Williams AZ. and the south rim of the Grand Canyon

For those of you considering visiting the Grand Canyon, go early and beat the crowds. Williams, AZ. is a convenient spot to overnight prior to visiting the canyon. In fact, from Williams, you can either drive or take a train into the national park, and either mode of transport will take about an hour each way. The train arrives in the park around 11:00 AM and stays for a few hours then goes back to the Route 66 town of Williams. For us we chose to drive our truck so we could have more independence. We left our dog, Paco, back in our air conditioned trailer and regretted it once we saw other people walking their dogs along the rim of the Grand Canyon. As we have since learned well behaved dogs are totally welcomed in most of the national parks.
    After seeing the park in both winter and the summer settings, I would recommend seeing the park just after a fresh snow fall, for it is turns the already dramatic scenery into a picturesque wonderland. The weather in winter is cool, crisp and dry so it would be entirely doable for a family to see in the winter months, even without heavy winter attire.
   On this trip, we arrived just after the park opened and there were only a couple vehicles ahead of us at the entrance. However, as we were exiting the park there was a line of vehicles waiting to gain entry, into the park, that stretched for an eternity. Again, go early and avoid the throngs of humanity, if possible. The park itself has a great free bus system, so once you are in the park you can move around via bus or hike and bike all over the place. Also, for the animal lovers, there are elk and other animals literally everywhere, once you're in the park, adding to the wild feel of the area.
   
         

Looking into the abyss of an amazing natural wonder.

Williams, Arizona is a true Route 66 town with lots of the cafes and souvenir shops.

The cars drove slowly and the town still retained it's charm from yesteryear.

Our kids found time to jump on our RV park's bounce pad. Who knows, perhaps this might be all my kids remember of the Grand Canyon?   

Elk were everywhere.

Beautiful views.

Nature comes in all sizes at the park.

One of the few pictures of the 4 of us.

The colors and textures are amazing in the park.

This is the hotel where the train from Williams, AZ. drops people off at the rim.

The pueblo house is a place to buy souvenirs.

After two days and many miles of hiking the girls were spent. 

Distance and depth blend together in the canyon.

Beautiful scenery.