HOLLLAAAAAA.
This post will be all about the adventures of Amanda and Marissa at the Grand Canyon. For Turkey Day!!
We came, we saw, we froze to death.
So, let me back up a bit. Why the FERK did we decide to go camping for Thanksgiving? Well, we figured it was a nice, long weekend and it's so close, Why not?! Plus we could swing by the family we used to babysit for, who moved to Arizona, on the way. WINWIN. My parents weren't too happy that we ditched them buttttt they got over it. Yolo mom, yolo...
THE PREPARATION
As one might recall from my previous post, Amanda likes to plan...
Ohhh and this doesn't even include all the handwritten food lists we had.
I drove down a couple of days early so I could do the last minute shopping. We thought it would be difficult to prepare a Thanksgiving meal by campfire, so we decided to prep and bring one with us! The day before we left, I spent hours slaving away in the kitchen whipping mashed potatoes, preparing brussel sprouts and roasting a turkey.
THE DESCENT INTO THE DESERT
The majority of the road trip to Arizona I spent asleep. I was catching Zzzz's while Amanda did most of the driving. And by most I mean all of it. But it's ok because I drove the whole way back. Oh fun fact. When you are figuring out how long it will take to get somewhere make sure you take into account a time change if there is one. And going to Arizona, unbeknownst to us, THERE IS ONE. Which means you will arrive at your destination an hour later than originally planned.
Since it was sorta on the way, we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to visit a family we used to babysit for - it had been two years since we last saw them. We ended up arriving an hour late to the Corely's house (damn time change) and unfortunately it meant we had an hour less time with the kids. It was fun seeing them all again after they MOVED AWAY AND ABANDONED US. It was great being able to catch up and play with the kids. After a fantastic game of hide and seek and a trip to the park, Amanda and I had to give our hugs (with some extra hugs, and someone even snuck in a piggy back ride from each of us) and then we set off for the Grand Canyon.
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Dawww. The little munchkins (baby not pictured)
We still had three more hours until we reached the campsite and we were already prettttyyyy worn out from the kids, so we had to sing show tunes to stay awake.
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We arrived at Mather Campground after the sun went down so we had to set up in the dark. We left the headlights on so it wasn't bad at all. JUST FRICKEN COLD. That night, we put on 3 pairs of pants, 4 sweatshirts and bundled up for bed. Periodically throughout the night, Amanda stuck her finger under my nose to see if I was still breathing. I guess she was having dreams I was dead and I didn't move all night, so she wanted to make sure I didn't freeze to death. How thoughtful.
THE CAMPSITE
Ok I won't bore you with my ramblings. Here are a bunch of photos.
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Our tent. The rocks we used for decor purposes. |
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MMMMMBACON |
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Just hanging out |
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Even though we each had our own hammock, Amanda had to bother me in mine.😒 |
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CORNHOLE |
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And I won, obviously. |
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Cards. Amanda won... 😒 |
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Wild nature animals and stuff |
We spent most of the day hanging out and playing games. And eating. Lots of eating.
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Oh man. That egg mess thooooo |
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Chef Amanda. But just remember I did all the hard prep work already. |
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OH SHIT. THOSE SPROUTS. YAS GIRL YAS. |
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Our Thanksgiving Dinner. Sprouts, Cranberry Sauce, Green Beans, Rolls, Mashed Potatoes and Turkey. And lots of wine. |
Yes, I added some fancy table decorations I found on the ground. It was a fantastic meal. I highly suggest making a thanksgiving meal next time you go camping.
THE GRANDEST CANYON OF THEM ALL
Ok enough about the campsite and food. Time for the Grand Canyon!!
Our campsite was about half a mile from the South Rim. We went to a few different lookouts along the South side. The lookouts were about 0.5 miles from the campsite. Even though we could have walked... we drove. It was cold ok!! I think we spent more time circling the tiny parking lots looking for a spot than we did looking at the Canyon. Even though we went during the off season, it was still busy and parking was horrible. If you are planning a trip, keep that in mind, and get there early. On our last day, we woke up extra early to catch the sunrise before we took off. It was worth it. (Plenty of parking spots before sunrise.)
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Look at the majestic bird flying over us |
And that was it! I drove us back to LA and the next day I embarked back home in the holiday traffic. Side note: I wish the 5, between the Grapevine and Sacramento, was the autobahn. Get your damn mini van going 55 mph OUT OF MY WAY.
Overall it was a fun, but freezing trip. Highly recommend going and camping. I also highly recommend camping with Amanda and I because we are so much fun.
Alright. The End. Catch ya next time.
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