10/24 Grand Canyon, Trailer Village to Hermit's Rest

I have been to Grand Canyon several times.  It is always a pleasant place to stay for a few days, and I enjoy the elk and the wonderful, wide, paved bike paths that go throughout the park.  I also like Trailer Village because it has full service hookups and a lot of visiting elk. 

This time of year was no different, except that the elk seemed to be a lot thirstier than usual.  A few years ago, they learned to work the levers on the water fill stations, but at least those are spring-loaded so they turn themselves off.  Now, some of the elk have learned how to turn on the water at campground sites.  Only problem is that they are not very good at turning the water off!  This was the empty campsite next to mine.  I did not see this female turning the water on, but I did watch her drinking.  

The RV sites are paved and plenty large enough.  There used to be grass between sites, but grass was removed from all parts of the park a few years ago to supposedly convince elk to hang out elsewhere.  And there are cages around all landscaping and shrubbery to prevent them being nibbled by elk.  However, it has not dissuaded the elk at all, and during the day, you can find anywhere from a handful to more than a dozen elk wandering around grazing on the leaves on the trees. 

 It is winter at Grand Canyon, or at least almost winter.  At an elevation of 7,200', the weather was predicted to be even barely acceptable only for two days this week--Saturday and Sunday.  Also, there are no shuttles running in the Village area, so I decided I would take two long bike rides this week--one on Saturday down to Hermit's Rest and one on Sunday, on the eastern end of the Canyon.

I could have taken the shuttle that runs from the western end of the Village to Hermit's Rest, but since I had to ride my bike the mile to the shuttle pickup, I figured it would be just as easy to ride the entire distance.  So, I bundled up with long-sleeved shirt, heavy sweatshirt, and wind breaker.  

First stop is at the edge of the Village where the train is in. 

If you have been to Grand Canyon in July or August, you will notice the lack of cars and the lack of crowds this time of year.  Makes it a lot easier to ride a bike.

This is taken from the area near the El Tovar Hotel and the museums.

 This photo was taken with a telephoto lens from the first pull-over area on the road to Hermit's Rest, which is at the far western area of the park.

Don't know how I missed this before, but this is a monument to John Wesley Powell.

Nice to have nice, quiet viewing areas instead of crowds of families with screaming children.

It's about a 3.5 miles ride from where the shuttle route begins to the end of the route, where Hermit's Rest is located.

The little gift shop was open, but if you wanted ice cream or a drink from the little food stand, you had to order from inside.  

This is the amazing fireplace that was designed by famous architect, Mary Colter.  She designed many of the buildings for the Fred Harvey Company and the Santa Fe Railroad.

 Just one of the photos taken on the way back.  I was getting cold, so I did not stop much on the ride back.