Las Vegas Day 3 - Grand Canyon - 4.5 hours drive from Las Vegas

The main reason we rented the car was to drive to Grand Canyon from Las Vegas. There are many 1-day tours from Las Vegas but they usually start at very early in the morning (6:30 am or earlier) and tend to cramp in too many people in one vehicle and herd people around like sheep. That was why we prefer travelling our own. I treasure my beauty sleep and waking up before 6:30 am, being packed like sardines and herd around like sheep did not sound like a holiday to me at all.

We woke up at a leisurely time of 9 am and set off from the Venetian at 10 am. It was kinda cloudy which was great for driving since it was dry but not super hot. For those who have never driven from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon, it IS a long drive. How long? Probably too long for 1 driver, especially for a day trip. Both my husband and I took turns to drive on the way there. There are decent washroom stops along the way so there is really no need to limit your water consumption in the car. Since the weather is dry and hot, I definitely recommend drinking more water. You don't want to get heat stroke before you reach your destination. We stopped made 4 stops on the way there, washroom breaks, snacks, lunch and ice-cream. Probably too many stops since we only made 2 stops on the way back. 3 stops is prob more ideal for the 4.5 hours drive.

We arrived at the Grand Canyon National Park @ 3 pm (5 hours since we left our hotel). If you have GPS and follow the signs, it is pretty straight forward. There is a US$25 charge per car for a 7-day visit.

The Grand Canyon is one of the 7 Natural Wonders in the world, one of Earth's most powerful, inspiring landscapes.  Its story tells of geological processes played out over unimaginable time spans as a unique combination of size, colour and dazzling erosional forms.

Grand Canyon View from Different Stops @ the South Rim

We certainly took the time to appreciate the beautiful sequence of rock layers that serve as a windows into time. The carving of the canyon is only the most recent chapter, in a long story. The long story includes rocks nearly 2 billion (2,000,000,000) years old in the bottom of the canyon, land masses colliding and drifting apart, mountains forming and eroding away, sea levels rising and falling and relentless forces of moving water. The Colorado River, flowing 2,250 km (1,400 miles) from Colorado  to the Gulf of California carved the Grand Canyon 5-6 million years ago. What makes Grand Canyon's geology more remarkable than many canyons is that it sits incised into an elevated plateau. The desert landscape exposes the geology to view instead of hiding it under a cloak of vegetation.

Grand Canyon View from Different Stops @ the South Rim

The Grand Canyon National Park is made up of two rims - The South Rim and the North Rim. Both rims are just 10 miles apart if you fly across like a bird but 356 km (215 miles) by road. We went to the South Rim this time since I have been to the North Rim twice with tours. South Rim elevation is 2,100 m (7000 ft) with temperatures between 10-30°C (50s - 80s  °F) in Summer and -7 to 10 C (20s - 50s °F) in Winter. The North Rim, 300 m  (1000 ft) higher, is about 6°C (10 °F) cooler than the South Rim. The South Rim is open all year. North Rim services are open mid-May to mid-October. Winter snow closes the North Rim and often briefly blankets the South Rim.

Grand Canyon View from Different Stops @ the South Rim

There are plenty to do at the Grand Canyon if you are a nature person and would like to experience nature and themselves at the most basic. Many say that in the slow pace, the aloneness and the vastness, they find extraordinary beauty, inner peace, adventure and some times a part of themselves they never even knew existed. This, for many, is the value of wildness. Unfortunately, we only planned a day trip at the Grand Canyon and so we do what city folks do - stay for the sunset. Would have loved stick around for star gazing too.

Grand Canyon View from Different Stops @ the South Rim

We did the 25 mile drive from the Grand Canyon Visitor Centre to Desert View and stayed for the sunset @ 7:49 pm. It was an amazing 5 hours spent at the South Rim. The longest time I have spent at the Grand Canyon (I prob spent 2 hours max when I visited the North Rim and it was super crowded).

Sunset at the Grand Canyon

Sunset at the Grand Canyon

Sunset at the Grand Canyon

The sunset was a beautiful conclusion to our Grand Canyon trip. It would have been a wonderful ending if we had booked a hotel in the area for the night. We could even have dinner first and go back and check out the millions of stars since the Grand Canyon protects the dark skies to limit the impact of light and air pollution for star gazing.

Unfortunately, we did not just have to drive another 4.5 hours back to the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, I had to do it all by myself because my husband forgot to bring his regular glasses (he only brought his sunglasses) and he could not drive at night!!

I managed to get a glimpse of the starry night but since I was the only driver, we did not have the luxury of time to go back to the Grand Canyon and enjoy the stars for the night! So, if you do plan a trip to the Grand Canyon, stay there for the night. I am sure the millions of stars will be so worth while.

Driving 4.5 hours was not the most fun drive but it was definitely one that would go down my history of driving as one of the most unforgettable drive. If you have read my earlier blogs, you would remember that we rented a Toyota Corolla and that the lady at Thrifty was trying to up sell the Mustang Convertible to us. We did not realize how effective the up selling program was until we drove out of Las Vegas that day. We must have seen at least 10 Mustang convertibles for every hour that we were on the road!

It was during my 4.5 hours drive back to Las Vegas that I missed driving a SUV! Most drivers were very considerate and they did not use high beam when they were cars in front or cars approaching except for a few insensitive idiots! However, when a SUV was behind our Toyota Corrolla, even their regular headlights appear like high beam on my mirrors. It was definitely not the most comfortable experience. If you plan to drive for more than 2 hours at night on long trips, rent a SUV. It will make the driving experience so much better.

We finally made it back to the Venetian at 1:30 am. Although it took us nearly 10 hours to drive there and back, it was a wonderful day trip to the Grand Canyon. Will I drive to the Grand Canyon again? Definitely! BUT I would definitely stay for a night there and do the star gazing! Then again, we were happy to be back in the comfort of a 5-star hotel. :)