Nevada on the way to the Grand Canyon

Somehow I thought that Hannah couldn’t possibly go to the Grand Canyon by herself. Despite the fact she had driven cross-country solo, had done multiple wilderness hikes on her own, and was perfectly content to set off on these adventures without anyone else, (especially her parents), thinking of her viewing the Grand Canyon for the first time without anyone to share it with seemed miserable.

She graciously acquiesced when Mike and I wheedled our way into a few days of her trip. Our plan was to fly into Las Vegas, hit a quick race to check Nevada off of our quest list, and then make a beeline out of town for the Grand Canyon. The Hallowrock 5K in Las Vegas fit the bill.

We had been to Vegas more than 35 years ago and loved it. But this time, we had zero interest in experiencing any of the glitz of the city. We found an Airbnb on the outskirts of the city which suited us just fine. It ended up being very close to the race which was also on the edge of town.

By the time we arrived at our Airbnb it was pitch dark. We had opted for budget accommodations since we were only going to be there less than 24 hours and were going to be splurging on rim-side lodging at the Grand Canyon. Our “private room and bath” was in a suburban house that looked exactly like every other building in the neighborhood. After swinging into several driveways in an attempt to read the house numbers, we found the right place. We shuffled up the totally dark walkway to the door, used the lights on our phones to fumble with the key box, and finally made it into our room.

We realized we basically had a small bedroom in a house that obviously had other guests in adjoining rooms with loud TVs. I found it repulsive that our “private bathroom” had these dental tools on the sink. Was this bathroom not actually private? Did the hosts provide an assortment of dental tools for each guest? None of these options were palatable.

Despite the lack of a lock, hunger won out and we closed the flimsy door to our room, skeptically leaving our belongings behind, and left the house in search of sustenance. We were utterly famished so we were delighted to find a fabulous Italian restaurant a few blocks from the house. A delicious dinner and a couple of glasses of wine revived us.

We were awake before dawn the next morning due to the time difference and a restless night’s sleep. Once we could see a sliver of light outside, we ventured out to peruse our surroundings. It was chilly but we appreciated a chance to stretch our legs as we killed some time before the race started.

The race was a Halloween themed race so I had coerced Mike into wearing an orange t-shirt with a pumpkin face fashioned out of black tape. I opted to be a bat, i.e. “wings” stitched to my running shirt, pointy ears pinned to my headband, and a feeble attempt at fangs fashioned from lipstick.

The race was easy to find with plentiful parking-always two good omens. There was a festive Halloween vibe and we enjoyed admiring other runners’ costumes as we waited for the race to start. The race was a comfortable out-and-back course with views of the mountains on the outskirts of Las Vegas.

We posed for our traditional post-race photo where I succeeded in looking idiotic. But it was a fun race and we had checked Nevada off of our quest list. And even more importantly, we were on our way to the Grand Canyon to see Hannah for the first time in almost a month.

Our 4 hour drive took us past the Hoover Dam but we didn’t pause for a tour. We were on a mission to get to the Grand Canyon to reunite with Hannah.

We pulled up into the parking lot at the rim just at sunset. It was blustery and much cooler than it had been in Vegas. After a few back and forth texts, we located Hannah and spent a little time trying to capture the stunning sunset views.

Hannah humored her parents and graciously posed for a couple of photos.

We were able to reserve a room at the Thunderbird Lodge which sits right on the south rim. The lure of sleeping in a bed instead of in her car barely won out when it involved sleeping with her parents who (she claims) snore. Amazingly, she had found a parking spot immediately outside the lodge door, so she still had the option of bailing and retreating to the quiet of her car if the acoustics in the room became unbearable.

Knowing we were on the edge of the Grand Canyon, once again had me antsy to be outside to catch the sunrise early the next morning.

As it grew light, I wandered along the rim trail soaking in the views from different angles.

As I walked, I became aware of a man following me. I ignored him and continued my stroll but was still aware of him behind me. It was light out and we were in a public area so I wasn’t particularly alarmed. When I stopped to look over the rim again, I glanced back and saw that he was still approaching me. And then I realized the man was my husband. The poor guy had just been trying to catch up and I had just walked along faster. We laughed at my inability to recognize my own husband and then headed back to the room to meet Hannah for breakfast.

On our last trip, we had been really impressed with the extensive menu and stellar service at El Tovar, the magnificent lodge also on the rim. So we were happy to return again. After our relaxing breakfast in the historic dining room overlooking the canyon, we were ready to hike a portion of the Bright Angel Trail.

Once again, Hannah graciously agreed to accommodate her parents. She had been setting off on 13 mile solo hikes before arriving at the park. But for this trip, she was kind enough to agree to do a 3 mile section of the trail.

After lunch at the Yavapai Tavern we hiked a section of the rim trail. The sky was mesmerizing and the light in the canyon offered ever-changing vistas.

We were so pleased to have some time to reconnect with Hannah, to hear her tales of her solo wilderness travels, and to once again soak up the majesty of the Grand Canyon.

Quest Race #: 46

State: Nevada

Race: Hallowrock 5K

Date Run: 10/30/2022

The Bottom Line: The Hallowrock 5K offered us the opportunity to check Nevada off of our quest list and more importantly, it allowed us an excuse to meet up with Hannah during her multi-week cross country trek. Although we had been to the Grand Canyon eight months earlier when we ran in Arizona and New Mexico, standing on the rim and marveling at the vastness and ever-changing scenery, delighted us and filled us with awe once again.