We woke up 5 a.m. Today we wanted to view the sunrise in the Grand Canyon. Outside it was still dark and very cold. We drove to Mather point. There were people there already, all with cameras.
A few minutes after our arrival the sun was lightning up the Canyon. It was beautiful. We took the pictures we wanted and shot some video as well. We started to feel very cold. The wind was icy.

We drove back to the village. We ate breakfast at Denny's and changed clothes. We could use warmer sweaters.
Back at the visitor center we got ourselves a park map and decided which route we wanted to walk. As you have to take rim trails it isn't possible to walk in a loop, but there are free shuttles that stop at the viewing points and take you back to the visitor center.

We decided to walk the longest trail. We wanted to take the trail into the Canyon, but that can't be done in just one day.
It was very nice walk and we really enjoyed the scenery. Everything was still covered with snow.

We stopped at Maricopa point, Hopi point and Mohave point. Mohave point is about 3 miles from the West rim interchange. We walked a few hours and decided to take the shuttle back to the visitor center.

Back in the visitor center we checked out the store. Erik wanted to buy a national park screensaver and like a good Dutch man he checked out the prices in the different stores.
We drove back to the village and Corine saw a steakhouse at the left. The restaurant looked nice so we parked the car next to the restaurant. The inside of the restaurant looked quite cozy. The fireplace was lit and we warmed up again.
We ordered a big steak, while Corine had the chicken.
Although everything on the menu was quite expensive, we  still decided to order dessert. Linda and Corine ordered the strawberries with cream and Erik and I ordered the pie.
When we got the check we saw they charged us a 15% serving fee. The dinner was ok, but not that good.

After dinner Linda had to go to the restrooms. When she came back we discovered she had left her purse in the restrooms. We were all terrified about that, because our passport, driving license and all our money was in that purse. She ran to the restrooms and…. NO purse.
I wanted to get mad at her, but didn't and asked the waiters if they had seen the purse instead. We also asked at the register and, thank God, they had found it in the restrooms and everything was still in it.
We were all so happy that we decided not to complain about the 15% serving fee they charged us.

This day in the Grand Canyon was one of the highlights of our trip. I think for most people one day in the Canyon is enough though. Remember that if you take the trail into the Canyon you need two days. There is a camp in the Canyon where it is possible to overnight, but reservations must be made in advance.

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