Grand Canyon 123 |
Keith Speaks |
Driving from Las Vegas to the South Rim During Winter (an adventure!)
But I get ahead of myself.
I got into Vegas on Wednesday night and the weather was fine. That all changed on Thursday morning as the first major storm nailed the southwest.
How big was it? Well, it rained steady the entire time I was there. Not drizzle but torrents. And, if any of you know Vegas, it's famous for having a horrible drainage system.
I don't know why this is. I suspect it's related to growth and the ever-changing landscape. But it really hit home when I couldn't park at The Quad because there was a river running through the parking garage!
By the way, skip staying at The Quad. It's a work in progress. It used to be the Imperial Palace and for the most part still is. Indeed, they've updated the exterior and the gaming area. But the rooms! Mine didn't have heat. It also didn't have a coffee maker and a working TV (incredible). The Internet was so spotty that I resorted to my mobile phone. The place was just plain decrepit.
The Aria, on the other hand, is a masterpiece. The place is beautiful but it costs big bucks. However, after 4 days at The Quad, I'm up for it and will probably give the Aria a go in the spring.
So the drive from Vegas to the South Rim...
I had rain and FOG from Hoover Dam to Kingman. It wasn't a light fog. It was a bank of fog. I couldn't believe it. Things got better when I rolled into Kingman.
Then the storm kicked into high gear and I had to detour down to Phoenix via Wickieup/Wickenburg. Totally out of my way but I was driving a Mazda 2 - it's so light that I would have been spinning all over the highway in a snow shower.
I made it back on to a main freeway and headed up to Sedona. I was going to break there for the night but caught a "tunnel" through the snow showers and arrived at Flagstaff around 10 p.m. That was enough driving for the day.
I purposely got up late on Sunday so temperatures would warm up and get rid of the ice on the bridges as I headed to Williams, AZ, and then Tusayan/Grand Canyon.
It was a sound plan and I patted myself on the back until I hit blizzard conditions in Williams. I pulled over in town, checked out the Grand Canyon Railway, walked the one main street in town and debated my next move.
The snowfall increased as I mulled the situation. Scrap it all. Time to go chill out in Sedona, get a latte and enjoy the red rocks. I'm due up at the South Rim at Christmas time anyhow.
The point here is that winter up in northern Arizona is a fickle game. I recommend checking out the five-day forecasts prior to heading up/over. I also suggest you bookmark weather.com on your mobile, which is what saved my bacon.
Regarding your vehicle. Make sure it's not a Mazda 2. Get a heavier, full-sized sedan. Even better, use/rent an SUV. I probably could have sucked it up and drove through the worst of it but I had no confidence that my car would have stuck to the road.
And before you pull out, check tread and tire pressure. Make sure the de-fogger works, too. There were multiple times where I had to crack the window to get steam off the windshield. In fact, turn the heating system on full blast. This is the last thing you want failing on a winter road trip.
And a quick word about Hertz rental car. I love these guys, but this time they totally dropped the ball. I was told that I could change out the Mazda to something better/heavier in the compact class. So I attempted to do just that before I left Vegas.
The Hertz phone system is crazy. The hold times were ridiculous. I felt like I was chasing my own tail. Nobody at the McCarran Airport Hertz location would pick up so I got redirected to some national call center. The person there said she'd send a text to McCarran about my request and I should hear back shortly. Never did.
But look, traveling is about overcoming obstacles to reach your goals. I didn't quite make it to the canyon this time. Looking back, though, the odds weren't really in my favor. But I'll say this: It was sure pretty up there with all the fresh powder!
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Travel on!
