Keeping with the theme of the trip we arrived into the Grand Canyon Park last night 12 minutes after the pizza joint closed. About an hour prior we decided that a couple beers and a pizza were going to be the perfect close to today. Unfortunately that was not going to happen. We found a café across the street and went inside. Looking at the menu I lost my appetite and was going to order a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and maybe a cup of soup. Sensing my upset and disgust at the menu Scott had the brilliant idea to call the restaurant at the hotel El Tovar and see when their last seating was. It was in 30 minutes. We were so there. We had a decent meal, but compared to what our option had been, it was perfect!

Sunrise was at 7:38 and it seemed a waste not to see it in a setting such as this. It was freezing due to high winds. Stopping for shots I was so cold that I could barely operate the camera and while Scott was taking his pictures I found refuge crawling under a pine tree out of the path of the wind. I felt like some mountain creature, all I had to do was shit in tiny pebbles and start gnawing on some pine bark and that would have sealed it.

Given our time constraint we only had about an hour to hike down the canyon a bit. Not before the most awesome breakfast ever in the restaurant of the El Tovar. Scott chose this history rich hotel because not only was it solid with spirit and structure, it sits on the rim of the canyon. We walked out of the hotel directly to the rim overlooking the stage where the Colorado River and the high Arizona plateau did their dance to the song of time millions of year ago. The canyon is immense dropping a mile down in some places. We took a short hike down the canyon before moving on to Hoover Dam. Going back up was quite a workout and because of the elevation I was a bit dizzy and had to take the stroll a bit more slowly. It was better this way because I could take in more of the scenery.

We parked at the dam and walked toward the center of the dam. Scott told me to close my eyes and led me to the railing where he told me to open my eyes and what I saw was amazing. The engineering that went into this structure is impressive as is the power it generates. They say Vegas is lit by the power from the dam. What I thought to be kind of cool was that there is a spot on the walkway where the state line between Nevada and Arizona is drawn as well as the line for the change from Mountain to Pacific Time. A funny thing happened right before we entered the park, we had to pass through a security check and well…

The forecast today called for more ice and ridiculously cold temperatures. Soon after we left New Mexico the sun shined bright and clear without a cloud in the sky. It remained this way all day and thank god because we spent a lot of time outside. Today was our field trip to the Petrified Forest and the Meteor Crater in Arizona.

The forest was first and man what a trip to see these logs that look like wood, had the look of bark and the rings of interior wood, but as you put a hand on it, it’s solid rock. The wood became saturated with silica long ago and over time it hardened to its present state. The ground was littered with small pieces and shards of it and I was really tempted to take a piece although it is strictly prohibited. My rationale was a small piece won’t matter and I really did not feel like purchasing it from a store; I prefer to spend my money someplace that puts my dollars back into the park. Scott politely stated that if everybody did that then the park would surely be emptied in no time. I agreed – reluctantly.

I am getting much better with my camera and becoming more adventurous with tones, angles and lighting adjustments. Practice makes perfect and experience has always been my best teacher (Scott isn’t half bad, either).

On the way out we stopped at a shop that sold pieces of the wood that came from an outsourcing station and the owner assured me that it was all keeping in tune with karma. I really like the idea of wearing something that is so old and has seen so much.

It was then off to the crater and we pulled in the parking lot 30 minutes before they were to close; this seems to be a theme with us. They were cool enough to let us take our time and enjoy the crater and museum. This thing is enormous and it is the most well preserved example of a meteor impact in the world. Pictures cannot even come close to illustrate the size and presence of this thing. We were lucky enough to catch the last showing of the film and did you know that sometime in 2020 or there about a meteor will pass near the orbit of the Earth coming in at about 230,000 miles from us? It comes back 7 years later, but they are unsure of how close it will be that time. All through the tour I was constantly reminded of that movie “Deep Impact” and realized that the probability of that happening is quite high. Oh well. If it’s going to happen it’s going to happen. You’d better be wearing clean underwear.

Next stop Grand Canyon.

I couldn’t wait to get to the hotel and write this down. Tonight’s meal was absolutely delish! Scott knows the owners of Geronimo. Although neither of them were present, we had an incredible meal.

The place smelled of perfection – always a good sign. You can tell how good a restaurant will be by how you are greeted at the door. We stood only a minute before the host approached and told us he was glad we were here. This was a first, nobody has ever used that welcome line! The place was tastefully decorated with a Southwestern motif and accents of stainless steel. Chic. The stemware was either Reidel or Spiegle I couldn’t tell, but you could hardly go wrong with either.

Johnathan, our waiter, was very professional except for being guilty of practicing one of my biggest pet peeves. He asked if everything was OK after every course and on one occasion approached with the inquiry before I could get my fork into the tart. One should assume in a place like this that everything is wonderful and if there is a problem for whatever reason, you are around making yourself seen by the guest so they can get your attention if need be. That’s just me.

