The leaves on the Aspens at the entrance station have turned quite a bit in one week:
North Rim
My Turkey Hunt Was A Success!
There are lots of wild turkeys here, but they are hard to find for most of the season. In fall, th0ugh, you may see a whole flock of them in a meadow, taking advantage of all the seeds falling from the grass and wildflowers out there. And while hunting is prohibited at the Grand Canyon National Park, but I went hunting today anyway–with my camera. My quest was a huge success!
(if the video doesn’t show up, click on the link to it. )Turkey Hunt
The First Sign of Fall
Yesterday at the entrance station, there were just these few leaves on that aspen over there that had turned yellow. It won’t be long now until the whole roadside is a glowing gold!
Not Much Going On
Another week gone by, and I have nothing much going on. I still have stuff to upload to the Etsy store, but haven’t had time to get it done. No sewing accomplished this week, either. I worked the late shift, so by the time I got home every evening this week, I was just plain pooped. All I wanted to do was eat my dinner and take a shower, then put my feet up.
Today we were off, and FabGrandpa suggested that we go to breakfast at the lodge. He didn’t have to ask me twice. The lodge was built in 1928. It has massive beams in the ceiling, and lots of windows that provide great views of the canyon. We didn’t get there until 9:00 a.m, so it wasn’t very crowded. We got a seat by a window, so I was able to get some good pictures.
My breakfast was two eggs over medium, hashbrowns, and bacon. Lots of coffee, too. I could have ordered a fruit plate, or huevos rancheros, or even gluten free pancakes. What I got looked and tasted pretty good.
After we ate, we went out on the patio to take some pictures. Yes, I already have tons of photos of the canyon, but it looks different every day, in different light.
Fabgrandpa took my picture. Yes, I was posing.
Then I took his picture, too.
While we were out there, we saw my co-worker out roving. They gave us all pedometers this week–it’s a health and safety “initiative”, designed to get us moving and walking more. So, Richard was out walking the Transept Trail.
We went back home, and did all the grunt work–changed the sheets on the bed, turned the mattress, swept all the floors, shook out all the rugs. Then I cleaned out all the kitchen cabinets and straightened them up, cleaned out the refrigerator, and took out the trash. Yes, everyday life, only at the edge of the Grand Canyon.
We decided to cook out on the new barbecue grill for dinner. I had a whole chicken that needed cooking, so I cut it in half, put on the seasonings, and threw it on the grill. An hour later, it was delicious. I made some oven roasted potatoes with garlic to go with, and our friend, Terry, brought a three bean salad.
Yum, a great dinner, then a beautiful sunset. We sat out there at the picnic table until the stars came out.
Life is truly grand!
Just Another Day At The North Rim
Yesterday was my project day, and since there was nothing to do in the office, I took a drive up to Point Imperial and Cape Royal. The drive up was gorgeous, as usual.
When I got there, my objective was to walk around and talk to the visitors there. They always have questions, and if I can answer them, I do. Yesterday, everyone wanted to know about the fire in Flagstaff. Point Imperial is one of the most visited viewpoints at the North Rim. I can see why:
After about an hour or so, I left, and headed out towards Cape Royal. I wanted to go to the geology talk given by the Interpretive Ranger up there–it started at 2:30. I had enough time to stop by Greenland Lake. Greenland Lake is the only “lake” here. It is created by melting snow. By August, it will be dried up until next spring.
While I was at Greenland Lake, the battery in my camera died, so I was not able to take any more pictures. But I continued on to Cape Royal, and met up with Ranger Gaelyn. Even though this is my third season working here, I have not ever made it to the geology talk. I usually have other duties and don’t have time to go. She did a fabulous job of explaining how the Grand Canyon was formed. Next time you got to a national park, make a point of going to the Ranger Programs.
I’m Ready For A Party
I have my new barbecue grill set up and ready to go on the picnic table.
Got my new outside rug and the solar lights down on the ground.
Got my cute lights hung up in the trees.
But good gosh! The weather just won’t cooperate! Although it was about 70 degrees with sunny skies, and little puffy clouds, the wind is blowing about 45 miles per hour, with gusts up to 60 miles per hour. So, while I’d love to have a barbecue, all I can do is sit here and enjoy the view from my picnic table.
New Old Friends Visit
I have been friends online with Marcie for quite some time. I found out over the winter that she and her husband were going to be working in Kanab, Utah this summer. So, the first time we went down there, I stopped in one of the places that hires workampers and inquired if she worked there, since I couldn’t remember exactly where they would be working.
