The Grand Canyon

   There were dark clouds over the Grand Canyon, as we drove into the park in the morning. We had visited the big hole before, so we felt we had already seen it once. The Grand Canyon is the Grand Canyon. It still fills you with awe. We walked out to the rim and just stood there. We joked about falling into the canyon. We used our spotting scope to peer down into the canyon. Regular tourism, until it started to rain. So, we quickly disassembled our spotting scope and donned our ponchos. Rain is obnoxious, but we could deal with it.

The Grand Canyon

   Then, hail the size of English Peas fell on the path. Remember, we are standing within a foot of the rim of the Grand Canyon. There is a steady rain and heavy wind to deal with, and now icy hail. We ducked our heads into the wind and took very careful steps back off the rim of the great canyon.

   We made it to a parking lot. Standing before us on the ground, the Pinyon Jay (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus). They are named after the piñon pine tree whose seeds provide their diet. Each jay hides thousands of pine seeds each year in clever hiding places. This bird is totally blue.

Pinyon Jay

   We spotted the Western Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma californica) perched in the crux of branches in a tree. It is deep azure blue with dusty gray-brown and white. The crestless head immediately distinguishes it from other jays.

Western Scrub Jay

   Another blue bird of the evergreen forests is the Stellar’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri). This bird has the same harsh, scolding call similar to that of any other jay you might see.

Steller’s Jay

   Berry was standing under a tree in the parking lot. Suddenly, a Common Raven (Corvus corax) fell out of the tree like a black sack of potatos. Berry did not see it. The Raven spread its wings and swooped away from Berry’s head and up and over the roof of a nearby building. All this and Berry was never aware of what was happening. She never saw it.

   We had lunch at the only restaurant in the Navaho city of Cameron, AZ. Berry had a fancy taco and I had the "Navaho French Dip" ( a roast beef sandwich on their signature Navaho bread, which is dough pan fried in lard. It is like a sugarless donut dough. Pretty good, but fattening, if you ate a lot of it. ) At the shop there, we each bought a sweatshirt. Temperature this morning was 51 degrees F. Such a difference from the hot and arid southern desert.

   After the rain and hail had stopped, we went back to looking for the California Condor (Gymnogyps californianus). There are more than a hundred of these giants in California, a number in Utah and about 60 in the Grand Canyon, where they had been transplanted. We parked our car and groaned at the sight of several busloads of Japanese tourists all over the rim of the canyon and a tower there. We cannot bird in a crowd of people. Berry noticed the crowds of Japanese and then pointed to a stony path which led to an employee parking lot of the General Store. Perfect ! We walked to the rim and we were alone. It was Berry and me and the Grand Canyon. Wow !

   We sat on rocks near the rim and watched Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura) use the afternoon thermals along the sides of the canyon like an elevator to rise out of the depths of the canyon. With their wings raised in a V and making wobbly circles in the sky, these were Turkey Vultures, not Condors. We watched, but no condor.

   Some dinner at Buster’s included Sonora Chicken for Robert and the Mac and Cheese for the Bear. What a huge day !

Robert and Berry

photos courtesy of wikipedia