After 700 miles on the road, I stopped for my second night in Williams, AZ.  A mural downtown declares that Williams, on historic Route 66, was the last town to be bypassed by I-40.  I didn’t give myself enough time to explore Williams—but I’ll go back someday.

On the third day of the trip, I was up and gone before dawn.  This time, I was heading north from Williams on Arizona Highway 64.  I watched the sunrise from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, near Mather Point.

How to put this… I had, shall we say, high expectations of the Grand Canyon.

And maybe, for the first time in my life, my expectations were too low.  I’m sure a poet could say it better, but I don’t think any photograph or painting could truly capture the scale and grandeur. My heart was racing the entire time I was there.