A little after 8am we were on our way to the Grand Canyon. Since the Canyon was about 2.5 hours away we (Larry, Joanne, Tom and I) decided we would take 2 vehicles so we could take the dogs along. About 25 miles north of Camp Verde we began to see snow along the road and a little before Flagstaff the ground was covered with inches to feet of snow. The sky was very gray and threatening appearing. As we neared the Grand Canyon we saw some snow flakes falling. Our first stop was the Visitor's Center at Mather Point. We made our way out to the point but the pathways were snow and ice covered from previous snows. Clouds were hanging over the Canyon and snow showers could be seen in different areas of the Canyon.
We made our way to the area of the lodges and in the Bright Angel Lodge we got some lunch. After lunch we walked about this area over looking the Canyon. We went into a gift shop that was on the edge of the Canyon and when we came out the snow was coming down hard.
Bare spots on the walkways were quickly covered with snow. Visiblity in the Canyon was close to 0. We then decided that we would leave the Canyon for today. As we traveled from the Canyon the snow became lighter and we encountered a few showers of snow through Williams and Flagstaff. According to the T.V. the high temperature in the Canyon today was 37 degrees. Yesterday morning the temperature in the Canyon was -5 degrees. It was cold but worth the chill! When we got back to Camp Verde the outside temperature at 5:30pm was 60 degrees. The temperature variance is due to the altitude of the area.
We had thought about camping in the Canyon campground but decided against it. The low temperatures would have made it difficult to keep warm. Today we found road closures in the park due to snow that had not been removed from the roadways. We are glad we were able to get up for the day and hope to someday to return again.
