Grand Canyon, South Rim

Grand Canyon, South Rim

My first time to the Grand Canyon and, like everyone has said many times before me, it takes your breath away. Very hard to imagine the size and scope of the canyon without some sort of reference point. Humans aren’t large enough to provide any kind of perspective. As individuals descend down into the canyon along a trail, like the Bright Angel Trail, they soon become mere spots and then soon after they disappear altogether into the vast depths of the canyon. Condors, extremely large birds that they are, could easily be mistaken for crows, starlings or even black birds, when viewed against the vastness of the Grand Canyon.

With every passing cloud, the magnificent array of colours seem to change in an instant providing every tourist a different picture, a different experience.

A few hundred thousand visitors have probably taken this shot before me, but I decided to make it my first shot of the Grand Canyon anyway. Then I just kept clicking away. Great place for a shutter junkie to visit with a digital camera!!!

A group of German students were standing near my tripod when I took this timed exposure. There was a pretty stiff breeze blowing directly into my face. The students volunteered to take care of my tripod and camera gear if I happened to be blown off the edge:-).

Of course, in rugged country such as the Grand Canyon offers, a few tourists and a few pack animals perish in the canyon each year. Signs are everywhere warning tourists not to take unnecessary risks. The canyon wildlife would probably prefer to see more tourists ignore those signs. :-).

The south rim offers amazing panoramic views of the Grand Canyon and, if pigs could fly, I’m sure that they would come here often.