North Rim of Grand Canyon

We woke up at 4:00am to get to the canyon’s edge for sunrise. It was pitch black save for some stars in the night sky. Luckily, there were a few other insane people heading to the canyon’s edge with cameras and tripods in tow. We followed them figuring they knew where was the best spot to shoot from.  Of course, we eschewed the viewing station surrounded by a sturdy fence and headed closer to the edge of the black abyss. We found a nice rock outcropping in which to set up. We setup our tripods, mounted our cameras, and settled in for the beginning of sunrise.  The minutes ticked by. Finally, the sky lightened just enough to see the makings of a canyon before us. As I readied for my first shot of the day, I heard a loud,” Good Morning!” from right behind me. If there was a roof, I would have jumped through it. This photographer had been just a few feet above me and right behind me all the time.  I never saw him. Scared Breathless.

Jeff setting up in front of the abyss for sunrise. Quiet stranger behind him.

As the sky brightened I was able to better see our location. We were indeed perched on an outcropping. Looking over the edge it was at least 1000 feet down to a messy death. Doubly Scared Breathless.

Just before the sun rose, during the blue hour, the subtle lighting makes this scene breathless.

Just after sunrise the Canyon started to light up.

Looking in the other direction (from the photos above), the lighting was amazing.

Recovered from these heart pounding experiences, we finished up the shoot and headed back to the car. On the way back we came across a very large, Anaconda-looking, yellow and black snake crossing our path. Since I was now experienced in being scared, I volunteered to be scared of the snake. It really wasn’t hard. Triply Scared Breathless.

Maybe it’s not an Anaconda and just a Gopher Snake. Regardless he struck fear in my heart.

It wasn’t all fright for us. Some of the vistas of the canyon from the north side were spectacular. You could say they took our breath way. Fourthly Breathless.

Across the canyon from us, a brilliant rainbow lit up the sky.

Even the clouds came to play – adding to the great coloring on the Canyon wall.

As the sun leaves, it provides the warm, red light for the rock face.

The sun has now set but it still illuminates the clouds. Notice the rain coming from the cloud.

Even the wildflowers were beautiful. With the elevation at or around 8800 feet above sea level, the wildflowers bloom in August (as apposed to March/April in Scottsdale). Everywhere we went, everywhere we looked, there were wildflowers. They took Kathryn’s breath away.  I appreciated them at my own male level. Fifthly Breathless.

Found these beauties in a ditch by the side of the road. You have to wonder why I was in a ditch.

After climbing out of the ditch, I bumped into these.

Being at 8800 feet may bring on the wildflowers in August. How they thrive is beyond me.  There is no oxygen at 8800 feet.  Just walking up a flight of stairs leaves me… Wait for it.  Breathless!

I’m out of breath. No more talking. Blog is over.

Remember, it’s all about the light (gasp).