I always enjoy doing the chef’s tasting menu when I can. Geronimo fortunately had two, a seafood menu and meat menu, both came with the option to have the courses paired with a selected wine. I opted for the meat and Scott the seafood. I had decided against the wine pairing for I felt that the varietals were a little weak. Scott chose the wine pairing; his selections were much more suited for those varietals. Now for the money shot.

I began with a warm tart of olive oil marinated tomatoes with olive oil infused goat cheese over smoked salmon, egg salad. Delicate and mighty tasty I thought the cheese was a bit excessive for the size of the tart. Next, Scott was served grilled Diver scallops with a petite frisee salade and a parsley chimi churi. I enjoyed butter braised Morel mushrooms with Maytag Bleu dressed Boston lettuce. At this point I ordered a glass of Zinfandel by Trinitas, a domestic and Scott had a local sparkling Blanc de Noir, a sparkling wine made from pinot noir grapes.

A delicate pairing of subtle well done textures set the mood for our next course. I am picky when it comes to dressing; often times asking for it on the side. I should have done it here, but I thought it might sound rude. The lettuce, although perfect in size and crunch, was drenched in the dressing and the addition of dry crumbles added to the overdose. The mushrooms were braised long enough to take on a buttery note and seared just enough to shroud the buggers in a veil of thin carmelization. At this point we were served an Intermezzo, a in between petit course that in theory is supposed to clean the palate and is usually sorbet. The sorbet du jour was coconut and it was sublime.

For the main event I had oven roasted lamb “Diane” with a green peppercorn cognac cream and fingerling potatoes. I ordered a merlot out of the vineyard of Robert Sinskey. To go with his ZD chardonnay, Scott had an Hawaiian tuna steak with Japanese horseradish potatoes and a tomato scallion compote with a lime soy shrimp fond. This was orgasmic as was my lamb. It was so good that Scott, not usually a fan of lamb had two bites.

To finish I had a duo of cheesecake, Bailey’s and toffee. A chocolate mousse and flourless chocolate cake sent Scott into chocolate convulsions. I though his Graham’s port was a poor choice; the sweetness dominated instead of complimenting. I wish we had saved some for later, I’m hungry again!

We woke up early today and I shivered all the way to the restaurant to cash in on our free breakfast before tackling the caves.

A small opening in the ground lead us down below the ground of New Mexico; the down equivalent to walking up to the top of the Empire State Building.

What waited for us is beyond words and pictures although I will try to illustrate using both.

New Mexico was once the coastline of the ocean home to a huge marine reef. The temperature then was close to what you would find in the Caribbean today. As the coral and other organisms died, they settled and collected forming limestone, the major component in the composition of the caverns. Limestone, gases from oil fields deep in the ground and oxygen rich rainwater produced chemical reactions that dissolved the stone leaving behind immense underground caves that in some spots reached over 250 ft high.

Just to scale the size a bit, imagine 14 football fields side to side and there you have it.

Stalactites and stalagmites are formed when calcium rich water drips to the ground from the ceiling. Over time the water drips and drips, leaving behind the calcium crystal to collect and build on itself. The formations that reach up from the ground are the stalagmites while the ones that hang above looking like prehistoric chandeliers are stalactites.

It is mind boggling to think about the time it took to create these formations – some reaching well over 20ft into the air. To be in the company of such magnificent geological wonders was truly humbling in every sense of the word.

The tour was astounding. We were there off season and sometimes were the only ones on the trail. We rented small cell phone devices that gave informative audio segments when we dialed numbers seen on small signs lining the trail. I would have loved to been here to see the look on the face of the first man to discover this.

Back in the day they lowered people down by means of a bucket big enough for a standing couple.

This was by far a huge winner and highlight. 5 hours and a hundred pictures later we were back on the surface and off to Santa Fe for dinner at a place Scott recommended called Geronimo.

We drove today… and drove and drove all the way to New Mexico. We ate Mexican and stopped for gas along the way. Twice.

We were met this morning with freezing rain and cold weather. In the first 30 mins we saw two very eye opening and sobering reminders that I should take extra care with Milo today. One truck was atop a bridge some 100ft off the ground and had his back driver side tire over the side of the bridge. Somehow he had managed to slide up the side of the road and get his tire to hang over. The thought of what possibly could have happened was absolutely frightening. Farther down the road we saw a small truck that had the driver side of the truck banged, nicked and scratched. The roof of the car had been indented and parts of it were buckled and folded into the cab of the truck. The windows were smashed and it was clear that the truck rolled and came to rest right side up. Luckily the driver was lucid and talking to a couple of people who had stopped to help. I kept well below the speed limit the entire drive. The leaves and branches of trees decorated the sides of the road with sparkles and shimmers from the ice storm a few short hours before.

We managed to get into town 30 mins before the restaurant closed so we parked Milo and ran across the street to catch the last seating. Opening the menu I noticed the local brew was Roswell Alien Amber. When in Rome!

Tomorrow morning, bright and early, we are spending the day playing in Carlsbad Caverns. I cannot wait, the descriptions sound awesome so it should prove to be a very fun day.