Democratic Vistas

July 20, 2010 (morning)

I camped last night about 50 miles from the Grand Canyon National Park. After a quick breakfast, I broke camp and hit the road.

At the first view of the canyon, the parking lot was full. One man, touring with his three sons in a convertible, left his engine running with bad rock music blaring.

Since I hit the west, I haven’t had my radio or CD player on much, especially in the national parks. I drive in silence with the windows down. I prefer to have as many filters striped away as possible. I almost said something to the man, like, “How could you be so rude?” Instead, I got in my car and continued down the rim road. I soon found a spot where I could be alone for about fifteen minute.

The Grand Canyon is big. Really big. I’ve been thinking of how to explain it.

If the Grand Tetons where hollow and you turned them upside down and inserted them into a piece of flat land, and you did this about forty or fifty times, then you would have something like the Grand Canyon.

It's Big