This Spring, the Rolnik family took a serious back-to-nature trip. No, we didn't camp outdoors. Rather we drove through New Mexico and Arizona. First stop was the Carlsbad Caverns. As a world traveler, I can tell you, the Caverns are awesome, and surpass many of the other scenes I've seen worldwide. The stalagmites and stalagtites are as big as busses, and the main chamber of the cavern seems large enought to contain a jumbo jet! It trully is a natural wonder. It was extremely worthwhile to pay the extra $7 to take ranger-led tours through relatively unimproved portions of the cave system.
Following that, we visited the Grand Cavern. The first day, the family climbed down over 500 feet of the Bright Angel trail. There was still ice on the trail, which made it quite challenging. The next day, we hiked the Hermit's Rest trail. The sights were absolutely breathtaking. Sharon, through careful planning, brought sufficient water and food for the whole family to hike about 5 miles -- sometimes over rough terrain. We'll come back to visit the canyon again someday.
We do highly recommend the train ride from Williamsport (sp?) to the Grand Canyon. The folks who run the train have done an excellent job with on-board entertainment. First, they have a roving guitar-playing singer. Secondly, the train attendants were very personable and informative concerning the scenes along the rails, as well as the attractions at the Canyon. Lastly, they stage a train hold-up by horseback riding outlaws. Very much worth the logistics of catching the train.