They didn’t work at that particular location, but the woman who did knew her, because all the workampers who work in Kanab stay at the same RV park. So, I left my business card, and asked that Marcie call me. The next week, she did–they were coming up to the North Rim to see the Grand Canyon, and we made arrangements for them to meet me at my duty station.
It is always so fun to meet the faces behind the online names, and this time was no exception. Marcie was fun, and nice, and just what I expected her to be. She brought along Chris, who I had run into online some, too. She was just as nice and friendly as Marcie. What a treat on a workday to meet such nice people in person!
Gluten Free At The Grand Canyon!
Yesterday was our “Friday”–we have Wednesday and Thursday off. So, when we got off work yesterday, we decided to go out to eat. Going out to eat up here gives you exactly three choices–The North Rim Lodge Dining Room, The Kaibab Lodge, and Jacob Lake Inn. At the North Rim Lodge Dining Room you have to have a reservation for dinner. We called, and the earliest appointment we could get for a steak was 9:15 p.m. So, that was out as we were both already starving.
To get to Jacob Lake Inn, it is a 45 mile drive, so we also decided not to go there. Which left the Kaibab Lodge. It is about a 20 mile drive to Kaibab Lodge, not so bad, so we jumped in the truck and headed down there. When we got there, we discovered that they do not start serving dinner until 5:00 p.m and it was only 4:30. We decided to wait, and ordered a glass of wine and a beer. I was not impressed with the person behind the counter, either. She was just a little on the rude side, but we still decided to wait.
Right at 5:00, several people came in, went up to the counter, and were talking with the person there, the same one who seemed a little rude to me. I got the impression that these people were other employees there. They were waited on first. We waited until ten after five, and no one ever came to our table, or even looked in our direction, so we left. In all, we waited about 40 minutes before we decided to leave.
We went home, and I made some bacon and eggs–sooooo not what I had in mind for my Friday night dinner. This morning, we had to get up and move our trailer from one spot to another, which is a major pain in the hiney. You have to do just as much work to move 50 feet as you do to move 500 miles. It took up about three hours start to finish. It was about noon when we got done, and both of us were hungry again. We decided to go to the North Rim Lodge Dining Room for lunch. You don’t need a reservation there for lunch.
This is my third season working here at the North Rim. Last year, I had talked to the manager of the restaurant about getting some gluten free choices on the menu, but he never gave me a good answer “yes” or “no” that they would do that. I also talked to the park service person who is in charge of concessionaires. He asked me to email him some info on gluten free eating and gluten intolerance, so I did, but I did not hear anything back from him. Now, I don’t know if “I” had anything to do with this, but listen to this:
When we went to the lodge for lunch today, I asked about something on the menu by saying “Does it have any wheat in it?” and the waiter responded “Do you mean gluten free?” I was soooo excited about that. Ed, the waiter, brought me a two page gluten free menu, and told me that they need a 24 hour notice but they can make anything on that gluten free menu for me if I want them to. And there are some really good choices on that menu–not just stripped versions of the “regular” menu. They even have gluten free pancakes on the breakfast menu!
While Forever Resorts, the concessionaire that operates Grand Canyon Lodge at the North Rim, does not have their gluten free menu or the information about calling ahead 24 hours in advance to request some of their gluten free options on their website, I have sent them an email suggesting that they add it. But isn’t it wonderful to know that you CAN get a good tasty meal with a such a great view?
Here are some of the options on the menu:
Gluten Free Pancakes with butter and maple syrup: $6.60
Ranch Hand Breakfast: 2 organic eggs served with bacon or sausage and fresh cottage potatoes $8.20
Tiyo Tomato Salad layers of ripened tomato, fresh mozzarella and basil leaves $8.90
Southwest Shrimp Cocktail chilled jumbo shrimp with a cilantro-horseradish cocktail sauce $10.90
Pasta Primavera gluten free penne pasta tossed with sauteed vegetables, garlic, white wine and olive oil $12.45
Salsa Chicken char-grilled all natural chicken breast served over black bean chili salsa with avocado and roasted pine nuts $12.45
Fresh Utah Trout please inquire of our server for today’s gluten free special preparation and accompaniments $19.90
Wafer Surprise (dessert) gluten free wafers with chocolate fondue
These are not the only things on the menu, there are more items, just wanted to pass along that they do have some very good options!