Canyon last year, getting the chance to fly over in a helicopter and it was truly an amazing experience. So lovely to see your pictures to get a different perspective of the Canyon.
That is so awesome! I bet you got to witness some breathtaking views! 🙂
Doing a river tour is definitely worth it. You captured a great image of eagle point. I can easily see the resemblance to an eagle.
Thanks so much!
I was there and was mesmerised. just could not have enough of it!
Nice synopsis of Grand Canyon West. We just did the Grand Canyon ourselves, North and South rim, and also had no idea how vast it was (it’s a four hour drive through Page, Arizona between them). We were going to try to hit the Skywalk on our way to Vegas, but looks like we made the right call.
Your photos are lovely. We visited the Grand Canyon back in December a couple of years ago and we were surprised at how mild the temperature was too. But then we encountered a snow storm overnight and woke up to a soft blanket of snow everywhere. It was pretty magical.
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I have! It was so surreal and I was awestruck. The photos one takes never seem to capture its grand essence completely.
I love that big hole. If you can swing an adventure into it, you won’t be disappointed. I have been in twice, both times in late March. Cold on top-down peasant on the Tonto, and down uber the inner gorge.
I definitely hope to be able to go inside of the canyon one day! It sounds really amazing.
Grand canyon always makes me feel so irrelevant in a beautiful way! It almost always feels magical! Thank you for sharing your journey!
I agree, it is such an amazing place! Thanks for reading 🙂
On my bucket list…
Beautiful pictures! When I was 19, I hiked the canyon from rim to rim. It was a big hike for one day, but totally worth it! I would love, to do it again someday, but bring camping gear and stay in the canyon for a few nights.
That is amazing!! I bet that was a stunning hike! Doing it again while camping would be so much fun. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Great photos! Excited to take my own when I visit in March 😁
You’ll love it!
We have never been to this portion of the Grand Canyon before. Thought about it when we were in Vegas, but did not have time. Finally made it to the South Rim in January this year. No crowds and no need to use shuttle buses at that time. I agree with you, you just do not grasp the size of the canyon if you have not been there. Even more so, we found we got to know the canyon even better by hiking down into it. Posts coming.